The Visitor Studies Group: Championing excellent visitor experiences
The latest news and upcoming events from The Visitor Studies Group (VSG)
To find out more or make a booking please see the events posted below.
Share your experience and expertise, take on a new challenge, develop skills and join a supportive team supporting the museum and culture sectors. We are currently recruiting for Committee members to assist with running the VSG Conference and online Events Programme. Do you have ideas you’d like to share? Can you commit a small amount… More
We are delighted to share that VSG Conference 2026 tickets are now on sale! Book via Eventbrite here 20% OFF A LIMITED NUMBER OF IN-PERSON TICKETS USING CODE: EARLYBIRD20 WHEN: Friday 8 May 2025, 9am – 5pm WHERE: Thinktank Birmingham Science Museum ABOUT THE EVENT Join us for the 2026 Visitor Studies Group conference: Experimenting with our Practice. Connect, share and… More
Deadline for proposals 5pm Friday 30th January 2026 We’re delighted to share our Call for Proposals for VSG Conference 2026. The theme is: Experimenting with our Practice. Evaluation and research don’t always follow the path we originally envisioned. Finding the answers to our evaluation questions often involves failure and learning. With the introduction of new technologies,… More
Working without words: adventures in inviting and analysing responses without text or language1.30pm-2.45pm, Tuesday 25th February What happens when we invite audiences and collaborators to respond in ways that don’t easily generate text we can analyse? What about audiences who can’t respond with words at all? In this seminar we will explore example of working with… More
Are you a freelance evaluator, audience researcher or a member of a small research agency? We are looking for people working in freelance roles to support the VSG by joining our new advisory board. We recognise that our current committee does not reflect the sector, and that extra-role time commitments might be more of a… More
We are award-winning audience specialists. We are passionate about helping creative organisations bring audience voices into their decision-making. We know that those who do are more likely to grow and thrive. We love helping you find out who your audiences are, how they behave and what they think, then using this insight to create strategies… More
At elections held in the run up to the VSG AGM on 10 May members voted to approve three proposed amendments to our Constitution , designed to assure the resilience of the VSG. These amendments were proposed by the outgoing Chair were developed following a governance review and trial of a new committee structure. They also… More
We’re thrilled to share the full programme for this year’s conference The cost of culture: measuring barriers affecting the visitor experience. This year’s conference is on 10 May with a pre-conference meet up to the London Transport Museum on the afternoon of 9 May. Each evening will also include an optional social to continue the conversations… More
View our Constitution here>
Audience Services: -Audience (and non-user) research, analysis and development -Evaluation and impact analysis -Research and scoping -Project management Speciality: I am a freelance museums and heritage consultant with over 20 years’ experience in the sector. I specialise in managing, developing and delivering projects that involve partnerships, audiences and storytelling for museums, heritage sites and sector… More
Services: Strategy development Front-end, formative and summative evaluation and audience research Qualitative and quantitative research methods Secondary data analysis Internal workshop facilitation Strategic data collection process review About: Beth is an Audience Consultant with 10+ years designing and delivering audience research and evaluation projects within the arts, heritage and culture sector. She values collaboration and… More
We are pleased to announce the next iteration of the Visitor Studies Group Mentorship Programme. This informal mentorship programme supports emerging audience researchers and evaluators and anyone who has had audience research responsibilities recently added to their role. First created by long-standing VSG members who want to give something back to the sector, this is… More
Services: Audience profiling Audience development and non-visitors / non-users Formative and summative evaluation Segmentation Member and donor research Stakeholder research Box office and database surveys Desk research and secondary data analysis Market sizing Local residents Interpretation research (development, testing, evaluation) Training Background: M·E·L Research is an indepednet social research agency working across a range of… More
Tickets to our annual conference on 10 May at ISH Venues in London are on sale now! The early bird discount of 20% will be available until 25 March so book early! The theme of the conference is The cost of culture: measuring barriers affecting the visitor experience. Book your ticket here . In recognition of… More
You heard it here first – there will be a May election! No, not that election, the election of the 2024 VSG Committee which will take place this year to ratify existing committee members into their positions and elect new faces to replace outgoing members who have served their term as committee members. There are five… More
