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Northern Ireland Museums Council

Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums

2009

1. Introduction

Museums enable people to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment. They are institutions that collect, safeguard and make accessible artefacts and specimens which they hold in trust for society.

This definition1 establishes the basis of the unique relationship between museums and their visitors. In it the duties of care and facilitating access to the common heritage are set alongside the fundamental rationale as to why people value and use museums. For this relationship to operate meaningfully and effectively, it is necessary for each side to have a degree of knowledge one about the other; from which a mutual understanding of the aspirations, requirements, constrictions and capacities of the other may emerge. As generally understood, marketing is a means of enhancing this exchange process to the point of satisfying (if not exceeding) the needs and expectations of both the individual visitor and the institution.

While defining marketing as a “process responsible for identifying, anticipating and satisfying customer requirements profitably”, the Chartered Institute of Marketing pragmatically points to the constant shift in how the discipline is defined. It nevertheless continues to advocate the traditional marketing mix comprising the 7 Ps – Product, Price, Place, Promotion, People, Process, and Physical Evidence.2 A similar breakdown of the mix has been adopted in this report.

Northern Ireland Museums Council (NIMC) believes that the full potential of museums to contribute to the marketing process has yet to be unlocked. This report puts forward a series of recommendations aimed at enhancing museum marketing practice in order to further meet the needs and expectations of individuals, communities and funders, and in so doing strengthen the sector’s contribution to social, cultural and economic well-being.

2. A Profile of Museums in Northern Ireland

NIMC has identified nearly 300 organisations in Northern Ireland which in one way or another play a significant role in preserving and interpreting our heritage. It is estimated that at least a third of these bodies maintain a collection. Amongst these are 38 institutions that meet the definition given above and which are recognised under the Accreditation Scheme for museums.3 Of these:

_ 19 are run by local authorities

_ 15 operate as independent or voluntary museums

_ 4 come under the National Museums of Northern Ireland (NMNI)

Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 01

Copyright © Northern Ireland Museums Council

1 The Museums Association drew up this definition of a museum in 1998.

2 Chartered Institute of Marketing: Marketing and the 7 Ps www.cim.co.uk/dwnldr/517952

3 The Accreditation Scheme recognises museums that meet the UK standard for museums and galleries. This scheme was first launched in 1988, under the title of the Registration Scheme. It was revised in 1995 and again in 2004. The Museums Libraries and Archives Council is responsible for maintaining the standard across the UK, while NIMC is the assessing organisation for local museums seeking recognition through meeting the standard.

Front cover

Livingstone Radio Collection Craigavon Museum Service

While NIMC’s remit is centred upon Northern Ireland’s local museums (ie the non-national museums) it does, of necessity, provide guidance and assistance to a broad range of heritage organisations. The focus of this study is therefore upon the marketing activity, capacity, potential and objectives within the 38 Accredited museums, with the recommendations geared primarily towards the local museums and NIMC itself. However, it is likely that considerable benefits could accrue through extending the findings of this study to heritage bodies more generally.

...enhancing the quality of service and range of experiences for museum visitors and improve the communication between museums and users

3. Objectives and Methodology

The objectives of this report are;_ to quantify the range and scale of marketing activity across the museum sector in Northern Ireland. _ to assess the merits and weaknesses of current activity._ to put forward a series of recommendations to form the basis of a strategy aimed at increasing the number of museum visitors and users, enhancing the quality of service and range of experiences for museum visitors and improve the communication between museums and users.

The methodology adopted includes:_ desk research; drawing upon various sources of primary research as well as similar studies undertaken by other bodies. _ a survey of museums’ activities._ discussions with other stakeholders.

While a team drawn from within NIMC undertook the research and the compilation of the report, its task was made so much easier through being able to draw upon the considerable expertise of an Advisory Group, comprising; Ian Hill (NIMC Board), Paddy Gilmore (National Museums Northern Ireland), Maurica Lavery (National Trust), Rosemary Lightbody (Northern Ireland Tourist Board), Sarah McHugh (Fermanagh County Museum) and Mary Trainor (Arts and Business, Northern Ireland).

3. Objectives and Methodology 02 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 03

4. Context

The Northern Ireland Museums Council was established in 1993, since when it has supported local museums in Northern Ireland in maintaining and improving their standards of collections care and their services to the public.

It is also charged with improving the standing of museums and promoting a coherent framework for museum development. The Council pursues these objectives by providing advice and information, administering the Accreditation scheme, providing training for those working in the sector, and allocating grant aid to museums. Such activities are underpinned by a sound intelligence base, which is maintained through an ongoing programme of research.

At the end of 2007 NIMC published Mapping Trends in Northern Ireland’s Museums and the Survey of Museum Collections in Northern Ireland. The latter included a detailed examination of museum collections and established benchmarks in fi ve areas of collections management across the 38 museums. The former replicated an exercise fi rst carried out in 2001-02 and looked at the governance and operational aspects of Northern Ireland’s museums, including marketing and audience development. 4

Current projects include an examination of the education and learning provision across the sector, a review of the museum capital infrastructure, and a survey of staffi ng in museums. This report will complete the suite of current research projects, none of which stand in isolation. Indeed, many of the recommendations contained in this report are dependent upon activity in other areas of museum operations. So, for instance, better collections management is a prerequisite to enhanced public access, knowing the needs and demands of visitors directly affects the type of buildings and services (education and otherwise) provided, all of which in turn inform museums as to the vocabulary of skills they must develop amongst their staff.

4. Context 04

Northern Ireland Museum Council supports local museums in maintaining and improving their standards of collections care and their services to the public

NIMC is funded by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) and is one of its Arm’s Length Bodies, as is the National Museums of Northern Ireland. Such funding is predicated upon the Council (and by extension the museums which it grant aids) aligning its activity with Government’s priorities as expressed in the Northern Ireland Executive’s current Programme for Government and the Department’s Corporate Plan.

The Executive’s emphasis upon health, education and the economy is expressed in the following statement:

“Building a stronger economy requires a healthy, well-educated population, high quality public services, a commitment to use prosperity to tackle disadvantage and a tolerant, inclusive and stable society if we are to attract the investment and skills needed to promote growth. It is also imperative that economic growth and wealth creation are taken forward in a manner which is fair and sustainable if we are to meet the needs of today, as well as those of future generations.” 5

In pursuing its ‘mission’, ‘to protect, nurture and grow Northern Ireland’s cultural capital by providing strategic leadership and resources for the promotion and sustainable development of the culture, arts and leisure sectors’, DCAL identifi es its strategic priorities as – growing a dynamic, innovative economy; promoting tolerance, health and well-being; investing to build our infrastructure; deliver modern high quality and effi cient public services. 6

Museums’ contribution to such priorities is centred upon the collection, protection and interpretation of heritage assets. In so doing, they (in terms of being both ‘neutral’ venues and as collections’ holders) may be used as a learning resource, as well as a source of inspiration and entertainment. They deliver notable educational benefi ts (as revealed by the NIMC study – Learning within Northern Ireland’s Museums) and are an essential reference point for, for instance, developing understanding and tolerance, revealing local identity, inspiring the creative industries and contributing to the core curriculum. Obviously the impacts that museums have across all of these areas could be enhanced if such benefi ts were more widely broadcast and if there was greater engagement with museums’ activities. In essence, this is what this study is about.


Left

Survey of Museum Collections in Northern Ireland 2007, and Mapping Trends in Northern Ireland’s Museums 2007.

4 Copies of all NIMC research publications are available through the Council’s website; www.nimc.co.uk

5 Building a Better Future – Northern Ireland Executive’s Programme for Government 2008-11, p6

6 DCAL Corporate Plan 2008-11, p4-11

4. Context 06 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 07

But the sector also makes a proven contribution to the local economy 7 – as a direct and indirect employer, through direct spend on consumables and services, but particularly as a catalyst for expenditure by museum visitors and users. Museums’ contribution to the Northern Ireland tourism industry, for both local and ‘out of state’ visitors is substantial. 8 As section 6.4.2 reveals, museums – especially the local museums – have seen dramatic rises in attendance in recent years, probably due in no small part to the general rise in tourism consequent to Northern Ireland’s more stable and peaceful state.

The Northern Ireland Executive has set challenging targets for tourism over the next two years.9 It has done so against a falling global economy which, in the medium term, will directly affect local conditions and activity. Acknowledging the economic outlook, Paul O’Toole, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, has said, ‘[this] places an even greater onus on us to ensure that our marketing communications are dynamic, innovative and flexible in the circumstances.’ 10

In a similar vein the Northern Ireland Tourist Board has indicated that, faced with the circumstances consequent to the economic downturn, it will be focusing on: the further development of its five Signature Projects; developing products across all parts of Northern Ireland; developing the potential of the domestic and Republic of Ireland markets; visitor information, research and intelligence; and industry development. In the current economic climate the museum sector too might benefit from developing initiatives aimed at building visitor and user numbers as a means of consolidating the sustainability of the sector. Such matters are thought to be of particular importance to the independent and voluntary run museums as they rely more heavily upon income from visitors to meet their outgoings than, for example, the majority of the National or local authority-run museums.

The latter both face significant changes to their governance and operating positions over the next three to five years as the recommendations of the Review of Public Administration (RPA) are implemented. These include the transfer of one of the four national museums, the Armagh County Museum, into the control of the new council for that area. The other three national museums – Ulster Museum in Belfast, the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum in North Down and the Ulster American Folk Park in Omagh – will not be directly affected by the RPA changes.

Local Museums have seen dramatic rises in attendance in recent years, probably due in no small part to the general rise in tourism consequent to Northern Ireland’s more stable and peaceful state.

7 See: Pricewaterhousecoopers 2003 study The Economic Impact of the Museum Sector in Northern Ireland available at www.nimc.co.uk/crossfire/files/page_8/2_file.pdf

8 In an internal paper updating the Pricewaterhousecoopers study NIMC found: “The 2004 NITB Survey of Visitor Attractions indicates that museums attracted an 8% share of visitors (compared with 9% in previous years) and that 22% of those who visited museums were ‘out-of-state’ visitors. It may be deduced that ‘out-of-state’ museum visitors spent approximately £37.8 million during their time in N. Ireland during 2004, compared with £24.2 million in 2001.”

9 See NITB and Tourism Ireland 2009 Marketing Plans – to attract 2.5 million visitors and increase tourism revenue to £520 million by 2011.

10 ‘Dynamism and flexibility key for a difficult 2009’ – Contact (Tourism Ireland newsletter) Nov. 2008.

