In terms of non-profit organizations, museums operate in another world. Instead of walks and other peer-to-peer fundraising efforts, museums rely on memberships and individual ticket purchases to stay afloat. In an effort to educate, build awareness and engage with that public that they so heartily rely on, more and more museums are turning to social media.
With the help of my friend Julia Kaganskiy, former arts and culture writer turned tech geek and founder of the Arts, Culture and Technology meetup series in New York, I have put together a list of 7 museums that are notable for their use of social media.
Brooklyn Museum connects with its community in many formats, but the most impressive is Posse, their own social network. Posse profiles share a person’s favorites, comments and tags that are left throughout the Brooklyn Museum site. They even have games — like Tag! You’re It! and Freeze Tag — that Posse members can play.
The museum maintains behind-the-scenes and feminist art blogs, as well as a podcast series. Posts from around the blogosphere that talk about the museum are also aggregated on the site.
The Brooklyn Museum connects with fans on various social networks as well, including Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and more.
ArtBabble, from the Indianapolis Museum of Art, is a social network “intended to showcase video art content in high quality format from a variety of sources and perspectives.”
Users can upload, watch and comment on videos throughout the site. One great touch is a scrolling widget on the right hand side that links to more information about what’s being discussed in the video.
Mattress Factory Museum in Pittsburgh, maintains a blog, and has a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr (photostream and pool), YouTube and even Last.fm, but the two most notable are MF Iconfess and ScreenTXT.
MFConfess is in the lobby of the museum, a private, confessional-like structure in which museum visitors are invited to broadcast their answers to the question, “What does the Mattress Factory mean to you?” The recording are then uploaded and shared via YouTube.
ScreenTXT is a live text message (SMS) and photo stream, using the BrightKite Diplay Wall. Mattress Factory visitors and museum staff post questions, comments and photos about the museum to a display screen in the MF lobby, all in real time.
On top of its active communities on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr, New York’s Museum of Modern Art also distributes audio and video content, including exhibition tours and public programs, through iTunes.
It also has a feature that allows users to register into the MoMA site, then share content they like via email or text, as well as various social media channels.
Australia’s Powerhouse Museum has a variety of blogs — from Object of the Week to the Research Library — as well as podcasts, kids games and educational applications. It also has a presence on Facebook and Flickr.
As one would expect from the world’s largest museum, the Smithsonian hosts over 20 blogs, nearly as many podcasts, and two-dozen Twitter accounts, as well as a Flickr account and YouTube channel. It’s a massive amount of information, but fans are able to opt-in to whichever piece of content they want.
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has a host of people manage its Open Space blog. The regular posting have attracted a regular audience that’s happy to leave comments and let their voices be heard (one recent post receive 30 comments).
They’re also on Flickr (photostream and photo pool), Twitter, and Facebook, although they don’t advertise these very well on their website.
Museums, large and small, classic and modern, are finding ways to engage with their communities using online social tools. How can you take what they’re doing and apply it to your organization?
