Unconference discussion notes: Small museum staff, big ideas

Our session was a lively discussion of the challenges faced my museums with small staffs and even smaller budgets:

Challenges included:

• Extremely small museum web staff (some as few a single web person), some of which who are not overly tech savvy
• New management levels or existing tiers of management levels that need to sign off on new projects/initiatives
• Museums who are currently closed and trying to remain engaged with visitors
• Smaller numbers of total membership confirmed users of social media (example: 3,000 members, of which 400 are using social networking tools)
• How to segment messaging, marketing outreach by audience
• PR folks don’t think social networking is a good use of time (in our discussion group, Facebook is typically a limited amount of most museums’ audiences)
• How can small museums expand their Facebook audiences? Those are the members that are typically the most involved
• Museums feel like they are only talking to audience members they know…how do they reach people they don’t know yet?
• Really need tools/metrics to measure return on investment for social networking so you know if the time you spend blogging, setting up/maintaining Facebook and MySpace pages, etc. are worth it!

 Discussion points:What tools and methodologies can be used to help?

• Ning and KickApps: Social networking platforms that lets you set up an entire site using easy admin tools, and incorporates blogs, community tools, calendars, image/video. Would work well for marketing for specific initiatives or audiences, or could function as a smaller museum’s entire website.
• iTunesU: Geared to help small museums get the word out, and an especially great way to keep in touch with members when a museum is closed
• Google Analytics: Use it to really define audience needs, even if some stats show the biggest page usage are for directions and hours
• What can you do that’s provocative with your collection or message that gets the conversation started? (For example, one museum’s page views spiked when hosting an exhibit on gay erotica)
• Remember that no museum can be all things to all people. You can’t do everything, so pick some areas of expertise and do those exceptionally well
• Don’t use technology for technology’s sake…each social media tool used should serve a very distinct purpose, and you should try to determine what measures of success you will use to judge their return on investment before you get started using them (remember every tool has its limits!)
• Tap into partners, other networks, where can you collaborate across organizations to share resources, funds, and spread a broader message with a louder voice?
• Have to be sure you prove that you aren’t fighting for audiences and funding, but are instead banding together to pool resources and elevate all partners involved
• Tap into volunteers as resources