500, 000

600, 000

400, 000

300, 000

200, 000

100, 000

0 1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

118,000

180,000

241,000

226,239

215,216

250,194

248,665

342,177

350,026

392,575

381,679

399,016

392,857

428,984

439,490

2008 visitor levels at the Local and Independent Museums of Northern Ireland

Table I:

2008 visitor levels at the Local and Independent Museums of Northern Ireland

Left

Interactive exhibition at the Braid, Mid-Antrim Museum

Currently 16 of the 26 local councils directly operate at least one Accredited museum. Under the RPA the number of councils will be reduced to 11. On the basis of the existing boundaries and the current location of museums, the future Belfast and the Mid-Tyrone councils will not have an extant museum in their areas. The other nine councils will have between 1 and 4 of the current local authority-run museums in their areas.

At present, the 15 Accredited voluntary or independently-run museum are spread across 8 of the 26 council areas. Upon closer scrutiny this breaks down further – 3 councils have one such museum in their area, four have two museums and one council (Belfast) currently has 3 voluntary or independently-run museums in its area. After the implementation of the changes to the local councils, a greater proportion of the new councils will have this type of museum within their boundaries, leaving 4 of the 11 councils without a voluntary or independently-run museum within their area. Indeed the outcome of the RPA will see one council have one such museum, 5 of the new councils will have 2, with Belfast retaining the three which are within its current area.

The location of the Accredited museums within the new Council boundaries, as described above, is mapped out on the diagram below.

Location of Museums Post rPA

4. Context 08

At the moment NIMC is in discussions with eight other museums that are seeking Accredited status: one is run by the local council, the others by independent organisations. The number of Accredited local museums is set to increase, particularly within the voluntary sector.

There is the possibility of building a ‘museum service’ in each area, which could provide a critical mass from which a more enhanced ‘offer’ could be made in terms of tourism, education and learning, and local identity

Post RPA all of the local council areas will contain a number of museums, in contrast to the current position. This offers the possibility of building a ‘museum service’ in each area, in which a conglomeration of museums could provide a critical mass from which a more enhanced ‘offer’ could be made in terms of tourism, education and learning, and local identity. This could be strengthened through a partnership comprising all parts of the museum sector – council-run museums, the independent and voluntary organisations and the national museums. A key to ensuring that any partnership of this kind was successful would be to make sure that the whole and the constituent parts were appropriately marketed and promoted. The outcome could be museums’ enhanced capacity to play a more effective role in the cultural, social and economic development locally.

A similar aspiration has been brought forward by the Culture, Arts and LeisureCommittee of the Northern Ireland Assembly, through its recent inquiry intothe development of a museum policy for Northern Ireland. 11 While it may beargued that all 28 recommendations contained within the Committee’s fi nalreport can relate to the various aspects of the marketing mix detailed in the next section, the value of museums to the tourism agenda is stressed in the eighth recommendation, which reads;

We recommend that the museums policy addresses how the links between museums and tourism can be strengthened and taken forward at a departmental level. DCAL should establish formal links with DETI to do so.


11 www.niassembly.gov.uk/culture/2007mandate/reports/report07_08_09r.htm

Volunteer/Independent Museums

Council Museums

National Museums

4. Context 10 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 11

With the fi fteenth recommendation underpinning the need for a strong visionary policy relevant to the wider community:

We recommend that the museums policy sets out a strong vision of the role which museums can play in our society going forward. The policy must be clear about what museums do and who they are for, including both the needs of the local communities in which they are situated and the needs of tourists.

The Museum Policy is being developed by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure, in conjunction with the Northern Ireland Museums Council and the National Museums Northern Ireland, and it is anticipated that this report will contribute to building a robust and pragmatic marketing and audience development strategy for the sector in support of the Museum Policy.

Such a strategy will need to take account of current thinking on the development of a new tourism strategy, being headed up by the Northern Ireland Tourist Board. In its associated working paper an ambitious target of doubling the income earned through tourism over the next ten years has been set. The strategy proposes two themes – ‘telling our stories’ and ‘transforming the experience’. Museums, quite obviously, will play an important role in the former, but will require investment to meet the aspiration of the latter, as this report will demonstrate.

In 2000 the Heritage Lottery Fund commissioned PLB Consulting to examine how heritage organisations, particularly smaller ones, might engage with new audiences. Developing New Audiences for Heritage looked at audience development, barriers to participation and how these might be addressed, and what steps might be taken to encourage greater participation in heritage activities. It highlighted the absence of a clear, strategic infrastructure in support of the heritage sector as asignifi cant weakness and pointed to identifi able barriers to visitor participation.

These included:_ User perception, particularly on the relevance of participation_ Lack of specifi c facilities_ Lack of information and awareness_ Poor physical access to the resource_ Lack of physical access at the resource_ Limited intellectual access_ The cost of participation_ Management ethos

Other barriers concerning voluntary work and involvement with governance were also examined. In pursuit of developing audiences a series of ‘golden rules’ were put forward which advocated the importance of training, having a sound knowledge about participants, maximising physical and intellectual access, actively engaging with potential, new audiences, ensuring that cost was not a barrier, and providing targeted information in various formats. These aspects were again addressed by HLF in February 2009 in its paper Thinking about... Audience Development. 12 As will be seen, all of these concerns are mirrored in this study on marketing in Northern Ireland’s museums.

12 See: www.hlf.org.uk/howtoapply/furtherresources /documents/thinking_about_audience_development.pdf

Left

Derry-Londonderry and remembering the Plantation of Ulster, Remembering 400 years

Developing New Audiences for Heritage looked at audience development, barriers to participation and how these might be addressed, and what steps might be taken to encourage greater participation in heritage activities

5. Marketing and Northern Ireland’s Museums – The information base6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

12 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 13

5. Marketing and Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Information Base

Over the last ten years various studies, reviews and surveys have been carried out on marketing within Northern Ireland’s museum sector, from which a general overview of such activity in the sector may be discerned.

Particularly useful in this regard is the primary research undertaken within two academic studies – Eva McAteer: A Strategic Investigation of Marketing Practices of the Registered Museums in Northern Ireland, and Mary Blake: Study of the Marketing Practices of Registered Museums in Northern Ireland, both of which were presented as MA dissertations to the University of Ulster in 2004.

Baseline material, together with trends and changes within the sector can be ascertained from NIMC’s Mapping Trends in Northern Ireland’s Museums, 2002 and Mapping Trends in Northern Ireland’s Museums, 2007, and with valuable material within the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency’s: Museums: NI Omnibus Survey (2002) and Research and Evaluation Services’ Museums Survey, 2004.

In 2008, NIMC undertook a detailed analysis of the learning resources, capacity and activity across the sector. This included an examination of how these services were promoted. The results have informed this study. Similarly, the National Museums Northern Ireland completed a comprehensive ‘user and attitudes’ survey in 2008, the results of which have proved equally informative.

While many local museums undertake analogous research at their sites, current capacity and resources do not allow such work to be done evenly across the sector, and what work is undertaken is discrete and thus varied in its form, frequency, depth and focus. Herein lies a critical issue, the need to ensure greater consistency in visitor intelligence in order to construct a solid base for building and refining future museum marketing activity.

6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

Drawing upon the sources cited above, a profile of marketing activity within the sector can be established. This is presented under six headings – Policy, Place, Product, Price, People and Promotion – as a nod of acknowledgement of the principle divisions in traditional marketing theory.

Marketing Activitywithin Northern Ireland’s Museum Sector

Policy

Place

Product

Price

People

Promotion

The critical issue is the need to ensure greater consistency in visitor intelligence in order to construct a solid base for building and refining future museum marketing activity

14 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 15

6.1 Policy

All museums now declare a clear sense of purpose expressed through mission statements, strategic plans, statute or company/trust memorandum. However, some museums are without a specific marketing strategy.

Among local museums Blake (2004) and NIMC (2002) concur on the proportion of local authority museums (12 out of 19) and independent museums (8 out of 16) that are without such a strategy. The later NIMC survey (2007) registers a notable change in this regard with only two local authority museums and 2 independent museums declaring that their position remained unchanged.

This would suggest that ‘marketing’ is being integrated into museums’ planning processes more and more. While the later sections of this report reveal how this has been translated into action on the ground, this enhanced awareness at a corporate level can be seen in the strategic plans and headline mission statements of many museums.

A sampling of these documents suggests a shift in the manner in which museums express their raison d’etre. While the ‘product-centred’ form tended to be universal a few years ago, increasingly museums are shifting to more ‘user-orientated’ mission statements. This change may be illustrated by the following four statements:

‘The objectives of the Craigavon Museum are to collect, conserve, interpret and exhibit those artefacts which illustrate the history and local heritage of the Craigavon area and the Lough Neagh Basin. Craigavon Museum will be a museum which reflects the history of the Area. Particular attention will be paid to social, economic and artistic history and to the themes of the Plantation of Ulster and the position of the area as the centre of road, rail, water and telecommunications.’ 13

‘North Down Museum Service will champion the natural and built heritage of the Borough; it will record, reflect and promote the ‘story’ of North Down for the benefit of the present and future generations, as well as the Borough’s cultural tourists.’ 14

‘To connect the collections, knowledge and public spaces of National Museums Northern Ireland with the widest possible audience to inform and inspire their understanding of the past, the present and the future of people, culture, places, and of the natural environment here and across the world’ 15

‘As a Newry and Mourne District Council service, Newry and Mourne Museum is committed to providing a high-quality, dynamic and inclusive educational and recreational resource. As the area’s collective memory bank, the museum will collect, preserve and interpret the diverse material and cultural heritage of Newry and Mourne in order to cultivate and promote pride, understanding and enjoyment of local cultures and traditions to the present day.’ 16

This conscious shift in intent is the essential prerequisite to developing an active marketing strategy, the success of which is bolstered by addressing the physical, intellectual and economic barriers perceived by users; improving visitor services and developing the exhibition and events programme in light of visitor needs and aspirations, and having a clarity in communication. Each is considered in the sections that follow.

Left

North Down Museum 2007

Left

Newry & Mourne Museum, Glass Floor Gallery

13 http://www.craigavonmuseum.com/services/mission/index.shtml

14 http://www.northdown.gov.uk/ heritage/

15 http://www.magni.org.uk/document_library/National_Museums_Northern_Ireland_Corporate_Strategy_2006-09.pdf

16 Newry and Mourne Museum Forward Plan 2007-2012. p3.


6.2 Place

This section is concerned with museum buildings and infrastructure and the steps taken to improve physical access for visitors. It touches on museums’ role in sustaining that sense of local identity as defined by geography, interest and/or experience.

6.2.1 Capital Infrastructure

The first decade of the twenty-first century will be noted as a time of unprecedented investment in the museum infrastructure of Northern Ireland, with just over half of the 38 Accredited museums being redeveloped to a greater or lesser extent. An indication of the scale and range of the investment being made may be gained from the following table which details the major capital programmes recently completed, underway or planned at the end of 2008.

