Welcome to the Digital Culture Network

Technology is changing the way we live our lives at a rapid rate, and culture is no exception. Cultural organisations are using technology in a variety of ways to drive their creative thinking and business practices. But how can they keep pace with the moving beast that is ‘digital’ when it evolves on a daily basis?

In June 2019 Arts Council England launched the Digital Culture Network to help arts and cultural organisations get the right advice on digital technology, develop digital skills, and make connections with new and interesting partners. Working across the arts and culture sector, the Network is led by nine specialist Tech Champions, with a range of skills including web design, social media, e-commerce, data analytics and digital marketing.

We have already supported over 300 organisations with their digital journey. The work has ranged from giving an individual NPO employee the knowledge and confidence to singlehandedly rebuild the organisation’s entire website for desktop and mobile in a matter of weeks, to pointing an arts organisation in the right direction with video-led storytelling and enabling them to create a film on their venue’s accessibility in collaboration with local sourced film-makers with learning difficulties. Wether it’s been reconsidering digital strategies, the use of data analytics, or understanding the customer journey, the process has been to enable, encourage and inspire, and the team are continuing to work with dozens of organisations each week.

But the Digital Culture Network is all of you too. One of the things we heard repeatedly at our launch events in June was how useful it was to share problems with each other and ask the questions we’ve all felt too embarrassed to ask. There are no stupid questions when it comes to digital. We’re all learning all the time, and one of the things we really want to encourage organisations to do is to share knowledge and experience with us and with each other.

This community portal is a big part of those plans. Over the coming months, we’ll be bringing you the latest digital news and events from across the arts, culture and technology sectors and a community where you can learn from your peers and industry experts. We’ll be signposting to resources and training produced by us and our partners and creating a range of resources in our Knowledge Hub to help answer the common questions we are asked.

You can start your journey into each specialism right away by clicking on the links below:

• Introduction to Box Office, Ticketing & CRM
• Introduction to Data Analytics & Insight
• Introduction to Digital Content
• Introduction to Digital Marketing
• Introduction to Digital Strategy
• Introduction to eCommerce
• Introduction to Search Engine Optimisation
• Introduction to Social Media
• Introduction to Websites
• Introduction to Email Marketing

If you like what you see and want to keep track of your favourite articles and be a part of the conversation, sign up for an account now to join the network.