Sea Star Quest

Initial research showed moderate interest in an exhibit featuring echinoderms (sea stars, urchins, brittle stars, feather stars, sea cucumbers, etc.), the animal group explored in the newly planned Sea Star Quest exhibit that would be opening at John G. Shedd Aquarium. Shedd asked the communications team to develop an interactive CD-ROM media kit to generate a wide spectrum of media coverage for the opening of the Sea Star Quest temporary exhibit in order to help combat the moderate visitor interest and to maintain Shedd’s status as the most-attended cultural institution in Chicago.

Shedd conducted intercept research with its visitors to assess their knowledge of echinoderms (sea stars, urchins, brittle stars, feather stars, sea cucumbers, etc.), the animal group explored in the Sea Star Quest exhibit. They found that visitors had a high familiarity with sea stars, but a low concept of echinoderms as a group. Also, the overall interest in the exhibit concept was moderate. When study participants were given a scale of 1 to 10 to gauge their interest in visiting an echinoderm exhibit, the predominant response was a 7.

Shedd also conducted child-focused research to determine the kind of exhibit to which kids would be most likely to respond. The children and their parents had a hard time recalling other child-focused exhibit areas in local institutions. (The research excluded the Chicago Children’s Museum, since the entire institution is dedicated to children.) The Sea Star Quest exhibit designers had planned from the beginning to make the exhibit extremely child-friendly, with child-height displays, plenty of button-pushing interactive activities, a ball pit and touch pools that allowed children to touch some of the animals. Therefore, the communications team knew that the potential popularity for this exhibit was high among children and, if marketed correctly, could be successful.

To combat the moderate appeal visitors expressed for an exhibit on echinoderms, the communication team’s strategies were to create a fun media kit that emphasized the exhibit’s appeal to children and to target specific media to generate a wide spectrum of Sea Star Quest coverage.

With a budget of $25,000, the team decided the media materials of record would be a CD-ROM media kit. This medium was chosen because of its ability to supply large amounts of information in an approachable format, its ease of use for reporters and its ability to contain publication-
quality photos. Most importantly, the inherently interactive nature of a CD-ROM, with its ability to deliver sound and animation, could help reporters get enthusiastic about Sea Star Quest. The communications team also identified key media contacts, including local, regional and national family/parenting reporters; travel reporters and publications; museum reporters and arts/entertainment reporters. We also targeted child-focused media outlets, positioning the opening of Sea Star Quest as Shedd’s first exhibit designed specifically for kids and one of few in the city of Chicago.

As the Sea Star Quest electronic media kit was developed, the communications team, along with Change Design Group, focused heavily on making both the CD-ROM and the packaging friendly and fun with a high “kid-cool” quotient. To capitalize on the kid-friendly theme, the kit was designed with colorful packaging featuring graphics of children and a “cootie catcher” inside to hold the CD-ROM. The elements of the CD-ROM itself included child-oriented components such as children’s voices to guide media through the kit, cartoon sounds and even a game section. With just a click of the mouse, media could tour the Sea Star Quest exhibit, learn more about the animals featured in Sea Star Quest, listen to audio on Shedd’s conservation efforts (some narrated with fun voices from the animals’ point of view) and have access to the news releases and photos. The team sent out the CD-ROMs in May to generate a “buzz” of media placements leading up to the exhibit opening.

Shedd and PCI proved that with a great communications plan, sea stars shine! Due to the early and widespread interest created by the electronic media kit, the aquarium surpassed its goals:

1. To maintain Shedd’s status as most-attended Chicago cultural institution. From January through December 31, 2004 more than 1.9 million guests visited Shedd, making the aquarium Chicago’s most-attended cultural institution for the third year in a row! To put the overall attendance numbers in context, Shedd’s 2004 attendance was nearly 350,000 people ahead of the second-place cultural institution in Chicago.
2. To double attendance numbers in June and July 2004 over January and February 2004. January and February are traditionally among the slowest months at Shedd Aquarium, making it crucial to make up the attendance numbers later in the year. In the months of June and July directly following the Sea Star Quest opening on June 17, attendance was at 210,112 and 254,361 respectively, compared to 112,376 and 127,224 in January and February. Not only did the aquarium more than double its June and July attendance over January and February; June and July were actually two of the most-attended months of the entire year.

Shedd’s communication department credits the electronic media kit and accompanying aggressive media relations campaign with a large measure of this success. By distributing the electronic media kit early, but close enough to the opening to stay top-of-mind, key media coverage (including Associated Press) ran before the exhibit opening to draw attendance. More than 20 placements reaching nearly 3 million people ran before Sea Star Quest even opened its doors, including major local, regional and national outlets. Media relations secured a total of more than 180 placements from May 2004 through December 2004, reaching an estimated audience of more than 31 million. National, regional and local placements were secured, including Associated Press, Columbus Dispatch, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, Chicago Tribune, and Chicago Sun-Times.

Most importantly, the Sea Star Quest exhibit helped Shedd Aquarium hold on to its title as the most-visited cultural attraction in Chicago.