6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position 16

ProjecT estimated cost/allocation Armagh Public Library – Vicar’s Hill £382,000

Ballymena Museum £12,940,000

Ballymoney Museum £688,500

Carrickfergus Museum £900,000

Coleraine Museum £2,500,000

Craigavon Museum £125,000

Down County Museum £1,440,000

Fermanagh County Museum and £600,000 Inniskillings Museum

Larne Museum £670,000

Newry and Mourne Museum – Bagenal’s Castle £2,300,000

Sentry Hill House £600,000

Tower Museum £2,790,000

National Museums Northern Ireland – Ulster Museum £14,886,000

Total £40,821,500

Table I:

Capital Development in Northern Ireland’s museums

Source: NIMC 2008


...sustaining that sense of local identity as defined by geography, interest and/or experience

Above

The new refurbished Ulster Museum Ulster Museum

Left

Interior of Carrickfergus Musuem

6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position 18 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 19

In addition, the development of the Police Museum is being considered, building and refurbishment work is planned at three of the National Trust properties in the near future, and discussions are underway concerning the relocation of some of the Regimental museums. The table also excludes the Access Initiative run by NIMC (albeit relatively small), through which grant aid has been made available to the Somme Heritage Centre and the Downpatrick Railway Museum to improve the physical access of their buildings. Neither does it include the upgrading of exhibitions and displays, which range from the installation of new architectural outdoor exhibits at two of the National Museums Northern Ireland sites, to the refreshment of permanent displays at some of the smaller museums.

A number of factors have triggered investment at this time. Foremost is money from the Heritage Lottery Fund (set up in 1994), and more recently, the emergence of a capital line within the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure which has been fundmental in allowing the refurbishment of the Ulster Museum. The emergence of Northern Ireland from the ‘Troubles’ has allowed infrastructural deficits to be addressed with a greater sense of confidence, notably by the local councils. These principle funders – HLF, DCAL and the local councils – have each provided about a third of the total capital expenditure identified in Table 1.

However, it should be noted that the museums sector in Northern Ireland is relative immature, especially when compared with other parts of the UK: over 70% of museums being less than 35 years old. A case could be made for the recent injection of resources being but part of the generic cycle of development previously seen in other parts of the UK and Ireland, and further afield.

Until recently it was rare for museums to move into a purpose-built building when they were first set up, either because of cost restrictions, or perhaps that the occupied building was seen as an integral part of the preservation aims of the governing body, or indeed that placing the museum in an extant (usually old) building allowed a ‘testing’ of the concept before full commitment. Mapping Trends (NIMC 2002) revealed that over half (55%) of all museums in Northern Ireland were housed in listed buildings; highlighting an important, but under-recognised role of museums as custodians of the built heritage. By 2007 this figure had risen to 68% as Newry Museum moved to occupy a listed building; the ’listing’ designation changed at one museum and with the inclusion of two museum buildings which had been omitted from the 2002 survey.

There are particular challenges associated with running a museum in an older building – notably enhanced difficulties regarding physical access for users, possibly higher maintenance costs, as well as architectural and aesthetic considerations regarding the installation of services, displays and storage facilities. Not addressing such issues, particularly as they impact on physical access for visitors, is no longer an option now that the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (particularly Part III regarding access to public services) is in force.

While the need to comply with legislative requirements (on which count the intent and requirements of Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1995 should be placed alongside the Disability Discrimination Act 1995) is a driving force to developing the museum infrastructure, the advent of the Heritage Lottery Fund as a source of capital funding smoothed the way to compliance.

55% of all museums in Northern Ireland are housed in listed buildings

Above

Ballymoney Town Hall

6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position 20 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 21

Mapping Trends (NIMC 2007) also uncovered that while a third of museums had undertaken an audit to the physical barriers to access in 2001, all museums had done so by the end of 2006. This shift was due to NIMC commissioning Adapt NI to undertake an audit of all museums in 2003, with the resulting reports allowing museums to identify and move to address deficiencies.

Over the same period the number of fully accessible museums moved from 18 to 19. Of the 19 that are not fully accessible, all but one occupy a listed building, and four of these are planning or undertaking capital works that will lead to full access. Four museums currently do not have necessary ramped access (compared with 8 museums in 2001) and work to rectify this position at two museums is underway.

While the availability of external resources and legislative compliance has stimulated many local authorities to invest in their museums, local pride and the tourism agenda have been equally influential, elements which are also reflected in the ‘mission statements’ of such museums cited at 6.1 above.

6.2.2 Transport

Whereas the evidence implies that the sector is making steady progress in addressing the barriers to physical access at museums, it would appear that some visitors continue to experience difficulties in getting to and from museums. Of the 38 museums surveyed only five (all rurally situated) indicated that they were not immediately accessible by visitors relying on public transport. Anecdotal evidence from museum staff suggests that for visitors and non-users the issue was not the availability of such transport, so much as their adverse views on the frequency and desirability of what was available. In other words it is an issue of perception. This opinion would seem to have some basis given the RES (2004) survey finding that 9% of those surveyed, who had not visited a museum recently, cited ‘too far/poor transport’ as their reason for non-participation.

Within NIMC’s Learning Report, museums were asked how learning in museums could best be supported. The issue which received the second highest level of support was the funding of transport to facilitate further participation in museums learning programmes.

All but one museum said that visitors could access car parking on-site or close by. The NIMC survey (2007) also found that coach parking was not available only at four museums.

6.2.3 Signage

Signage plays a notable role in raising awareness and in facilitating visits. The most recent survey of museums (NIMC 2007) revealed that six museums (9 in 2002) did not have external signage on the building. Given that all six museums occupied listed buildings, it seems likely that aesthetic concerns preclude such signage.

All but six museums have stated that there is local directional signage in place. However, the effectiveness of such signage, nor indeed the reasons why some museums are without it, can not be discerned from the available evidence.

No information exists on the efficacy and efficiency of signage to museums (for instance, the form, placement, sequencing of signage at different distances from the museum) and a separate piece of work is required to examine this area in more detail.

Transport was identified as the second highest issue which needs financal support to facilitate further participation in museums learning programmes

Left

Symbol for Museums

6.2.4 opening Hours

There is little consistency amongst Northern Ireland’s museums as to what days of the week or hours of the day they are open. The complexity of the situation is revealed by the following extract from Museum mapping (NIMC 2007);

Whether museums operate seasonally or all-year-round, all bar one (which is only open on a Sunday) are open on weekdays. Of these seven are not open to the public during the morning, although some of these are open by appointment or for education work in the morning. Five museums close at lunchtime. A high proportion (21%) of museums are not open on the weekends. Of the 29 museums that open at weekends, 10 do not open on a Sunday. Those surveyed indicated that the opening hours of their museums were particularly influenced by the human and financial resources available and conditions of service for employees.

Since 2001 there has been little change in the proportion of museums which operate seasonally as against those that are open all year round. Of the nine seasonal venues;

_ Three are small Council-run museums open during the summer months

_ In the independent museum sector, the four National Trust houses are fully open for seven months over the summer period, and Flame – Gasworks Museum of Ireland is open for five months

_ And one is a temporary exhibition space which is open only when a display is presented.

Cost, the conservation requirements of the collection, the perception of the museum being a ‘tourist attraction’, and the weather are cited as the basis for seasonal opening.

Most museums open their doors between 9.30am and 11.00am in the morning, and close them between 4.00pm and 5.00pm in the afternoon. None of the museums surveyed regularly open in the evenings, although some indicated that they facilitated ‘out of hours’ use by groups and for special events.

The recent ‘User and Attitudes survey, undertaken by Millward Brown on behalf of the National Museums Northern Ireland in 2008 throws further light on both seasonal and daily opening, as can be seen in the following three tables.

22 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 236. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

People are most likely to visit a Museum at the weekend.

Friday

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Saturday Sunday

Table III:

Days of the week on which people are likely to visit a museum.

Northern Ireland visitors

Northern Ireland non-visitors

UK visitors

2 47

3 37

11 11

21

3 47 5 6 7

54

46

38

212320

Table II:

Time of year most likely to consider a trip to N Ireland.

Museum Visitors

Museums Non-Visitors

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

jan-Mar Apr-jun jul-Sep oct-Dec Dont’ know

10

19

37

4438

10

17 16

96

The time of the year people are lost likely to visit Northern Ireland is during the months July-September

right

RIC Pocket watch Police Museum


...weekend opening for some museums immediately springs to mind.

Museums, it would appear, have a strong sense of their own identity and focus, their mission is relatively clear

Table IV:

Most likely time of arrival for a museum visit.

Northern Ireland visitors

Northern Ireland non-visitors

UK visitors

2pm

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

10am 11am 12 noon 1pm 3pm 4pm

By comparing data from the NMNI survey and that of NIMC (2007), it becomes evident that there is a certain degree of mismatch between the access hours being provided by museums and those most desired by visitors. There would be merit in looking at the associated issues in detail; weekend opening for some museums immediately springs to mind.

6.2.5 Identity and Place

The social and political importance of the local identity agenda has gathered momentum of late, particularly since the restitution of the Northern Ireland Assembly and the prospect of structural changes to the local government and public service infrastructures through the Review of Public Administration.17 Add to this the recognition of the economic benefit of attracting tourists to particular locations on the promise of a ‘unique offer’ (such as the NITB ‘signature projects’) and the significance of local identity rises to another level.

Museums contribute to local identity on various counts: by their very existence as landmark buildings and orientation points for visitors; as custodians of a collective memory; by the programmes of events and activities they present; and as trustees of the heritage of various communities, be they identified by place, interest or experience. But beyond this contribution to collective identity, museums uniquely allow individuals to confront and consolidate their own relationship with such local identities.

In as much as museums can and do build ‘identity’ across various levels, from the individual to the local, from the collective to the ‘national’, such diversity points to a ‘layering’ of potential marketing activity which will bring both challenges and rewards.

As part of the Accreditation Standard scheme museums are required to state their Acquisition and Disposal Policy, which includes a statement setting out the criteria governing future collecting, as defined by subject, theme, time period or geographical area. Without exception, the Council-run museums define their collecting area by geography. So, for instance, Ballymoney Museum’s policy states that it will “collect and preserve material evidence which illustrates the environment, history, heritage and way of life in the Borough of Ballymoney.” Such museums highlight identity as defined by place, before interest or experience.

By contrast, the main concern of many independent museums may be defined by an area of interest (Railway Preservation Society of Ireland, or, Flame: The Gasworks Museum of Ireland), while others’ primary focus is upon communities identified by their collective experience (the Police and Regimental museums for example).

