Museums use technology to attract and sustain viewership

Not so long ago, museum websites were nothing more than still and stale platforms, displaying their visiting hours, admission prices, directions and exhibition schedules. But things are changing with evolving technology, which is opening up new opportunities. Museums are keen to exploit them. Talk to players envisaging with museum technology and the oft-recurring theme that emerges is engagement.

In fact, it’s not so much about technology but more about what the site visitors may bring to the whole equation. The museum owners want people to be a part of the process and feel they are associated with the museum. While institutions have always tried to be welcoming platforms as well as hubs of learning, the social media is transforming them into virtual community and thought sharing centers.

On Twitter or Facebook or almost any museum site, one can find a voice, vote and express views on subjects related to art and archiving. Curators and visitors can freely communicate, to learn a few things from each other. As museum visitors carry their hand-held devices to venues, the scope for interactivity only increases…

There is a caveat, though. The technology is ‘stimulating’, and museums are giving some thought to the quantum of information they provide. New York based The Metropolitan Museum of Art director, Thomas P. Campbell, states: “We have got to keep visitors in a heads-up mode, to ensure that they are looking at art pieces.’’ As new technology and all its advanced tools further change, so do the set of challenges that these museums face!

One among them is how to ensure wireless Internet access in old structures so that tech-savvy visitors can effectively make use of their devices. Another issue is how to keep pace with the constant demands of fast-moving social media and, above all, calibrating how much the general public should ultimately influence what gets displayed on the museum walls.