The Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA) is on a mission to inspire, educate and engage everyone that steps through its doors. As one of three independent photography museums in the U.S., the museum constantly innovates and pushes boundaries to stay relevant in the modern age.
From its dynamic and beautiful exhibits and film festivals to its visual learning initiatives, MOPA aims to put lens-based photography in the spotlight. Mixte uses public relations and social media influencer marketing to grow the museum’s local audience, build brand awareness and show everyone why they need to experience MOPA.
Among other groups, our target audience comprises families in San Diego looking for educational activities and young professionals with an active social media presence.
See how we do it.
Making MOPA the Focal Point of Media Headlines
The saying goes “If you build it, they will come.” Well, that’s exactly what happened when Mixte built up MOPA’s media relations strategy.
Mixte set out to craft stories about the museum’s happenings. We then picked up the phone and shared the news. Local outlets jumped at the opportunity to receive and share the latest news about MOPA’s happenings. The result: between June 2018 and February 2019, the museum appeared in 81 stories with more than 40,000 impressions.
We used storytelling and our knowledge of the media landscape to secure placements in KPBS, San Diego Union-Tribune, Voice of San Diego, The San Diego Reader and San Diego CityBeat that illustrate the value of what MOPA brings to the community. These placements ensured we shared MOPA with San Diego communities looking for fun and educational experiences.
Building Media Visibility Through Museum Exhibitions and Education Programs
When doing museum public relations, Mixte maximizes on the things that make museums truly special: their creative exhibitions, artists and photographers.
For a feature story in Inside Imaging about MOPA’s six-month exhibition Defining Place/Space: Contemporary Photography from Australia, we lifted up the authentic voices of the exhibition’s curators — who are also from Australia. By connecting the dots about the exhibit’s unique authenticity, Mixte garnered excitement from media from Australia. This media placement positioned MOPA as a leader in the museum landscape and introduced MOPA to audiences abroad.
Translated in eight languages, “Gracias a la fotografía estas jóvenes de Oaxaca aprenden a romper las reglas de su entorno” by Global Voices presented MOPA as a binational learning hub. The article shared the museum’s collaborative workshop with Fondo Guadalupe Musalem to teach young women living in Oaxaca how to break the rules using photography.
Boosting Museum Engagement with Social Media Influencers
To further boost engagement at MOPA, Mixte partnered with social media influencers to spread the word on exhibitions and events online.
Influencer marketing introduced the museum to new and younger audiences – positioning them to see MOPA as a leader in visual learning.
Mixte’s favorite influencer partnership was with fashion and celebrity photographer Esteban Calderon. He attended a Mixte-produced press breakfast for MOPA’s exhibit on Irving Penn, the 20th century’s most renowned fashion photographer. Calderon was happy to witness the work of his professional predecessor and shared a beautiful photo with his more than 25,000 followers on Instagram. Calderon’s social reach allowed for MOPA’s exhibit to appear in the screens of many other young professionals like himself.
Above: Esteban Calderon shared a photo of his experience at MOPA’s press breakfast for Irving Penn: Beyond Beauty. Calderon shared Penn was his inspiration to become a fashion and celebrity photographer.
Want to elevate your museum’s exposure? For inquiries about Mixte’s public relations for museums, email us at mixte@gomixte.com or call (619) 732-0789.