As might be expected, the remit of the National Museums Northern Ireland is broader. Its governing statute sets out the general responsibility of promoting an appreciation and awareness of the public of the heritage of Northern Ireland, specifically in relation to art, history, science, culture and ways of life, migration and settlement.

The National Trust museums too could be said to have an holistic role; one where the collections, the houses in which they reside and the surrounding landscape and gardens form an integrated whole, and where the interpretation and context of one of these elements is dependent upon the others.

Museums, it would appear, have a strong sense of their own identity and focus, their mission is relatively clear. But a question does arise – is there such clarity of understanding about museums, both individually and collectively, amongst their visitors? And if not, how could this be addressed?

17 A salient piece of research on local identity was commissioned as part of the evidence base of the Review of Public Administration. See: http://www.rpani.gov.uk/local_identity_research_report.pdf

18 16

35

24

15

3124 25

1812

83 1 10 01 1

18 17

8


6.3 Product

As revealed in the accepted definition, museums’ functions are centred on the collections they hold and the experiences they can generate.

It is this that distinguishes them from the other leisure, educational and recreational activities on offer; many of which compete with museums for the attention, time and cash of visitors.

Their capacity to use collections to enable a life-enriching experience is their unique product. That said, it may be argued that museums’ marketing focus should be upon those life-changing experiences first and foremost – many adults glowingly recall the residual feeling and experience of visits to museum in childhood, often without remembering the event or activity surrounding the visit. However, the life-changing experience does not come with every museum visit; but it may be catalysed through high quality events and activities, delivered to a high service standard.

6.3.1 The Museum Product

While it may be a fine point, it can be argued that it is the manner and means through which collections are interpreted and presented to visitors that is the ‘museum product’, rather than the objects per se.

After all, the primary interface with visitors is through the exhibitions, events and programmes presented in pursuit of the museum’s objectives. These, for the purposes of this report, may be termed the primary product, and includes the permanent collection displays (sometimes remaining unchanged over a long time) and temporary exhibitions (sometimes including artefacts on loan from other collections), as well as the means of interpretation – the tours, lectures, education workshops, publications, demonstrations, research facilities et al. that run alongside the objects on display. The primary product must also include other work which, while also rooted in the collections, takes place outside the museum – for instance, loan boxes, artefact on loan to other institutions, outreach and educational work, virtual exhibitions, as well as the ever growing range of digitised resources (web sites, blogs, pod casts, artefact databases, bespoke pre-visit downloads, etc).

Above

Interacting with Silver Sounds at the Naughton Gallery, Queen’s University

Above

Members of Glenravel and Cullybackey Environmental Improvement Agencies learning about linen history at the Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum


6.3.2 Primary Product

Not surprisingly, all of Northern Ireland’s museums present a programme of exhibitions.

Some museums by their nature and in line with their raison d’etre rarely change what they exhibit, some present a rolling programme of exhibitions and events, while others offer a combination of permanent and temporary exhibitions. The capacity of museums to both generate and receive exhibitions or objects from other institutions depends upon their standards of collections management, the scale of available exhibition spaces, curatorial capacity and, inevitably, money.

The secondary product range offered by museums is more generic, encompassing events and activities that are not dependent upon the collections and which could be organised by others or held elsewhere. Within this category one might include readings, meetings, workshops and demonstrations, where in hosting such events the museum is being exploited as a culturally compatible venue. As such this activity forms part of a museum’s overall public relations effort, through which it might enhance its income, increase visitor numbers and expose attendees to the benefits of museums without that being the primary motivation for their attendance.

Undoubtedly, museum buildings and facilities in themselves also form part of the product offer, as exemplified by the National Trust properties mentioned above, or the exhibits at the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum, the Ulster-American Folk Park or Flame: The Gasworks Museum of Ireland. But increasingly museums are being used for receptions, weddings, dinners, conferences, corporate hospitality and the like. Such usage, while having obvious audience development or public relations benefits, is in all likelihood being driven by income generation. However, it is evident that using museums for such events is giving rise to tensions between the conservation and preservation needs of the collection (and indeed the building itself) and the pressing need to bring in the money necessary to maintain the collections and allow access to them. A balancing act is obviously required which can only be determined on a site by site basis.

Obviously clarity of understanding of what product is actually (or could be) on offer at which particular times at individual museums is a prerequisite to good asset management and can inform promotional and audience development activities. It may be beneficial, particularly for the smaller museums, to develop a process through which such insights become clear.

Above

Interior of the War Memorial Building, Belfast

Increasingly museums are being used for receptions, weddings, dinners, conferences, corporate hospitality and the like. Such usage, while having obvious audience development or public relations benefits, is in all likelihood being driven by income generation


6.3.2.1 collections care and Management

In 2007 the Northern Ireland Museums Council published its Survey of Museum Collections in Northern Ireland which established the range and scale of the collections held.

It also determined the significance of these collections and benchmarked the standards of collections management.18 During the course of the survey various issues emerged, foremost amongst which were: difficulties in accessing appropriate conservation services; the storage of collections; documentation backlogs, the low level of research on collections and the degree to which collections have been digitised. The processes and perceptions around inter-museum loans was also highlighted an issue to be addressed.

Development Strategy that will become operational during 2009. In 2008 the Council piloted a grant scheme which allowed museums to ‘buy’ time or expertise for researching particular aspects of their collections. Given the success of the initiative in enhancing curatorial capacity, it is likely that this scheme will be mainstreamed as a core aspect of the Collections Development Strategy.

Above

Conservator Julie Ann Tolerton, explaining how objects are conserved

Above

17th Century Lisburn Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum

18 The Institute of Conservation (ICON) defines collections management as being ‘about minimising long-term risk by understanding and controlling the way objects are stored, transported and displayed to ensure collections have the best chance of survival into the future’. To this end museums concentrate upon five main areas – the environment in which objects are kept and displayed, the conditions in which they are stored, the general day to day care of collections, the security of artefacts and collection and management of information about the objects held by the museum.

6.3.2 Primary Product

Not surprisingly, all of Northern Ireland’s museums present a programme of exhibitions. Some museums by their nature and in line with their raison d’etre rarely change what they exhibit, some present a rolling programme of exhibitions and events, while others offer a combination of permanent and temporary exhibitions. The capacity of museums to both generate and receive exhibitions or objects from other institutions depends upon their standards of collections management, the scale of available exhibition spaces, curatorial capacity and, inevitably, money.

6.3.2.1 collections care and Management

In 2007 the Northern Ireland Museums Council published its Survey of Museum Collections in Northern Ireland which established the range and scale of the collections held. It also determined the significance of these collections and benchmarked the standards of collections management. During the course of the survey various issues emerged, foremost amongst which were: difficulties in accessing appropriate conservation services; the storage of collections; documentation backlogs, the low level of research on collections and the degree to which collections have been digitised. The processes and perceptions around inter-museum loans was also highlighted an issue to be addressed.

NIMC aims to address noted deficiencies through a Collections Development Strategy that will become operational during 2009. In 2008 the Council piloted a grant scheme which allowed museums to ‘buy’ time or expertise for researching particular aspects of their collections. Given the success of the initiative in enhancing curatorial capacity, it is likely that this scheme will be mainstreamed as a core aspect of the Collections Development Strategy

32

6.3.2.2 Temporary and Touring exhibitions

Temporary exhibitions are a constant means by which museums refresh their programme and are a tested way of attracting the repeat visitor.

They allow significant themes, anniversaries or genres to be examined in detail and may be compiled and presented in various ways and means, as the following recent examples demonstrate.

‘The Ages of Elegance’, prepared by the National Trust, drew upon the costume collection at Springhill House and toured as a discrete ‘whole’ (including catalogue and promotional material). The exhibition on the social history of the railways was curated collectively by the NI Regional Curators Group and toured to the museums of that group’s members. It comprised core artefacts and interpretation material, which host museums could add to reflect the impact of the railways in their area. Similarly, the ‘Our People Our Times’ exhibition, which focused on migration and organised by NIMC, was centred on interpretation panels and included small display of objects drawn from both museum and non-museum collections. Each receiving venue was encouraged to add to the display, and consequently the exhibition was never the same at any venue.19 The ‘Their Past Your Future’ exhibition brought together by the Imperial War Museum to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, it was one of 11 modular exhibitions that simultaneously toured regions within the UK. Other touring exhibition of note would include the Mid-Antrim Museum Service and Causeway Museum Service exhibitions which are curated ‘internally’ and toured to museums across the area covered by the service.

The NIMC surveys found that just over half of museums maintain a dedicated space for temporary exhibitions, with 23 out of 38 declaring that they regularly take touring exhibitions from other institutions or have the facility to do so. To date the approach to temporary exhibitions has been somewhat ad hoc and opportunistic, and there is a demand for more amongst museums. It would seem that through assuming a more strategic approach to developing temporary exhibitions could accrue such benefits as; economies of scale though collective effort; provide longer planning horizons thus allowing a more consolidated approach to the promotion of such shows; acting as a means for providing enhanced access to rarely seen objects; and offer a greater range of conceptual challenges in interpretation (by curators, academics or members of the public), with the possibility of designing shows for particular audiences (be they local or out-of-state visitors).

The seeds of a strategic approach to both temporary and touring exhibitions are evident through the collaboration between museums on the commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the Plantation of Ulster in 2012-13. Such an approach will require further investment in the future.

Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 336. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

19 The ‘Our People Our Times’ exhibition was designed to be shown without the accompanying objects, thus allowing the interpretation panels to be shown as a stand alone exhibition in ‘non-museum’ venues.

Left

Stories from town and country a selection of exhibition panels from I mind when...

The Falkans War, 25th Commemoration of the Conflict 1982/2007

Causeway Museum Service

34

6.2.2.3 Interpretation

In essence interpretation is the means by which museums provide intellectual access to their collections by their visitors.

There are obviously myriad ways of communicating with museum goers, be it the form of catalogues, guides, labels, tour guides, lectures, demonstrations, etc. These tend to be available ‘on site’, and a distinction needs to be made between them and promotional material (distributed ‘off site’) whose primary function is to generate the museum visit in the first place. However, in practice the differentiation between the two is often not clear cut. For instance the museum guidebook or exhibition catalogue is, in the main, an interpretative document, but often assumes a promotional function as soon as it leaves the museum, depending upon the context in which a person comes across such a publication. The capacity for such items to fulfil both roles is obviously enhanced if this requirement in consciously built into the design and content initially.

This functional refinement, particularly evident in the catalogues which accompany touring exhibitions, has let to be seen to the same degree when it comes to web sites and digital communication methods.

The Mapping Trends surveys reveal that, over the five years from 2001 to 2006, museums’ use of digital IT increased dramatically.

