COVID-19 brought much of the world to a standstill. As the government implemented stay at home orders, museums and tourist attractions dutifully closed their doors. After the initial days and weeks of closures, what seemed like a temporary situation began to set in as a new reality, and new concerns seized the attention of the entire cultural industry – what will the future hold?
5 Things to Keep in Mind as You Prepare to Reopen Your Museum
In the past few weeks, we’ve examined tips and strategies for planning for reopening, how to create a “contactless” museum experience, and how leveraging a mobile app can help museums engage their visitors in a safe way upon reopening. Although there still isn’t any one-size-fits-all approach, by learning from the triumphs and challenges of organizations that have already reopened, museums can equip themselves to initiate smooth reopenings.
Read on to get the latest tips on reopening:
Webinar Transcript: Experimenting with New Digital Revenue Streams On the Road to Reopening
Since the COVID-19 pandemic forced museums, zoos, and cultural attractions to close their doors, many have admirably turned their attention to new digital content projects, virtual public programs, and online events to help keep audiences engaged. Now, after two months of closures, many organizations are also beginning to monetize these digital initiatives through entrance fees, “pay what you wish” models, and other methods. Even as organizations open their doors (or plan to open their doors) to visitors once again, many are finding that the reduced capacity and restrictions on physical events and summer camps are placing greater importance on generating revenue through digital engagement initiatives.
On May 13, 2020, over 3,300 museum professionals joined Brendan Ciecko (CEO and Founder @ Cuseum), Michelle Mileham (Director of Education @ Tracy Aviary), Christian Ramirez (Public Programs Manager @ Phoenix Art Museum) & Laura Houston (Director of Education @ Elmwood Park Zoo) as they explored various ways to monetize virtual programming and digital offerings. This webinar explored ways to monetize traditional programming that has been shifted to digital platforms, as well as creative ideas that have generated new revenue streams. This discussion also addressed some of the challenges related to reopening that cultural organizations are continuing to face.
Watch the video recording here.
Read the full transcript below:
Webinar Transcript: Membership Mondays: Reimagining Revenue Streams & Events
Due to COVID-19, many museums and cultural organizations are facing significant disruptions to revenue with the absence of gate attendance and on-site purchases. From membership extensions, halted acquisition campaigns, canceled events, to public funding cuts, many other traditional revenue streams have also been interrupted. Even as organizations prepare to reopen and welcome members back, traditional events and other common revenue sources may be diminished or even off the table entirely for quite some time.
Despite the challenges, by rethinking the membership business model, initiating virtual events, and seeking out new revenue opportunities, membership departments and cultural institutions have the potential to bounce back, and membership can continue to be a primary revenue stream.
Over 2,000 guests joined Dan Sullivan (Head of Growth and Partnerships @ Cuseum), Claire Byfield (Membership Manager: Engagement @ British Museum), Tom Knowles (Membership Events Manager @ British Museum) & Rosie Siemer (Founder & CEO @ FIVESEED Membership Consulting) as they discussed how membership, revenue, and events can be reimagined to bolster museums and ensure their financial health going into the future.
Webinar Highlights: How Museums Can Experiment with Social Media to Boost Audience Engagement During Coronavirus
As the coronavirus continues to prevent museums and cultural organizations from welcoming audiences to their physical spaces, the importance of digital engagement has increased exponentially. In the face of this all, many organizations are embracing the opportunity to use this time as a period of experimentation, especially with regards to social media and other digital channels.
Webinar Highlights: Membership Mondays - Communicating with Your Members During Coronavirus
With the growing uncertainty around Coronavirus and its duration, museums and cultural organizations are wondering the best ways to navigate these uncharted waters. In the face of closures, requests for membership extensions, and member turnover, many cultural organizations are all experiencing the unprecedented challenge of maintaining their membership bases. During this unusual time, communication with those members is critical - but where do we start, and how do we stay relevant in members’ eyes when nobody can actually see us?
Webinar Transcript: How to Captivate, Connect, and Communicate with Your Audience During Coronavirus
If you missed it this week, Brendan Ciecko (CEO & Founder @ Cuseum), with special guests Susan Edwards (Associate Director, Digital Content @ Hammer Museum) and Koven Smith (Museum & Nonprofit Digital Strategy Consultant), came together in a webinar to talk about steps cultural organizations can take to captivate, connect, and communicate with their remote “visitors” and audiences.
