Re: Museum websites in the life of the visitor

Tue, 13 Sep 2005 09:46:10 -0400 (EDT)

Hi Paul
 
Interesting issues - the relationship between the two when there is both a virtual and a physical exhibit.  I had someone tell me at a conference this summer that they found that folks were more "taken" with the website than the corresponding exhibit. I don't know the details...for example, distance and travel issues may have accounted for some of that finding. We really have little or no information on the extent to which the Raid website has increased or decreased visitors to the museum.  The corresponding exhibit has closed now, and although we have a portion of our museum dedicated to the subject, it's not as extensive as the exhibit was. We have had some people write to us from far away saying they do want to visit the museum. And we certainly "plug" the website at the museum.  Good to hear from you on this topic!  Thanks.  Lynne
----- Original Message -----
From: Paul Marty
Sent: Monday, September 12, 2005 8:37 PM
Subject: Re: Museum websites in the life of the visitor

Believe me, Lynne, that's not a mistake I would ever make! :-)

For the purposes of this study, I would consider standalone online exhibits like the Raid on Deerfield to be either beyond the scope of or consumed within the questions I ask in this study -- depending on one's point of view! I would be very interested, however, in the potential of the Raid on Deerfield website to raise visitor interest / awareness in the Memorial Hall Museum or about Deerfield, MA in general -- have you found any crossover there? 

Another interesting question (yet one that is also beyond the scope of this study) concerns the visitor relationship with virtual museums that have no physical counterpart. I remember well a usability analysis I did once at Museums and the Web with just such a website. The user tester was so excited by the online exhibits that she wanted to know where in the world the museum was located (to visit it in person). She searched in vain for this information, as not only did this online museum not have a physical counterpart, but this fact was virtually impossible to determine from the museum's website. 

Best, --Paul

--------------

Paul F. Marty, Ph.D. ([email protected])

Assistant Professor, College of Information

Florida State University, Tallahassee FL 32306-2100

http://info.fsu.edu/~pmarty



On Sep 12, 2005, at 5:28 PM, Lynne Spichiger wrote:

Don't assume websites always operate in tandem with the museum.  We have the
1704 Raid on Deerfield website and it is used widely, but not as a
prerequisite to visiting our museum.  Best,  Lynne
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Paul Marty" <[email protected]>
Sent: Thursday, September 08, 2005 1:49 PM
Subject: Museum websites in the life of the visitor



Hello everyone,

IÕm researching the role museum websites play in the lives of museum
visitors, exploring questions such as: Why do people visit museum
websites before going to museums? How do museum websites influence
one's decision to visit a museum? How do museum visitors integrate
online museum resources into their daily lives?

First, IÕm interested in your answers to these questions. The survey
questions are mostly multiple choice. Anyone who wants to complete
the survey is cordially invited to visit the following URL:


Second, I'm hoping to find museums willing to encourage their
visitors to complete this survey by hosting a link to the survey from
their websites. I think the survey will generate very useful data for
each individual host museum about how their online visitors make
museum websites part of their daily lives.

If youÕd like to host a link to the survey from your museum website,
please contact me by email off list.

With great appreciation and apologies for any cross-posting, Paul

--------------
Paul F. Marty, Ph.D. ([email protected])
Assistant Professor, College of Information
Florida State University, Tallahassee FL 32306-2100


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