_ The number of museums using IT-based interactives as part of their display more than doubled

_ The use of computers as an integral part of their displays increased more than three-fold

_ There was a notable rise in the use of audio-visual presentations (from 15 to 25 museums) and low-tech interactives (from 12 to 17 museums) in museums.

While the increased usage of such interactives within museum displays is notable. A separate piece of research, undertaken specifically for this report, looked at 41 sites (5 museum service sites and 37 museum sites). Of these 13 (1 museum service site and 12 individual museum sites) provided relatively limited interpretative insight to the collections through online access to various means (catalogues, databases, videos, photographs, learning resources). Clearly there is room to expand the use of web sites as a further means of enhancing the public’s knowledge of museum collections.

The use of web sites as a promotional tool is picked up in section 6.6.4.

Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 356. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

Above

Cracking the Code, The Ulster Way exhibition panels

Somme Heritage Centre

right

Cracking the Code, interactive element

Somme Heritage Centre


6.2.2.4 Learning, education and outreach

A primary function of museums has always been to provide ways and means through which people can learn. NIMC has recently completed a detailed study on learning in our museums, the fi ndings of which have been published recently. 20

There has always been a drive within museums to work closely with the formal education sector, with a particular focus on schools. This involvement has developed in recent years, evidenced, for example, by the growth in the number of museums employing education staff directly or having direct access to such expertise – from 16 museums (42%) in 2001 to 28 (74%) in 2006, and by the increasing alignment of the museums’ educational offer to the curriculum. However, between 2001 and 2006 the number of school children going to our museums rose from 164,000 to 170,858, representing a 4% growth over the period, which might be considered disappointing given that attendances generally over the same period rose by 21%.

The research associated with the Learning within Northern Ireland’s Museums study looked into schools use of museums in more details, revealing that,

Number of visitors increasedNumber of visitors decreased

Number of visitors remained the same

14 out of 35 responding museums indicated the number of visitors and users of their learning services has gone up since 2005/2006. The reasons given includes opening new premises; improving services; better marketing; special events; and additional efforts to improve word of mouth. 4 museums responded that the number of users had remained the same.

17 of the 35 responding museums reported that the numbers had gone down. Reasons given for the decreases included that class sizes have dropped (leading to fewer pupils visiting despite the same number of classes coming); having no staff to deliver the education programme; museum closure for refurbishment; curriculum changes leading to changes in school visiting patterns; and fi nancial costs for schools, including transport costs.

Learning within Northern Ireland’s Museums found that there was considerable variation in the type of data which museums gathered about their ‘educational’ users, and in the way in which it was stored and interrogated, concluding;

Although the Survey asked museums who they regard as the most important target audience for their Learning programmes or activities, the variability in the extent and quality of the responses received did not permit a reliable analysis to be undertaken.

The key barriers preventing people from using museums’ learning programmes were perceived by museums to be lack of awareness about the programmes, and transport costs.

An object loan service and outreach work are but two ways museums are addressing accessibility issues such a transport diffi culties – if people can not get to the museum, then perhaps an aspect of the museum can get to them. In the main, such programmes tend to be allied directly with education services to schools, with 14 out of 38 museums currently operating such loan schemes, and by 2006, 20 museums (just over half) had an outreach offi cer or another member of staff whose responsibilities included associated work.

Such activity, because it takes place outside the museum building inevitably has PR potential and the capacity to contribute to audience development amongst museum non-users.

20 Northern Ireland Museums Council: Learning within Northern Ireland’s

Museums 2009. www.nimc.co.uk

NIMC defi nes Learning in accordance with the defi nition of Inspiring Learning for All, which was developed by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council:

‘Learning is a process of active engagement with experience. It is what people do when they want to make sense of the world. It may involve the development or deepening of skills, knowledge, understanding, awareness, values, ideas and feelings, or an increase in the capacity to refl ect. Effective learning leads to change, development and the desire to learn more.’

Left

NIMC; Learning and Access in Museums Report


6.3.3 Secondary Product

Twenty-three museums (60%) indicated that they offered corporate hospitality or had the facilities to do so. However, there is little detail on frequency of use, demand or the capacity for museums to exploit this partnership with the corporate sector.

The same too can be said of the ‘secondary products’, previously identified as including events, receptions, weddings, dinners, conferences, etc., where the capacity to undertake such activity depends so much upon the form and layout of the buildings museums occupy.

6.3.4 Visitor Services

The services provided by museums play a critical role in enhancing the visitor and user experience. It would appear that expectations in this area are constantly rising.

The 2007 Mapping Trends survey found that 4 museums were unable to provide toilet facilities for disabled patrons, compared with 8 in the previous survey. All but one museum now provides toilet facilities for visitors and an increasing number of museums provide facilities for changing and feeding infants (rising from 17 to 21 museums, out of 38). No museum in Northern Ireland currently operates a crèche.

The number of museums providing an induction loop system, or equivalent, doubled over the five-year review period, so that 33% of museums now provide this facility. Similarly, the number of museums making audio guide material available doubled (to 17), as did the number providing literature in large print (to 17).

There was no change in the number or profile of museums providing refreshment facilities and/or a shop. Currently just under half of Northern Ireland’s museums have a café or the like, and two thirds operate a retail outlet. Blake correlated the frequency of a restaurant/tea room with visitor numbers. While finding that only the more frequently attended venues had such facilities, she could not establish if museums attract more visitors because they had this service, or if museums decided to offer them in response to high visitor numbers.

In terms of legislative requirement and governmental guidance 21 and in light of the rising number of out of state visitors coming to Northern Ireland anticipated in the coming years, the provision of information (both promotional and interpretive) to museum users in a range of languages other than English is becoming more pressing. The NIMC (2006) survey established that 12 (out of 38) museums provided literature in a language other than English, with 8 providing such signage. Just under a third of museums (11) stated that they had staff with a competency in a language other than English. A further refinement to this intelligence emerges from the survey undertaken by NIMC in respect of its Learning Strategy, where with a sample of 37 museums, the range of languages used became evident, as revealed by the following table.

21 See: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and DCAL website – ‘The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement committed the Government to ‘recognise the importance of respect, understanding and tolerance in relation to linguistic diversity, including in Northern Ireland, the Irish language, Ulster-Scots and the languages of the various ethnic minority communities, all of which are part of the cultural wealth of the island of Ireland.’

In addition, seven respondents indicated that they provided information in a range of other languages, including Russian, Lithuanian, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Chinese and Japanese. Again, the sector might benefit from a more standardised approach to presenting promotional and interpretative material in foreign languages.

Currently just under half of Northern Ireland’s museums have a café or the like, and two thirds operate a retail outlet

Table V:

Language use in museums

2

4

6

8

10

12

French German Spanish Braille Italian Irish Polish Ulster Scots

12

76 6

5

21

9

40 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position

6.4 People

This section of the report examines the scale and capacity of the human resources within the museum sector, before looking at attendance levels, existing visitor (and non-user) profiles and the research museums undertake on their visitors.

6.4.1 Museum Staff

The NIMC surveys reveal that between 2001 and 2006 the number of people working in museums in Northern Ireland rose from 819 to 840.

Within this trend there was a notable shift; with a 9% reduction in the number of permanent, full-time staff working in the sector, seemingly off-set through significant increases in the number of permanent, part-time staff (up by 28%) and the number of seasonal/temporary staff employed (up by 27%). While there was little change in the actual number of volunteers in the sector (172), the real term trend is up.

Over the same period the number of museums declaring that they had a ‘marketing officer’ on the staff, increased from 8 to 12 – three each in the National Museums Northern Ireland and the National Trust, with two independent museums stating they had such a staff member (one a paid post the other voluntary). There was a rise (from 1 to 4) in the number of local council-run museums declaring that they had such personnel.

The absence of marketing personnel in local authority museums may on the surface appear to be a notable deficit, but its significance is offset through these museums having access to specialist marketing staff located elsewhere within the Council structure, within tourism units for example. Of the 15 museums without a dedicated officer, five stated that the marketing function was undertaken by specialist staff elsewhere in the organisation. In the remaining 10 museums the function was undertaken by the curator/manager, museum assistant or other staff member.

With no such ancillary support available within the voluntary and independent sector, the lack of such designated staff does reveal a significant structural weakness. Setting aside the National Trust, and the other two museums in this category which have a ‘marketing officer’ (or equivalent), it would appear that there are nine museums without access to the expertise or resources to undertake anything but rudimentary promotional activity.

This view is substantiated through the examination of the skills gaps within museums. The Mapping Trends surveys revealed that over the five year review period, ICT and marketing were identified as the two areas with the greatest skill deficiency. Between 2001 and 2006, the number of museums highlighting a skills gap in marketing increase by a third. This finding is reiterated through the returns regarding training needs that NIMC receives through the evaluation of its training programme.

Despite the apparent lack of staff and expertise, few museums use external marketing agencies or consultants. Blake estimates only 6% of museums do so. It is likely that cost is the principal barrier in this regard. Museums do however seek to enhance their promotional activity by exploiting external opportunities; many local authorities will promote the independent museums within their area as part of the ‘offer’ to visitors. The independent museums use their volunteer base both as the key audience for their activities, but also as a means of disseminating information. This trend is also growing within the other parts of the sector as more museums institute ‘Friends’ organisations.

There is a school of thought that takes the view that ALL museum staff ‘do marketing’, on the basis that their roles either directly or indirectly influence the experience of a museum visitor. Consequently their actions influence the residual impression of visitors and the reputation of their institution. In light of this, there would seem to be merit in raising the consciousness of all museum staff on their impact in this regard and how they might enhance the visitor experience.

41

Above

Unwrap history, advertising campaign for the launch of the Ulster Museum 2009

Ulster Museum

42 Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums6. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position 43

6.4.2 Museum Attendance

All sources testify to the consistent rise over a prolonged period of the number of people visiting museums in Northern Ireland.

An overview on attendances can be gained from three main sources: NIMC’s annual collation of local museums attendances, published in its annual report; the National museums attendance monitoring; and fi gures declared by the sector to external agencies (such as the Northern Ireland Tourist Board). The Mapping Trends summarised the change over the fi ve years from 2001 to 2006.

They reveal that:_ There was a 21% rise in the number of museum visitors, from 801,011

to 971,464, in the fi ve years to 2006.

_ This can be broken down to an 11.5% increase at the four National museums (from 484,232 to 540,579), 19.5% rise at local authority-run museums (189,100 to 225,615), and a 61% growth in the number of visitors to the independent museums (from 127,679 to 205,270).

_ In 2006 the three large national museums (Ulster Museum, Ulster Folk and Transport Museums and the Ulster-American Folk Park) were the only museums to attract more than 100,000, no museums registered between 50,001 and 100,000 visitors, 15 museums received between 10,001 and 50,000 visits, and 19 museums got less than 10,000 attendances.

