Kurt, I go to many different conferences, and at each one in the last 18 months I have met 1-2 companies who are creating a platform for apps (some iPhone only, some smartphone).
Nearly all of them are offering the platform for free, meaning: they are giving the museums access to their CMS platform, and the museums are supposed to create/upload the content from existing digital assets. They are all doing some kind of revenue share on the app sales. I don't know if/when this business model will be sustainable. I am also a bit skeptical that small to mid-size museums will have the staffing to find/format/create the content for the app. So, you could charge for that portion of the service. The ones I don't think will work are the guys who want $30K up front to create the app for the museum. Especially when folks like IMA are about to open source their platforms. I think there will always be a place in the liaison role where you can and should charge for your expertise. Maybe on a sliding scale. Hope this helps! Best, Stephanie Weaver Visitor experience consultant experienceology?: Because happy visitors return. San Diego, CA For information on our book, blog, podcast, upcoming classes, and e- news, visit www.experienceology.com or follow me on twitter.com/ experienceology. See samples of my classes here: www.youtube.com/experienceology . Watch the free archived version of my class on the visitor experience here: http://bit.ly/NlunE
