Pandemic Pivot: Tech at Home

Organization: The Tech Interactive (in-house project)
Duration: March 2020 - October 2020

In March 2020, when COVID-19 forced The Tech Interactive to close, we faced a challenge: How could a hands-on science center keep engaging with its audience? We quickly adapted. Our STEM activities were transformed into short, family-friendly videos, launching The Tech Interactive at Home and its Spanish counterpart. We also led the way on Zigazoo, an educational social media app for kids, where we shared these DIY activities as educational prompts for children to respond to. Our initial success on Zigazoo saw our following grow to 30K, and since then, the team has increased it to nearly 200K, earning press attention for our achievements on the platform.

3.38M

impressions

2.64M

mission-related website visits

“When our organization was faced with the challenge of shutting our doors, Sierra and Maria were pivotal at finding innovative ways to take our content digital and find new audiences online. In addition to bringing creative energy to each project, they had a strong willingness to collaborate and work across departments to understand the content. They seamlessly incorporated feedback to build strategies across various channels. Whether sparking interest on TikTok, encouraging participation on Zigazoo, or providing information through one of our activity guides, they were able to adapt content to meet the needs of a variety of users. In addition, their attention to detail and follow-through made them instrumental partners in organizing a content database which we still use to this day.”

— Amy Bucher, Content Development Manager, The Tech Interactive

In the News

Our Strategy

  • Upcycled existing museum learning guides and activity PDFs into fun social media video videos and demonstrations.

  • Encouraged audience to share their own creations with us, which were reshared on Instagram stories and newsletters, creating a sense of community even when the science center was closed to the public.

  • Despite the science center being closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this project carried forward the organization’s mission to “inspire the innovator in everyone” by reaching families where they were– at home, through social media and email.

Key Takeaways

  • Educational social media videos can be repurposed for email marketing stories and educational prompts, whether via other learning platforms or for an educator audience.

  • Developing a framework for collaborating cross-departmentally within an organization can be beneficial for mining content ideas and creating new content.

  • New social media platforms are worth trying out to build community. If repurposing content, this can be a low-lift opportunity.