_ Attendances at local museums have risen signifi cantly over the last year from 439,490 (2006) to 506,807 (2007). This represents a 14% change, the highest year on year change on record. Undoubtedly some of this increase is due to new capital developments coming on stream (as in Newry) and possibly some displacement (to Lisburn for example) due to the closure of the Ulster Museum. Other factors could include the general upturn in the number of tourists and more effective promotion of events and activities by museums.

Further detail on the increase in visitor numbers at the different type of museum may be gained from the following tables.

It should be noted that The Ulster Museum closed for refurbishment at the end of 2006 (reopening late 2009), and consequently the numbers attending the NMNI museums fell to 338,876 during 2007.

Andrew Jackson/US Rangers Centre, Carrickfergus 2137 7 725 7

Ballycastle Museum 3,000 2.5 2,820 3

Ballymoney Museum 2,758 12 4,301 8

Carrickfergus Museum - - 26,909 12

Coleraine Museum - - 3,558 4

Craigavon Museum Service 4,000 12 2,480 12

Derry Heritage and Museum Service – Foyle Valley Railway 20,000 6 3,748 3

Derry Heritage and Museum Service – Harbour Museum 7,500 12 4,084 12

Derry Heritage and Museum Service – Tower Museum 20,484 12 25,880 12

Down County Museum 35,433 12 34,796 12

Fermanagh County Museum (and Inniskillings Museum) 15,436 12 25,739 12

Gray Printer’s Museum - - 0 0

Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum 39,661 12 60,507 12

Larne Museum - - 4,744 12

Green Lane Museum, Limavady - - 8,640 6

Mid-Antrim Museum 5,678 12 18,838 10.5

Newry and Mourne Museum 10,300 12 41,933 12

North Down Museum - - 44,098 12

Sentry Hill House, Newtownabbey - - 6,400 6

Museum 1998 Months open 2008 Months open

Centre, Carrickfergus 2137 7 725 7






Service – Foyle Valley Railway 20,000 6 3,748 3

Service – Harbour Museum 7,500 12 4,084 12

Service – Tower Museum 20,484 12 25,880 12


(and Inniskillings Museum) 15,436 12 25,739 12


Lisburn Museum 39,661 12 60,507 12


Limavady - - 8,640 6


















Lisburn Museum 39,661 12 60,507 12




















Lisburn Museum 39,661 12 60,507 12




















Lisburn Museum 39,661 12 60,507 12








Armagh County Museum 14,175 10

Ulster Folk & Transport Museum 169,794 12

Ulster American Folk Park 111,221 12

Ulster Museum 235,694 12

Museum 1998 Months open Table VI:

National Museums Northern Ireland

Table VII:

Local authority museums

Attendances at local museums has risen by 14% the highest year on year change on record


Armagh Public Library 1,250 12 4,433 12

Downpatrick Railway Museum 12,700 3 9,046 12

Flame – Gasworks Museum of Ireland - - 2,231 5

Inniskillings Museum (see Fermanagh County Museum above) 0 12 0 12

National Trust – Argory 26,309 9 32,095 7

National Trust – Castle Ward 10,740 8 59,215 7

National Trust – Florence Court 21,020 8 30,730 7

National Trust – Springhill 16,079 8 14,761 7

Naughton Gallery at Queens - - 15,000 12

People’s Museum, Fernhill 8,576 12 0 0

Police Museum 2,200 12 2,075 12

Railway Preservation Society of Ireland - - 8,763 12

Royal Irish Fusiliers Museum 1,685 12 9,209 12

Royal Irish Regiment Museum 2,006 12 0 0

Royal Ulster Rifl es Museum - - 773 12

Somme Heritage Centre 13,010 12 27,194 12

Upperlands Museum 200 1 0 0




of Ireland - - 2,231 5

Museum above) 0 12 0 12







Police Museum 2,200 12 2,075 12

of Ireland - - 8,763 12

















Police Museum 2,200 12 2,075 12

of Ireland - - 8,763 12

















Police Museum 2,200 12 2,075 12

of Ireland - - 8,763 12

















Police Museum 2,200 12 2,075 12

of Ireland - - 8,763 12






Museum 1998 Months open 2008 Months open Table VIII:

Independent and Voluntary museums

The means and mechanisms used to capture visitor numbers varies considerably from museum to museum and include; ticket tally, manual clickers, break beams, visitor books and ‘estimates’. The absence of consistency, and at times accuracy, in how such basic data is collected may be considered a major defi ciency.

6.4.3 The Museum Visitor

It emerges from the many surveys 22 carried out within the sector that the museum visitor is more likely to be employed and have an above average education and income.

S/he will be younger than the average within society, and often active in other community, cultural and leisure pursuits. Such characteristics hold true for museum visitors in Northern Ireland too, as the following evidence from the Research and Evaluation Services (2004) survey shows.

22 For instance: Stuart Davies: By Popular

Demand Museums and Galleries Commission 1994

MLA Council: Taking Part, 2004 – research undertaken by IPSOS-MORI

http://www.vam.ac.uk/fi les/fi le_upload/53497_fi le.pdf

http://www.culture.gov.uk/reference_library/publications/5653.aspx

Above

Permanent exhibition at therefurbished Ulster Museum 2009

Ulster Museum

The average museum visitor will be younger than the average within society, and often active in other community, cultural and leisure pursuits


education

The following table sets out the educational attainment of museum visits as revealed through the Research and Evaluation Services’ Museums Survey, 2004

Degreeor Higher

A-Levelor equivlent

GcSe or equivlent

No formalqualifi cations

BTec (higher) or equivalent

BTec (National) or equivalent

other cSe

38

14 1310

10 9

41

Table IX:

Educational qualifi cations of museum visitor (2004)

0

10

20

30

40

50

Over a third of museum visitors surveyed in 2004 were educated to degree level or higher, compared with 15.8% within the population as a whole.23 The Omnibus Survey (2000) found that 76% of those questioned, who had tertiary level education, had visited a heritage facility. For those with less than a secondary level of education, this fi gure fell to 38%.

23 Source: 2001 Northern Ireland census

http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census/pdf/Key%20Statistics%20ReportTables.pdf

employment

RES (2004) found that 64% of museum visitor were working full-time or part-time, which compares with 56% within the general population, 22% of visitors being retired (compared with 11%), 5% look after the home (7.5%), 4% are students (8%), 3% being sick or disabled (9.3%), and 2% not working, compared with just over 4% of the population being unemployed.24 According to the Omnibus Survey (2000) two thirds of those from the higher socio-economic groups had visited a heritage facility within the last year, compared with less than 40% in the semi-skilled and unskilled groups.

24 The comparator fi gures are taken from the 2001 Northern Ireland Census – see

http://www.nisranew.nisra.gov.uk/census/pdf/Key%20Statistics%20ReportTables.pdf

Table X:

Employment status of museum visitor (2004)

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

Working Full-time

Working Part-time

Look afterthe home

Full timeeducation

Sick ordisabled

Notworking

otherretired

49

2215

5 4 3 2 1

RES (2004) found that 64% of museum visitors were working full-time or part-time, which compares with 56% within the general population

Left

Antiville Youth Group attends alearning session at the NerveCentre, Derry


Age

Table XI:

Age group of museum visitors against population (18+ in 2004)

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

18-24 25-44 45-64 65-74 75+

Museum Visitors

General Public

6

46

13

40

3229

14

3810

6.4.4 Perceptions about the Museum Product

The Research and Evaluation Services’ Museums Survey of 2004 provides a degree of insight into the public’s perceptions about museums.

It revealed that 94% of the people surveyed agreed that it was important that museums are made available to the public. While such support is obviously welcome, the fact that nearly three-quarters of the people surveyed had not visited a museum during the last year would suggest that their view is one of principle rather than one formed through an intimate knowledge of museums and their activities.

This opinion is supported further by the range of responses given when, within the same survey, people were asked to estimate the number of museums in Northern Ireland. (There are currently 38 Accredited museums in Northern Ireland).

High levels of satisfaction concerning museums may be found generally. NMNI recently declared a 98% visitor satisfaction rating,25 on par with the Science Museum in London, which has also recorded 98% visitor satisfaction of late, as has for instance the local authority-run museum service in Hastings. Such fi gures need to be treated with caution, if only because 31% of respondents to the RES (2004) survey declared that they went somewhere else on the same day as their museum visit, opening up the possibility that their satisfaction concerning museums could be coloured by the experience of the ‘whole day’. Of more interest to museums perhaps would be the reasons why 6% of people did not feel museums to be important, or why some 2% of visitors were dissatisfi ed.


NMNI recently declared a 98% visitor satisfaction rating

The most popular age group of museum visitors is 25-44

Table XII:

Estimated number of museums in Northern Ireland

1-10

11-20

21-50

51-100

100+

Dont know

25 See: www.rpani.gov.uk/national_museums_and_galleries_of_northern_ireland-2.pdf

Left

Enniskillen Castle MuseumsEducation Service, FindYourself Learning.

Fermanagh Museum

Unlock the past

Down County Museum

506. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 51

6.4.5 Visitor Motivation

The information below draws upon two pieces of research – the RES (2004) study and the NI Omnibus Survey (2000).

Both looked at the motivation of people who did attend museums, but also tried to establish the reason for not visiting.

To attend a special event

To see a particularexhibition

General interest

Day out other Don’t know

119

31

38

19

0

10

20

30

40

50 Table XIII:

Reason for last visit to a museum (2004)

To attend a special event

To see a particularexhibition

General interest

Day out other

6 7

28

53

6

0

10

20

30

40

50

60 Table XVI:

Reason for last visit to a museum (2000)

6.4.6 Museum Non-attendees

When it comes to people who do not visit museums it is evident that common factors preclude involvement, as evidenced by the following series of tables.

Foremost are ‘lack of interest’, cost, transport issues, concerns over access, and of particular interest to those concerned with the marketing of museums – lack of knowledge.

Not enoughtime

Notinterested

Dont knowmuch aboutthem

Too far/bad transport

Accessibilityissues

Its not for me

other Unsuitable opening hours

3225

149 6

2 17

0

10

20

30

40

50 Table XVII:

Reason not visiting a museum within the last 3 years (RES (2004))

Dont knowmuch aboutthem

otherNotinterested

Accessibilityissues

Not openwhen have time to visit

45

18 169

3 36

0

10

20

30

40

50 Table XVIII:

Reason for non-attendance (Omnibus Survey (2000))

Too far/transportissues

Tooexpensive

The profi le apparent from Table XIII echoes that of the fi ndings of the Omnibus Survey (2000).

526. Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums – the Current Position 53

These findings parallel the results in two other surveys, tabulated below. The first concerns museums non-attendees in England where ‘lack of interest’ also comes to the fore, as do access and transport.

Similar reasons for non-participation emerge from surveys undertaken across other parts of the cultural sector, as exemplified by Table XX which highlights the reasons for not participating in arts activity in Northern Ireland.

0

10

50

20

60

30

70

90

40

80

100

NothingI wantedto see

Admissionchargestoo high

Poor localtransport /too far

Not openwhen Ihave time

My childrenwouldn’t beinterested

No time /too busy

Museums areboring places

I find it difficult to get out /health reasons

41

12 12 10 8 8 6 6

Table X:

Reasons for non-attendance at museums (MORI for MLA (2001)26

26 See: www.locum-destination. com/pdf/LDR4Visits2 museums.pdf

Table XX:

Reasons for non-participation in arts activity (Arts Council of Northern Ireland (2005) 27

27 See: www.artscouncil-ni.org/news/2007/images/Barriers 0908b.pdf

Of more interest to museums perhaps would be the reasons why 6% of people did not feel museums to be important, or why some 2% of visitors were dissatisfied

6

27

27

20

20

18

12

10

9

5

4

4

3

2

1

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Not interested

No time / busy

Family commitments

costs too much

Prefer to do other things

None of these

Poor health

No transport

No one to go with

other

Never know whats on

Lack of facilities for disabled

Feel uncomfortable / out of place

Dont have the ability or talent

Nothing close by / too far to travel

Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums

Left

Timeline at Mid-Antrim Museum

6.4.7 research by Museums

Evidence suggests that museums are doing more research on visitor motivation and profi ling than previously, and that they are paying greater heed to visitor feedback and opinion.

However, over the years various approaches have been adopted by the different researchers in the fi eld. As a consequence trends are diffi cult to identify with confi dence and questions arise on the accuracy of the data and value of comparisons which need to be made.

The diversity of approach by museums is illustrated by Blake, who revealed the variety of means used to ascertain views and opinion. She found that 84% of museums had a visitor book, 65% used comment cards, 60% carried out exit surveys and 7 of the 38 museums undertook direct mail surveys. Five museums had used omnibus surveys, and two had used MORI polls to sample the general population.

In 2004 McAteer established that 47% of museums had recently carried out a visitor profi ling exercise, mainly through exit questionnaires, although she did not stipulate what was meant by ‘recently’ or present a synopsis of what museums were able to establish from doing the exercise. Blake on the other hand asked ’Do you undertake visitor research?’, which elicited a 66% positive response. The NIMC surveys established that 36% (2002) and 52% (2006) of museums had undertaken market research, including a profi le of visitors, in the past twelve months.

Such has been the variety in the way researchers have asked questions, possibly matched by variety in museums’ assumptions about what was being asked, that we still have an incomplete view on the level, purpose and impact of the research undertaken by museums regarding their users.


Blake goes on to examine what it was museums wished to ascertain from their visitor research and what they did with the gleaned information. In doing so it is unclear if her sample includes all 38 museums or only the two thirds which declared they undertook visitor research. She records that 88% of museums wished to establish satisfaction levels, just over half analysed visitor needs, and less than half gathered information on visitor motivation (why they came to the museum in the fi rst place). The sample size is not clear concerning her fi ndings on what museums used their research for – 50% said it informed their marketing strategy and 66% stated that it informed marketing activity. What is notable however, regardless of the sampling issue, is the proportion of museums which seemingly, having gone to the trouble of capturing visitor data, do not use it for the most obvious end.

Broad satisfaction levels may be useful for advocacy purposes, but users and non-users views on the constituent elements of the visitor experience (exhibition, environment, visitor services, access, information, etc.) obviously prove more useful in moulding both product development and service delivery. Gaining a more detailed picture of the views and attitudes of those who use museum products, and indeed those who do not, is essential. Of the 38 museums surveyed in 2006 (NIMC 2007), 17 museums stated that they had carried out market research, including visitor profi ling, within the last year.

Details of the breakdown by museum type are set out in the following table.

The only notable change to the profi le illustrated in Table XXI is that in 2008 the National Museums Northern Ireland undertook a comprehensive ‘user and attitudes’ survey covering all four sites.

While the number of museums not undertaking general market research is striking, NIMC (2007) did fi nd that the position changed when it came to specialist activities. For instance, Mapping Trends revealed that in 2006, 36 of the 38 museums surveyed delivered a programme for schools, and of these 32 undertook a formal evaluation of the programme that included participant feedback. Similarly, 30 museums formally evaluated their exhibition programmes. And when it came to planning for the future, 15 museums said that they actively involve young people in creating exhibition and events programmes and 23 museums stated that they had mechanisms for involving visitors generally in generating future programmes.

Independent 8 7

Local Authority 8 11

National 1 3

Museum 1998 Months open

Independent 8 7


National 1 3

Museum 1998 Months open

Independent 8 7


National 1 3

Museum 1998 Months open Table XXI:

Museums that have undertaken recent market research, broken down by type (NIMC 2007)


The move to involve museum users more in the development of future programmes may prove to be a useful precursor to the introduction of a community planning function within the new local authorities that will be established as a result of the Review of Public Administration. For as the RPA Implementation Team states,

Allied to this is a commitment / duty by all those who deliver services in the council area to work together to provide co-ordinated, high-quality outcomes people rightly expect. The drive for community planning should be seen in the context of the process to create more responsive and effective public services for citizens.28

The capacity for museums to undertake such consultation will obviously have to be strengthened, either through the sector taking a more standardised approach, or through surveying user needs across a range of service areas within councils, or indeed a combination of both. An advantage of the former would be to ensure that the visitor engagement process embraces all museums, not just those run by local authorities, with the latter offering the prospect of benchmarking with other services. Regardless of the approach, the views of non-users will have to be brought within the equation.

6.4.8 Targeting Non-attendees

In her survey of museums McAteer specifically asked museums if they targeted non-visitors. 55% of respondents said ‘yes’, and that this was done through outreach activity and hosting travelling exhibitions which appealed to people beyond the ‘normal’ visitor.

The majority of respondents indicated that they also targeted non-users through their usual promotional methods. McAteer, perhaps mindful of the intermittent nature of the outreach and travelling exhibitions and the ‘passive’ approach to developing new audiences, questioned the effectiveness of museums engagement with non-attendees.

In answer to another question in McAteer’s survey, museums identified three particular audiences that needed developing – schools, teenagers and foreign tourists.

6.5 Price

Admission changes to museums, as an economic barrier in accessing museums, has been debated long and hard at national and local levels over the last decade and more.

The crux of the debate is, on the one hand, the need to generate income (a particular concern for the independent museum sector where tickets income is a vital income), and society’s (at least in the UK) expectation of free access to museums on the other. Free admission has its roots in the philanthropy of the nineteenth century, but still has political resonance, as manifest in the recent aspiration within government to foster museum visits by a broader range of the populace by abolishing entry charges.

At the end of 2001 free entry to national museums was reintroduced in England Scotland and Wales. The museums, particularly the national museums in London, that embraced the concept, saw substantial increases in visitor numbers; up on average by 70% in 2002. However, the Government’s desire to broaden the range of people visiting museums required changes in the VAT regulations (Value Added Tax (Refund of Tax to Museums and Galleries) Order 2001) and further subsidy to compensate the loss of income. Over the following years various pieces of research looked at the impact of ‘free entry’, most notably which carried out by Selwood and Davies.29

Among their findings were:_ Relatively small changes in the profile of the visitors; it appears that free entry enabled the same types of people to visit more often;

_ It would seem that free entry to National museums has had a detrimental impact on nearby charging museums, particularly independent museums, which have seen a decline in visitors;

_ Those museums offering free entry have seen service and staff costs rise as they cope with more visitors, without a proportionate increase in the core grant from government;

_ Many of those museums showing a big increase in numbers also opened new or refurbished facilities (inevitably funded through the Heritage Lottery Fund) at around the same, and it has proved difficult to disaggregate the impact one from another on the motivation of visitors;

_ A perception that free entry has only impacted upon the London museums, with little benefit evident across the rest of the UK.

28 See http://www.rpani.gov.uk/index/cross-cutting-themes/community-planning.htm

29 See: http://www.museumsassociation.org/ma/8120&_IXFPFX_=full/mpf

http://www.spiked-online.com/Articles/0000000CAD38.htm

The aim of community planning is to make sure that people and communities are genuinely engaged in decisions made about the public services which affect them


Whilst ‘free entry’ was not applied in Northern Ireland (two of the four national museums have an admission charge), some of the associated research findings cited above are pertinent to the local sector. As has been shown, there has been significant capital investment in museums of late (see section 6.2.1 above) with all of the new and renovated museums showing a notable increase in visitors, including those which levy an admission charge. Indeed, among the three museums that do charge and which have been renovated, the level of increase in attendances at the Tower Museum and Fermanagh County Museum is well above the average increase for that type of museum.30 It would appear that other factors, beyond price are informing visitors’ decision to participate. Blake found that museums feel that increased marketing activity was more likely to result in increased visitor numbers, than free admission – a point reinforced by Selwood and Davies’ opinion, that “it takes imaginative programming and marketing to change an audience profile significantly, as well as sustained development work with communities with no tradition of museums visiting.”

Over the last five years there has been little change in the profile of museums in Northern Ireland that charge an entry fee. In 2006 (NIMC 2007) 2 of the 4 National museums, 2 out of the 18 local authority-run museums and 10 of the 15 independent museums, did so. This profile replicates that of five years earlier (NIMC 2002), and indeed, with two exceptions within the independent museum sector, the same museums were charging admission in 2006 and in 2001. An analysis of the admission charges shows that the entry fees to the two national museums remained unchanged over the review period. At the two council-run charging museums, one increased its charges by £0.50 (c20%), while the other rationalised its pricing structure by reducing adult admission by £1.20 (c30%) while increasing it child admission by £0.40 (c25%). Amongst the charging independent museums half did not raise their ticket price over the five years, but there was an average 22% rise in admission at the other five museums.

In discussion with museums it becomes evident that while entry charges may be an impediment for some, a more readily apparent economic barrier to access are the costs associated with getting to a museum. While some cited that the availability and cost of public transport was a hindrance for some potential visitors, all were concerned that transport costs were directly affecting the frequency of school visits.

30 The third museum, Sentry Hill, was not open prior to renovation and thus no comparisons can be made.

6.5.1 National Museums

While the Value Added Tax (Refund of Tax to Museums and Galleries) Order 2001 was fundamental in clearing the way for ‘free entry’ at other national museums, for the National Museums Northern Ireland (NMNI) it was more to do with tax technicalities on existing spend.

