Chicago History Museum
Member Acquisition
Making Mainbocher
The Chicago History Museum (CHM) celebrated a native Chicagoan’s pioneering and enduring influence on the fashion industry with its original Making Mainbocher exhibition. Visitors could view 30 beautiful garments from the Costume Council’s collection along with Mainbocher’s original artwork, fashion photography, and fashion illustrations. Prior to partnering with Access Direct, the Museum had a baseline membership of over 4,000 and its acquisition efforts typically achieved an average 0.6% response rate.
New Members
Total Campaign
Access Direct collaborated with the membership team to create a year-long plan to drive membership acquisition by promoting the Making Mainbocher fall opening and spring closing. Elegant creative showcased Mainbocher’s luxurious and dramatic designs across a multitude of integrated channels (mail, email, billboards, and bus signage). Access built a micro-website that optimized UX conversion. Digital strategies, predictive modeling, enhanced targeting supported the campaign. Copy reinforced USP, Chicago pride, and member-benefits. Compelling discounts, premiums, and time-sensitive members-only events boosted urgency and response.
Results: After the year-long campaign, the Museum had grown annual membership by 28% and increased visitor traffic by 18% year-over-year with a total of 1,285 new members. The Fall and Spring campaigns achieved an overall 1.6% response rate and 1.9 ROI, with a 245% increase in responders compared to the previous year.
Contact us for more in-depth results information.