You can view a recording here and read full transcript below:
Webinar Highlights: How to Captivate, Connect, and Communicate with Your Audience During Coronavirus
Due to the rapid spread of coronavirus and government recommendations for social distancing, three-quarters of museums across the United States have closed down temporarily. As a result of these closures, many cultural organizations face new levels of uncertainty and difficulty in navigating these unfamiliar waters. In particular, for visitor-serving organizations, not being able to bring visitors on-site produces a significant challenge: while being physically closed, how do museums continue to engage their would-be visitors?
This past Wednesday, over 3,200 members of the museum community came together with
Brendan Ciecko (CEO & Founder @ Cuseum) and special guests Susan Edwards (Associate Director, Digital Content @ Hammer Museum) and Koven Smith (Museum & Nonprofit Digital Strategy Consultant), to discuss steps cultural organizations can take to captivate, connect, and communicate with their remote “visitors” and audiences. These experts did a deep-dive into digital communication strategies, creatively leveraging social media channels, and establishing a community without a physical space to gather in.
Webinar Transcript: How to Keep Your Audience Engaged, Entertained, and Inspired in the Age of Coronavirus
If you couldn’t make it to our webinar this week, “How to Keep Your Audience Engaged, Entertained, and Inspired in the Age of Coronavirus,” Cuseum's Brendan Ciecko came together with special guests Seema Rao (Deputy Director & Chief Experience Officer @ Akron Art Museum), and Scott Stulen (Director & President @ Philbrook Museum of Art), to discuss steps cultural organizations can take to engage their audiences digitally and continue their important work as trusted community resources during this public health and economic crisis, even when physical sites remain in lockdown.
You can check out a transcript of the conversation below, or view a full recording here:
Webinar Highlights: How to Keep Your Audience Engaged, Entertained, and Inspired in the Age of Coronavirus
In light of the rapid spread of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) and social distancing recommendations from public health officials, many visitor-serving cultural organizations have made the decision to temporarily close their doors to the public. As a result, these organizations face great uncertainty about what the next days and weeks hold for them during this unusual time.
This past Wednesday, over 3,000 people from the global museum community, joined Cuseum's Brendan Ciecko, with special guests Seema Rao (Deputy Director & Chief Experience Officer @ Akron Art Museum), and Scott Stulen (Director & President @ Philbrook Museum of Art), to discuss steps cultural organizations can take to engage their audiences digitally and continue their important work as trusted community resources during this public health and economic crisis, even when physical sites remain in lockdown.
Webinar Transcript: How Membership Departments Can Prepare for the Impact of Coronavirus
If you couldn’t make it you our special webinar this week, How Membership Departments Can Prepare for the Impact of Coronavirus, we have the next best thing. Dan Sullivan (Head of Partnerships at Cuseum) and membership experts Dana Hines (VP, Membership Marketing, Gabriel Group) and Alicia Lifrak (EVP, Fundraising, Gabriel Group) came together, and you can see a transcript of their conversation below. You can also check out a recording of the entire discussion.
How Membership Departments Can Prepare for the Impact of Coronavirus (Webinar Highlights)
With the ever-growing concerns around Coronavirus and its ripple effect on the global economy, many museums and attractions are wondering how they will be impacted. Membership professionals are specifically concerned about how this will impact their membership bases in the coming months or years.
To address these concerns, Dan Sullivan (Head of Partnerships at Cuseum) and membership experts Dana Hines (VP, Membership Marketing, Gabriel Group) and Alicia Lifrak (EVP, Fundraising, Gabriel Group) came together in a special webinar earlier this week to talk about steps membership-based organizations can take to prepare, and respond to this impending crisis.
To learn more, you can view the webinar recording online.
In the meantime, here are the top five tips and takeaways from the discussion:
How Museums and Attractions are Preparing and Responding to Coronavirus
Museums are beginning to be affected by the fear and precautions taken in light of the spreading coronavirus. Across Asia and Europe, cultural organizations and tourist destinations are closing down to visitors. While this is taking its toll on the cultural sector, several museums have begun to devise creative strategies to make their collections and exhibitions available to the public through digital and virtual tools.