PETERLOO WEBSITE 36

PETERLOO WEBSITE (continued)

Main outcomes

 Delivery of a new website which compiled historical research onto a single online platform to tell the story of Peterloo  The creation of 3D interactive images which told the story of Peterloo for an online audience for the first time

 A new digital archive produced by an archivist and developer which compiles original artefacts from multiple websites  Provided opportunities for organisations and individuals from across the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs to submit their Peterloo events  Created a platform for digital audiences to explore the 180+ events taking place across the region  Curated content for three historical timelines looking at the historic events which took place before and after Peterloo

 Supported the Age of Revolution students to research and compile the 400+ eEyewitness

Accounts

 Created an online legacy for the Peterloo 2019 commemorations

Key learning:

The project could have benefited from a longer testing phase with a larger test bed. As people’s time was very limited it was difficult to find more than a handful of people to test and feedback and this was done very quickly.

Working with a 3D Designer and Historian helped bring the Peterloo story to life through rich visuals, which enable digital audiences to really engage with the Peterloo story. There was a huge response to the open call for events, with a wide variety of applications. Moving the submissions from the staging site to the live site was a long and complex process and had to be done in a short space of time.

Legacy of project:

 The website became a popular resource for audiences looking for things to do during the

Peterloo 2019 programme. The interactive storytelling was picked up by BBC News and it was featured on their 6pm programme in August 2019  The website will continue to be a living archive for the 2019 commemorations and will be managed by Manchester Histories for the next 5 years

❝Manchester Histories digital marketing campaign was engaging and far-reaching, driving audiences and engaging people with the story. Manchester City Council was able to connect to the key messages and compliment the Peterloo campaign. We were delighted to link people to the Peterloo 2019 website which provided a comprehensive landing point for anyone interested in taking part, attending events or wanting to connect to the story of Peterloo. The team should be congratulated on their efforts and in particular the inclusive way the campaign unfurled over the 3 month long commemoration - highlighting the wealth of partners and diversity of the programme.

Sarah Elderkin

Principal Policy officer, City Policy, Manchester City Council website reach:

March –August 2019:

 45,850 visits

 Over 138,000 pages viewed  91% of visitors are from the UK, 4% from the USA

 46% used a mobile device to visit the site

 32% were direct visitors to the site

When referred to the site from a social media platform, Facebook brought the highest volume of traffic, with 70% of visitors.

The Homepage had the highest volume of traffic (18%) followed by From The Crowd (9%) and the Peterloo Anniversary page (8%).