Are you an experienced in-house or freelance audience researcher working in the Cultural Heritage sector in the UK? Are you interested in becoming a mentor to support colleagues tackling audience research and evaluation projects? We are recruiting new volunteer mentors for the 2024 VSG Mentorship Programme. This informal initiative enables experienced visitor studies professionals to help, guide and be a friendly ear for others in… More
We have a suite of events, socials and networking opportunities this year, free for all VSG members. Most events will be open to non-members as well for a fee, check booking links for details. Tea with VSG dates – Zoom 21st February, 1-2pm – Topic: the use of incentives. Book here 17th April, 1-2pm – Topic… More
** Please note the deadline for submission has been extended to EOD 25th January** We are seeking proposals for our 2024 conference on Friday May 10 at ISH Venues in London. The topic is The cost of culture: measuring barriers affecting the visitor experience Britain is in the middle of a cost of living crisis… More
Do you have an exciting story or news to share with VSG members? We are now sending out VSG Newsletters to members every quarter, and we would like to hear from you. If you have an interesting story or trending news about visitor studies, please get in touch
Tickets for the 2023 VSG Conference, Open for all: working towards inclusive practice are on sale via Eventbrite here> View the full Conference Programme here> View the Conference Schedule including detailed timings for the day here> Join delegates from the UK cultural sector and beyond to connect, share and reflect on experiences of developing inclusive visitor studies practice.… More
Continuing with the last few years successful Visitor Studies Group Mentorship Programme, we are pleased to announce that we are continuing this offer for 2023 to support emerging audience researchers and anyone who has had audience research responsibilities recently added to their role. First ideated by long-standing VSG members who want to give something back… More
We’ve got a busy year ahead, here are the key dates you need to know: Mentorship Programme w/c 9 Jan – applications for mentees opens 10 Feb – mentee applications close Conference 18-19 May – Open for all?: Working towards inclusive practice In person at ISH Venues and online, tickets coming soon 16 Jan –… More
Surveys 101 WorkshopTuesday, January 10, 2023 | 1:00 pm ET, 10:00 am PTPresenters: Stephen Ashton, Ph.D., Director of Audience Research and Evaluation, Thanksgiving Point Kari Ross Nelson, M.A., M.S., Research and Evaluation Associate, Thanksgiving Point Description: Back by popular demand! Surveys are one of the most widely used and flexible tools used by evaluators. In… More
In line with our efforts to be a more inclusive community, each year the Visitor Studies Group offers at least one bursary to support attendance at our annual conference. For our next conference (2023) we will be offering two bursaries. Each covers one full (two-day) ticket for the conference plus £100 towards travel and priority… More
The call for papers for our 2023 conference “Open for all?: Working towards inclusive practice” is now open. The conference will take place 18 & 19 May and will be hybrid – in person at ISH Venues in London, with an online component. The VSG annual conference brings together delegates from the cultural sector and beyond… More
EMMA SLATER www.psresearch.co.uk Services Emma is one half of PS Research, bringing together a blend of quantitative and qualitative research skills to ask the questions that matter and find the answers that make a difference for their clients. Services include: Qualitative research methods Qualitative fieldwork: face-to-face and online methods including online communities, in-depth interviews, focus… More
Wednesday 9th November, 4-5pm Join us for tea as we discuss the challenge of evaluating programmes or projects which involve multiple partners, sites and activities. Such projects can be fraught with difficulty and contention as well as opportunity to support wide-scale change. Kate Measures and Jen DeWitt will begin the session drawing on our experiences… More
www.djsreseach.co.uk Services: Audience profiling Formative and summative evaluation Segmentation Member and donor research Stakeholder research Box office and database surveys Desk research and secondary data analysis Market sizing Background: DJS Research Ltd is an independent, UK-based insight consultancy, specialising in research with visitors, the general public, businesses and other stakeholders. We have extensive experience of implementing… More
www.christinalister.co.uk Services: visitor research data analysis non-user research and consultation segmentation strategies marketing and audience development strategies workshop facilitation training and mentoring Speciality: Christina is a marketing and audience development consultant with 16 years’ experience, and specialises in working with museums, heritage sites and cultural venues, including on HLF and ACE-funded projects.… More
