Case Study: Historic Charleston Foundation

Bringing Stories & History to Life with Mobile-First Convenience & Interpretation

“The tools are simple to understand and very easy to put into use.” — Blair Phillips, Director of Communications, Historic Charleston Foundation

Historic Charleston Foundation: At a Glance

Historic Charleston Foundation (HCF) is one of the leading preservation organizations in the US. It safeguards Charleston's architectural archives and cultural memory through educational programs and conservation initiatives. Its mission is to protect the city's stories while fostering a deeper understanding of its shared history.

The Foundation serves as a cultural anchor for residents and visitors. Through self-guided tours, digital archives, and community engagement, HCF plays a vital role in helping people connect with Charleston's layered past.

Location: Charleston, SC
Attendance: 100,000+ / year
Members: ≈3,000+
Founded: 1947

Overview

Historic Charleston Foundation is a preservation and education organization committed to expanding how the city's history is interpreted and shared. Beyond maintaining historic sites, the Foundation develops programs, digital tools, and research resources that help the public engage with Charleston's past in meaningful and accessible ways.

The Foundation views interpretation as a dynamic process. Through self-guided tours, digital narratives, and open access to archival materials, HCF encourages visitors and residents to explore Charleston's stories at their own pace and through multiple perspectives, transforming passive learning into an active, participatory experience.

Modernizing the Visitor Experience

For years, the Historic Charleston Foundation relied on traditional, resource-heavy methods to guide visitors through its historic sites. Previously, visitors who wanted a guided tour had to wait for the next available time slot — often unsure whether space would still be available. This created additional operational burden for staff and increased the risk of visitor confusion and frustration.

The Foundation needed a more flexible and efficient system — one that could expand interpretation, reduce strain on staff, and make Charleston's stories, maps, and archives more accessible, interactive, and self-serviceable for the public.

Cuseum's platform offered a path forward. With intuitive content creation tools, broad multimedia support, and hands-on guidance during setup, HCF was able to introduce self-guided tours with ease. Staff were supported by Cuseum's time-tested onboarding process and strategic guidance, enabling them to build transformative, layered experiences.

By adopting self-guided mobile app tours, the Foundation reduced operational pressure and provided visitors with a more personalized, convenient, and satisfactory experience.

The Challenge: How to share deeper stories without overwhelming staff

Staff were over-extended. Across departments, staff spent significant time answering recurring visitor questions, providing wayfinding support, and guiding people through complex histories.
Printed materials offered limited depth and flexibility. Brochures, maps, and signage were costly to update and couldn't reflect new research, rotating narratives, or multiple perspectives.
Guided tours remained restricted by timing and capacity. Scheduled tours couldn't meet every visitor's needs, and self-guided visitors had few tools to explore independently.

Why Cuseum?

Built for institutions that safeguard history and want to share it more widely.

From self-guided tours to layered archival content, Cuseum makes it easy to publish audio, images, maps, and additional context directly to the visitor's device.
With support for iOS and Android devices, visitors can quickly and easily use the app on their own phones — resulting in a sense of convenience, instant gratification, and general satisfaction.
Cuseum evolves alongside institutions, supporting new stories, new research, and new visitor expectations without requiring new infrastructure.

Self-Guided Tours Made Simple

Easy setup for app-based tours
Turn stories and maps into mobile experiences
Update and expand content anytime

Measurable Impact

Cuseum transformed how Historic Charleston Foundation engages its visitors across its historic sites, giving visitors richer experiences while easing pressure on staff.

Mobile app-based tours provide an intuitive, world-class experience for visitors of all ages, backgrounds, and interests.
Changes to narratives or wayfinding can be made centrally and published immediately, eliminating the need for reprinted materials.
All visitors receive a consistent level of experience regardless of time of day, tour availability, or staffing levels.
With interactive maps and blue-dot GPS, HCF is able to tell stories citywide — transforming visits into more engaging, meaningful experiences.

Testimonial

We have had a good experience with Cuseum. We wish to continue working together in the future.
— Blair Phillips, Director of Communications, Historic Charleston Foundation

Real results from a Cuseum customer

This case study walks through how a real cultural organization partnered with Cuseum to modernize their membership program, streamline operations, and improve the member experience. You'll see the goals they set, the tools they deployed, the integrations that powered the rollout, and the measurable outcomes — adoption rates, renewals, staff time saved, and member satisfaction — that followed.

How Cuseum helps

Cuseum is an end-to-end engagement platform built specifically for museums, cultural attractions, and membership organizations. Our products span four core areas, and most customers start with one and expand over time as their digital strategy matures.

Digital membership cards

Replace plastic cards with mobile-wallet passes that members can save to Apple Wallet and Google Wallet, update in real time, and use for tap-to-scan entry. Reduce printing and shipping costs while giving members a faster, more modern experience.

Mobile apps and audio guides

Branded mobile experiences for tours, exhibits, wayfinding, and self-guided storytelling. Multilingual support, accessibility features, and integrations with ticketing and ecommerce keep visitors engaged from arrival to return visit.

Member engagement and retention

Push notifications, SMS, email, and member portals work together to drive renewals, surface upcoming programs, and re-engage lapsing members. Built-in analytics show what's working so teams can iterate quickly.

CRM and ticketing integrations

Cuseum connects with Tessitura, Altru, Salesforce, Raiser's Edge, ACME, AudienceView, and dozens of other systems so member data, ticketing, and digital experiences stay in sync without manual exports.

Frequently asked questions

What types of organizations use Cuseum?

Art museums, history museums, science centers, children's museums, zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, performing arts venues, historic sites, alumni associations, and other membership-based cultural organizations of every size.

How long does implementation take?

Most digital membership rollouts go live in two to four weeks. Mobile app and integration projects vary based on scope, but Cuseum's team handles design, configuration, QA, and member communications so internal teams stay focused on their core work.

Where can I learn more?

Explore our case studies, webinars, and ebooks for examples from organizations like yours, or request a personalized demo and we'll tailor a walkthrough to your goals and systems.