Category: Audience Development
I’m sure this has happened to many of you before. You are sitting in a staff or board meeting, brainstorming ways to increase your visitor traffic, and someone says, “I know! We need to create a Facebook page and start Twittering!”
What these people do not understand is that Facebook and Twitter are merely tools – they are not a salvation for struggling organizations. They have a reputation as being “The Way” to interact with younger audiences. This is true – younger audiences are on Facebook and Twitter. But just creating a Facebook page and expecting younger audiences to come pouring through your doors is an error in thinking. (more…)
So if you have been on the museum conference circuit in the past two years, the term “crowd-sourcing” is not new to you. Conference sessions aplenty have been conducted about this concept, discussing it from every angle – Is it good? Is it bad? How do we get more? How do we get less? How do we convince people who think it is bad that it is good? How do we convince people who think it is good that it is bad? Round and round and round. No decisions made. Which is good. This is not a topic the museum community should decide on its own. (more…)
I am always looking for creative ways that museums and libraries are using social media to engage their audiences. Today’s fine example comes to us from the National Archives, who challenged their blog readers and Twitter followers to tweet in 140 characters or less the Bill of Rights! You can read the winning entries here.
This contest is a brilliant social marketing strategy for several reasons: (more…)
Well, it’s that time of year, when ghosts and goblins roam the streets. Thanks to hit television shows like Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures, ghosts are enjoying extreme popularity these days. As Halloween nears, many historic sites and towns offer ghost tours. I took a ghost walk around Historic Annapolis last Saturday night, and my companion and I both felt it was a wonderful way to learn the history of that historic town. (more…)
The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) made news this week with a publicity stunt that involved members of the Washington Opera’s Young Artists Program breaking into song in the middle of WholeFoods produce aisle. The grocery store, located in HarborEast, became the stage for an impromptu performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s “La Traviata,” aimed at promoting the Symphony’s upcoming weekend engagements with the opera company. You can see the video of the event here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-STnVJlWf_o (more…)
I served as a judge for the Maryland History Day competition last weekend, for the Senior Individual Exhibit category. My two judging colleagues and I saw 7 different projects, with topics ranging from Thomas Paine to Eleanor Roosevelt to Sir Francis Drake to Bill Gates. As in all competitions, some were better than others. All of the students were well-versed in their subject matter and for the most part, could answer all of the history-based questions we asked them. I was very encouraged to see that an interest in history and historical research is alive and well in the younger generations. (more…)
So in the past few weeks, this Twitter thing has really exploded. News anchors twitter. Obama twitters. Your niece and nephew twitter. I’ve been conked over the head with it everywhere I turn. And so I started Twittering. (more…)
I was able to obtain a free article in Baltimore County Suburban Life for Jerusalem Mill Village’s upcoming “The Redcoats Are Coming” event in May. This pub get distributed across the Baltimore County area and will provide the Mill great visibility with new audiences only a half hour away from the site. Hopefully, they will experience a great upswing in traffic at the event because of it!
See the article as a PDF: http://tinyurl.com/djxbs3
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