In general, museums of all kinds are often viewed with a certain stigma of being stuffy and academic.  To be honest, it may be well-deserved for the most part because of common stereotypes we associate with them and the type of people who go to them.

I am here to tell you that there is good news for museums.  I bet most museums share a similar goal in that they want to expand their customer base and attract a younger audience.  After all, this younger demographic is tomorrow’s museum member and donor, and which museum doesn’t need that?

In order to attract this younger demo, museums must go beyond their traditional ways of operating and reach out to the younger audience (ie Males/Females 25-45) in the places they frequent, which is online.  Smart museums are also catering to this younger demo by creating new events that appeal to them to get them in the doors.  An example of an event catering to a younger demo is The San Diego Museum of Art’s Culture & Cocktails.

We have been entrenched in the challenge of utilizing the tools the Internet provides to accomplish various goals for our client, The San Diego Museum of Art.  We have recently rebranded the Museum and will also be unveiling a completely new, revamped website in a few short weeks.  There were many objectives that were taken into account during the website redesign, but I’d like to focus on just two. First, we wanted to utilize high quality imagery to showcase the awesome works of art on display in the Museum and second, incorporate social media tools so that people who wish to interact in that capacity can do so.

Bailey Gardiner has worked with several museums in the past so we understand the challenges they face in marketing themselves.   We redesigned the website for the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego.
Two years ago we also rebranded and designed new collateral for our client SUSHI, A Center for the Urban Arts last year (see an example below).

THE NEW BARBARIANS

Our most recent undertaking is with the Balboa Park Online Collaborative (BPOC) to redesign the website for Balboa Park. This new website will encompass roughly 85 organizations in San Diego’s famous park, including several museums and be the main portal for visitors to gather information.

Are there any museums out there that you’ve come across that you feel are innovators in regards to interacting with people and showcasing their various offerings?  I’d love to see who you think the leaders in this space are.