Despite its singular mission, the Museums Association has multiple roles for diverse audiences, from a campaigning body to a tool for finding jobs, objects and suppliers. This complexity wasn’t reflected in an internally driven site structure and taxonomy, which made discovery difficult and left user needs unmet. We created a concise and user-friendly navigation – making the site more intuitive to browse and find what you need.
Campaigns are a huge part of what the Museums Association does, but it was difficult to see the full scope of this work and how much content existed. We explored the idea of depth and breadth, showing an overview of the campaigns at a glance, while offering the opportunity to go deeper. The ‘brand volume’ of this campaigning voice is turned up, leading with the most active colour combinations and bolder typography.
Much more than a blog, the Museums Journal is an integral part of the MA’s offer to members, providing access to quality editorial content. We wanted to create a credible reading experience, positioning the Journal as a news and information hub for museums. By introducing tags we could show the variety of content and activity for readers to browse.
The colour palette challenges the audience to take notice by throwing up unexpected combinations. The type stack also flexes – it’s conversational in the journal style, but more demanding in the campaigning voice. Other design components are functional and intuitive, with layered image frames inviting different perspectives to suggest that nobody ever sees the full picture.
The identity lives beyond the website in social posts and marketing campaigns. Here, a flexible system ensures recognition of the brand, while adapting across everyday content to key campaigns and hero events.