Visitor Feedback on YOUR blog

I will soon be part of a panel at AASLH on visitor feedback and new technologies, so I would like to get your feedback and experiences. If you are a major player in your institution's blog and/or online presence, please consider responding to some or all of the following queries (in comments or email to lynnbethke at gmail dot com).

So tell me, what kind of visitor feedback do you (or your institution) receive through your blog and other online ventures (tagging ventures, twitter, facebook, and so on)? Do you solicit feedback through your online presence, or accept it passively? Do you acknowledge feedback in some way? Do you address this feedback internally? Externally? Do you mind if I get in contact with you to learn more?

Your help is appreciated, and any presentations I develop for this panel will be shared on this blog.

Read More...

Summary only...

I agree

YES! Web 2.0 stuff is cool, but for crying out loud, be thoughtful. Know what you're doing, but, more importantly, know why you're doing it.

My thesis research showed that a lot of blogs were started because someone thought the museum ought to have one. In some of those cases that someone seemed to have a strong vision of what the blog would become - and those are usually pretty successful, noticed blogs. In others, the blog became a bit miscellaneous and may be on the road to failure unless someone can come up with a purpose, a reason for it.

Of course, reasons don't guarantee successfulness. I know of at least one museum with a well thought out blog that I don't entirely buy into as successful yet. Perhaps in time.

Just because it's fast and easy doesn't mean you should do it. Oh, you should do it, but have a purpose. And a community to connect to.

Read More...

Summary only...

Last Call

Last call for my survey!

No matter if you're a hip cat or a squarester, if you blog for a museum and are free this Friday evening, I want to hear from you! For more information, click here.

Heck, even if you don't blog for a museum, you're welcome to take it, although I don't know what incentive you have to do so. And it won't make much sense. And I probably will just look at your responses to the more general questions (like, what do you see as the future of museums and blogs?)

And for those of you who have taken the survey, thank you so much. So far I have 11 responses from 10 institutions. A lucky four of those are profiled in my thesis. Aren't you just dying to know who they are? All in good time, my pretties, all in good time.

(I am no good being professional. Maybe I ought to tone down the quirky on this blog. Lay off the hamster macros for a while...)

Read More...

Summary only...

ONE

I got my first survey response today! Hooray! And it was to one of the emails I sent out this morning. Thank you Hankblog for being so fast. It's a great start to my scramble for surveys, and I appreciate it. I haven't read the responses yet, but all in due time.

I'm currently trying to work on my education section. I've finished the constructivist background stuff and am on to more examples. First, I'm writing up something about blogs and the value of post-visit access to the museum using this article on an experiment that was, in the end, pretty much a failure. Not that it had to be, or even should have been. But that might not be an issue that is within my scope to discuss. We'll see.

Read More...

Summary only...

SURVEY!

I now have University approval to move forward with my survey.

Below you will find a link to a survey. If you blog for a museum or are involved in a blog administered by a museum, I would appreciate if you took the time to fill out the survey. I am especially interested in the responses of people who have been involved in museum blogs for a long time, or helped to get their institution's blog off the ground. It is a long survey, it may take an hour if you give me long answers, but it will really help me out. And you have the option of saving it part way through and coming back to it later.

I'm putting it up here for open access. Mid-next week I will be contacting institutions directly as well.

The first two pages are a lot formal and, well, kinda long, but it needed to be done. And, of course, participation is completely voluntary.

Click here to take the Survey.

If you don't blog for a museum, I can still use your help. Answer me this question one: Why should museums blog?

Read More...

Summary only...