Innovative marketing draws younger audiences to Palace Museum

The nearly 600-year-old Forbidden City, once the exclusive domain of emperors and the royal court, has been using creative marketing and sales of cultural products in recent years to engage younger audiences.

Emperor and concubine dolls are pictured standing in the Palace Museum. [Photo: Weibo account of the Palace Museum]

The Palace Museum in Beijing, more commonly known as the Forbidden City, is the site of the royal palace for the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644 A.D.) and Qing Dynasty (1636-1912 A.D.). The palace complex, which was listed as a World Heritage Site in 1987, is home to the largest preserved wood structure in the world, and is a must-see spot for domestic and international tourists in Beijing.

Emoji of the Daoguang Emperor that resembles Ultraman. The emoji is a pun on the name of the emperor, which means "love is a ray of light". The Daoguang Emperor (1782-1850 A.D.) was the eighth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and the sixth emperor of the Qing to be based in Beijing. [Photo: Weibo account of Palace Museum]

By the end of 2016, the Palace Museum had created more than 8,700 products with total sales worth more than 1 billion yuan (about 158 million U.S. dollars). Since taking office in 2012, Shan Jixiang, the chief director of the Palace Museum, and his colleagues have attached great significance to tapping into the cultural intellectual property of the museum. They have done this by developing the wide range of products sold by the museum, and by launching emoji packages and apps that have caught the attention of a young audience.

A cat doll in the uniform of a general. [Photo: Weibo account of the Palace Museum]

The museum management has also produced documentaries like "Masters in Forbidden City" and "The Palace Museum Diary" to show the public some of the work behind-the-scenes at the museum, such as the restoration process for relics and the work of craftspeople who maintain the palace complex.

Palace Museum photographers capture an image of the "blue moon" over the Palace Museum on January 31, 2018. [Photo: Weibo account of the Palace Museum]

The Palace Museum is also using virtual reality technology to provide an interactive virtual visit for people unable to visit the museum. The virtual exhibits are also a way to keep on display relics in exhibitions temporarily closed for public viewing.

Virtual reality technology was used extensively to show visitors the Hall of Mental Cultivation, which was closed temporarily in 2016. [Photo: Weibo account of the Palace Museum]

According to Shan Jixiang, the fundamental reason why the Palace Museum has become so popular among young people is that it strikes the right balance between preserving history, sharing knowledge, and providing interesting interactive displays.

This beaded headset is one of the products the museum is using to market itself to a young audience. [Photo: Weibo account of Palace Museum]