Digital Futures training programme

Image of the Digital Futures 'Interactive Stories' training session

Museum Development Officers run training programmes and provide one-to-one support for museums right across London

In 2018 - 2022, the Digital Futures Programme will excite the London museum sector with the possibilities of digital technologies and digital engagement. Through the training programme, London Museum Development will deliver at least 12 courses each year aimed at developing the digital skills of London's museums. These courses have been designed and tailored for London's museums, based on the feedback from our Training Needs Analysis of the London non-national museum sector (PDF 690kb, opens in new tab). The programme has also been influenced by the findings of the Mendoza Review, Culture is Digital and Digital Culture 2017 reports.

The Digital Futures training programme will take a modular approach, with sessions focused on social media and marketing, digital content creation and digital 'back of house'. Each module will start with a briefing session which will focus on the different skills and literacies needed for museums within each module. You can download a calendar for 2019 - 2020 to see when we will be delivering each module and the types of courses on offer (PDF 354kb, opens in new tab). You can apply for a place on these courses below, or directly through our booking form.

Digital Futures training sessions

Building a Social Media Strategy
Friday 31 May, 12 - 3pm
Museum of London, London Wall

This course aims to give you pointers on how to construct and/or review a social media strategy, one based around your institution’s goals, personality and content. We will put this into the context of other museums that use social media, and how their content could fit into a wider strategy. We will also discuss how a social media strategy, and your content, can help to guide how you interact with your audience. Download a full course outline (PDF 181kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book your place.

Analyse This: An Introduction to Facebook Insights & Twitter Analytics
Friday 28 June, 1 - 4pm
Museum of London, London Wall

The majority of social media platforms have in-built analytics. But the statistics that they provide can be daunting, and interpreting them can be difficult. In this short session, we’ll focus on how you can use the in-built analytics of Facebook and Twitter to your advantage. We’ll discuss how analysing your audience, and your content, will make your job easier in the long run. You’ll learn how to interpret the data to better your use of social media, and build a more tailored experience for your online audience. By the end of the session, you will hopefully see the correlations between the numbers on the screen and the audience that you’re engaging on a daily basis. This course is aimed at those who have either just or not yet started using social media analytics. Please note that a basic understanding of how both platforms work is essential. Download a full course outline (PDF 269kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book your place.

Creating Digital Content: How, What, Why?
Tuesday 02 July, 1 - 3.40pm
Museum of London, London Wall

Museums are in a fortunate position – they have a wealth of objects, stories and histories waiting to be shared. But many organisations often struggle to know where to start, what to share and how to share it. In this briefing session, we will discuss the different ways in which museums create digital content using the objects, stories and histories available to them. From creating videos to photographing collections to creating 3D digital models. This session will touch on how you can create digital content and how other organisations are already doing it. This session will be followed by later training sessions on photographing museum collections, creating 3D digital models, making basic videos and designing interactive stories. Download a full course outline (PDF 184kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book a place.

Basic Video Making
Tuesday 16 July, 11am - 3.30pm
Museum of London, London Wall

This session will provide an introduction to making basic videos within the setting of a museum or gallery. This hands-on training session will offer participants the basic skills needed to create their own video content using their own devices; from mobile phones, to tablets, to cameras. The afternoon will give an introduction to editing this footage using free software. By the end of the session, participants will be inspired to make and perform basic editing on their own video content. Download a full course outline (PDF 200kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book your place.

Video Editing for Advanced Beginners
Friday 09 August, 12 - 3pm
Museum of London, London Wall

Photographing Museum Collections
Friday 30 August, 11am - 3pm
Museum of London, London Wall

This course will offer an introduction on how to take good quality images of museum objects. We will look at the types of image files extensions (raw, tiff and jpeg) available, and the differences between a low-resolution image and a high-resolution one, and when to use them. Attendees will be invited to take part in a hands-on workshop, learning how to make the most of their own photographic equipment, as well as using an entry-level professional kit. We will also cover the basics of photographing in Manual Mode. Download a full course outline (PDF 181kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book your place.

Making Basic Budget Museum Interactives
Friday 20 September, 12 - 4pm
Museum of London, London Wall

The aim of this training is to show museum and cultural heritage professionals how to make a free, basic digital interactive for their museum. These interactives can be used for a variety of things, from gallery tours to learning activities. We will look at examples of interactive, and discuss how museums and galleries can use interactive story telling within their spaces. By the end of the session, delegates will have the tool-set to create their own basic interactive to be used both in-house and online. All you’ll need is a laptop and PowerPoint, and a few stories you’d like to tell! Download a full course outline (PDF 182kb, opens in new tab). Please use our online form to book a place.