DEN examined the wishes and needs of the online cultural audience

About the research

The aim of this research was to gather current insights into the wishes and needs of cultural visitors in the Netherlands. What do they expect from culture in the interactive digital space? And in what form can it exist, now and in the future?
To investigate this, 28 respondents participated in an e-safari (opens in new tab). This is a form of qualitative online research to observe respondents in a small, temporary community. Participants in the e-safari answered questions, completed assignments, and discussed various topics and examples of online cultural offerings with other participants.

Who was studied?

The participants were spread across the four intensive cultural visitor groups from the Cultural Target Group Model: cultural omnivores, child-rich culture enthusiasts, lavish culture lovers, and classical culture aficionados. The Cultural Target Group Model segments based on visit frequency, preferences and interests, and demographic characteristics. Additionally, there was a spread of participants based on the Digitality model by Motivaction (opens in new tab).

Findings: online culture is a valuable addition

The research shows that for the majority of cultural visitors, culture is a collective experience; it is created for large groups and is about experiencing together. Online culture has the potential to focus more on the individual. Culture can be enjoyed at any time and place, with the experience being personalized. This individual character of online culture offers a valuable extra dimension alongside the physical experience.

Three sub-conclusions

1. Online culture does not fulfill a conscious need, but the more cultural visitors learn about online culture, the more they recognize its added value.
2. In the experience of online culture, the differences between the Cultural Target Groups are minimal. However, based on ‘digitality,’ there are differences: there is a split between using the digital space for social contact and for functionality.
3. To complement the physical cultural experience, there are several prerequisites for online culture: the platform must work well, the offerings must provide something extra (it is more diverse, broader, or personalized), surprising digital functionalities are used, and the platform is interactive and personal.

How can you act on this now?

Digital possibilities provide the opportunity to bring your offerings online earlier, more personally, or closer to your audience. This allows you to broaden your reach, increase contact with or visit frequency of your existing audience, and enhance the impact of your organization. DEN shares knowledge and inspiration to help you further, for example, read the content below:

• Get to know your audience: Your audience speaks: where do they see opportunities for online offerings? (opens in new tab)
• Curious about the possibilities of online offerings? Get to know digital culture (opens in new tab)
• Be inspired by 5 examples of digital transformation in culture (opens in new tab)
• Who is your audience of the future? Discover it in the workshop Audience of the Future (opens in new tab)

This research was conducted by the research agency Motivaction on behalf of DEN.

This research contributes to DEN's task of gaining insight into the urgency of a shared digital space where cultural audiences and cultural offerings meet. With this, we aim to accelerate and future-proof the digital transformation of the sector.