Although a devolved responsibility there was no move by the then Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure to abolish the entry fees to the Ulster Folk and Transport Museum and the Ulster American Folk Park (the Ulster Museum and the Armagh County Museum are free entry), seemingly on the basis that it was not deemed a political or funding priority at a time of tight public funding.

6.5.2 council-run Museums

Currently there are 18 museums in Northern Ireland run directly by local Councils. Of these, two – the Tower Museum and Fermanagh County Museum – currently levy a charge.

The debate about entry fees within this sector oscillates between not charging local ratepayers to access ‘their’ heritage, through to maximising an income stream to offset costs. It would appear that museum entry charges periodically come to the fore in the thinking of local Councils when either, a less-subventionist political outlook holds sway; when there is an economic imperative to reduce costs or, when the means of offsetting a recent capital investment are considered.

“It takes imaginative programming and marketing to change an audience profile significantly, as well as sustained development work with communities with no tradition of museums visiting.”

Left

The Distant Past, permanent exhibition

Mid-Antrim Museum at the Braid


Perceptions about museums users and the cost of administering the charging systems also have a bearing. The Tower Museum is one of the four museums within the Derry Heritage and Museum Service, but the only one to have an admission fee. It is conceived as a central part of the tourism ‘offer’ of the City and houses the Armada exhibition and the ‘Story of Derry’. The original construction and the recent refurbishment received significant monies from tourism-orientated funds, with the facility being orientated towards the ‘one-off’ non-local visitor. A charge of £4.00 (£1.50 for groups) is currently levied. Any perception of the entry fee disenfranchising the local populous is countered through the free access to the other museums within the Service, the provision of free outreach programmes, the opportunity to avail of ‘special days’ (including £1 admission on Sundays), and the availability of free temporary exhibition and events in the Tower Museum.

Fermanagh County Museum is situated within Enniskillen Castle and operated by Fermanagh District Council. It is also seen as a tourism flagship and received capital funding from various sources on this basis. An entry fee was introduced when the new facility was opened in 1993. The Inniskillings Museum (an independent regimental museum) occupies the keep building within the Castle complex and the ticket allowing access to both museums. The entry fee income is split between the two museums on an agreed percentage basis and this proves to be a vital source of income for the regimental museum. The County museum pursues enhanced access, particularly for local people, through a consistent programme of free events and outreach activities.

In developing a new strategic plan for its museum, North Down Borough Council debated the introduction an admission charge. The idea was abandoned after consideration of the impact upon the notably high proportion of local, repeat visitors, the impact it would have upon the franchised restaurant, and the cost of administering an entry fee scheme when set against the income generated. Another mitigating factor was the view that free access was ‘morally right’.

Lisburn City Council operates the Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum, which are housed in the same building on the Market Square. In 1994 the Centre was added to the local museum; a development which was driven by a desire to enhance the tourist appeal of Lisburn. When it opened a charge was levied on those visiting the Irish Linen Centre, but the museum remained free. This apparently caused some dissent as local people felt aggrieved at being charged to see items that they had freely donated. After a period it was found that the level of income coming from entry fees was close to the considerable spend on marketing and promotion required to maintain acceptable attendance levels. In addition there were the associated operating and staffing costs. The Council agreed to abolish entry charges in 1997.

right

Sybil Connolly, Linen Wedding dress

Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum

Above

Faces from our Maritime Past, Merchant Seamen from Newry and Morner in the twentieth Century

Newry and Mourne Museum


6.5.3 Independent and Voluntary Museum

When it comes to the 15 independent museums similar complexities emerge on how and when visitors are charged. The following table gives a simplifi ed, but synoptic overview.

The variation in the admission rates both across the sector and within the various categories of independent museums suggests that pricing is decided on a site by site basis, with little by way of collaboration towards any standardisation of pricing.

Armagh Public Library No Charge levied on large group visits

Flame: Gasworks Museum of Ireland Yes -

Somme Heritage Centre Yes Lecture programme is free of charge

National Trust

The Argory Yes Visitors who are National Trust members do not pay for admission.

Castle Ward Yes “ “

Florence Court Yes “ “

Springhill Yes “ “

Railway Museums

Downpatrick Railway Museum No Charge for train rides and allied events

Railway Preservation Society of Ireland No “ “

Regimental and Service Museums

Inniskillings Museum Yes Joint admission with Fermanagh County Museum

Royal Irish Fusiliers Museum No -

Royal Irish Regiment Museum No -

Royal Ulster Rifl es Museum Yes -

Police Museum No -

University Museum

Naughton Gallery at Queens No -

Museums Admission Charge Other charges




National Trust






Regimental and Service Museums





Police Museum No -


Museums Admission Charge Other charges













Police Museum No -


Museums Admission Charge Other charges Table XXII:

Museum admission charges

6.5.4 Merchandising

While the museum shop may augment the visitor experience or supplement educational aims by stocking books and catalogues connected with the museum’s exhibitions, its main objective is to generate additional income.

In 2006, 29 of the 38 museums surveyed operated a sales point or shop, only one independent museum did not have a shop. Since that survey, seven of the museums then without such a facility have undergone refurbishment so that now only four museums do not have a shop or sales point, mainly due to restrictions on space. All of the new or recently renovated museums listed in Table 1 have a merchandising facility built in, planned or integrated within an adjacent tourist information facility.

Currently three museums in Northern Ireland operate an online shop.

15 of the 38 museums surveyed operated a catering facility, either directly or under franchise. There is considerable variation in the scale of such provision made across the sector, often dictated by the availability of space. While the rationale behind offering such a facility is similar to that relating to museum shops – enhancing visitor service and to generate income – other signifi cant factors are evident. For instance, Down County Museum offers an interesting extension to the franchise model, where its café is run by a charity that aims to provide training and engagement opportunities for people with learning diffi culties. Thus, as well as providing income for both parties, it enhances the perception of the museum’s social contribution. At the newly refurbished Ballymoney Museum, run by the local district council, it was agreed not to incorporate a café on the basis that it would be disadvantageous to the local economy through displacing custom from existing coffee shops and the like close by.

In her research Blake examined the correlation between visitor numbers and the provision of catering facilities. Her cross tabulation found that the museums that offered such services tended to be amongst the better attended institutions. However, she could not distinguish “if museums attract more visitors because they have these facilities, or if the museums decided to offer these facilities in response to high visitor numbers.”

No data is currently available on the levels of income generated by museum shops or cafés.

Fifteen of the 38 museums surveyed operated a catering facility, either directly or under franchise


6.6 Promotion

This section looks at the way museums communicate with people to make them aware of their activities and events, and to encourage attendance and participation.

It does so against the fairly clear message which emerges from the RES 2004 survey, namely; 90% of those interviewed felt that more could be done to publicise museums. Coupled with the finding that 11% of respondents to the NISRA (2000) survey stated that they had difficulty finding out about museums, it would appear that there is scope for development in how the sector communicates and promotes itself.

6.6.1 Marketing Support

Museums indicate that they receive assistance with the promotion of their facilities and activities from various outside bodies.

Blake (2004) found that these comprised affiliated bodies – local councils, museum bodies (such as the Northern Ireland Museums Council or the Irish Museums Association) and other cultural attractions – on the one hand, and tourism bodies – Northern Ireland Tourist Board, Tourism Ireland, local TICs, hotel and accommodation providers, and tour operators – on the other. The support provided tends to be ‘passive’ rather than proactive; primarily the display of printed promotional material and answering enquiries on demand. McAteer (2004) found that 79% of museums belonged to a marketing network, most commonly tourism-focused initiatives in the local area, such as the Belfast or Derry Visitor and Convention Bureaux.

Participation in external promotional schemes was explored by Blake, who found that relatively few (never more than 28%) of museums participated in any such scheme delivered by a tourism body. In connection with such schemes she suggests that, “There is some confusion in the museum sector regarding the roles of NITB, the RTOs, Tourism Ireland and local TICs. Clarification on the roles of these organisations might encourage more active collaborative marketing approaches by the museum sector.” However, other factors have emerged through discussions with museums, including; the lack of capacity and resources to initiate and maintain involvement with such schemes, the different planning horizons to which the sectors work, and the perception that the tourism sector does not ‘value’ museums beyond being a minor, additional item within the tourism ‘offer’.

Museums also use disciplinary networks, or groups with a common objective to highlight their activities. Such bodies include the Armagh Visitor Education Committee, the Regional Curators Group, or the Group for Education in Museums in Northern Ireland, for instance. However, the exchange of information tends to be intra the sector, by way of an update for peers. Seldom do such groups undertake collaborative publicity initiatives. A rare example was the production of a brochure in 2006 by the loose conglomeration of independent museums, which gave basic information about those museums and was circulated to participant museums and TICs across Northern Ireland.

6.6.2 Printed Media

With one exception, all museums produce a generic brochure that provides outline information on the institution, its collections and contact details.

Museums also produce a variety of printed material to highlight particular programmes of events and activities, (for instance, 21 museums state that they produce posters). Such material is produced as and when it is required, and is varied in its form and design.

Press advertising is undertaken by 5 museums on at least a monthly basis, 16 museums doing so at least twice a year, with the other museums advertising once a year or less, if at all. The necessity to undertake such advertising is perhaps obviated given high level of free press coverage achieved – over two thirds of museums coverage at least every 2-3 months, and half of the museums appear in the press monthly (or more frequently). Curators of local museums constantly reiterate the value of coverage in local weekly newspapers (as opposed to the daily papers circulated across Northern Ireland), with many maintaining a close relationship with staff reporters and photographers. However, the principle reason why more display advertising is not undertaken is the absence of resources.

6.6.3 radio and Television

All surveys indicate that only the National Museums Northern Ireland undertakes television advertising on a regular basis. Among the local museums only one local authority museum has done so previously.

The vast majority, some 95%, have not carried out paid television advertising. Just under a quarter of museums secure free television coverage at least once annually, with the remainder receiving coverage less frequently.

A similar picture emerges for radio coverage; one museum pays for such advertising regularly with two doing so occasionally. Free radio coverage is secured more frequently than television coverage, with 4 museums gaining coverage at least monthly; 11 museums get it every 2-3 months and 8 organisations estimate such coverage about twice a year; the remainder getting coverage once a year, if at all.

right

Livingstone Radio Collection

Craigavon Museum Service


6.6.4 Websites

While just under half of museums at the time of the first Mapping Trends survey in 2002 had a presence on the web, all museums now have a dedicated website or web presence.

Additionally a growing number are using general promotional sites (for example www.discovernorthernireland.com) and sector-related sites (such as www.24hourmuseum.org.uk or www.artguide.org ). In 2004, Northern Ireland Museums Council reconfigured its website to include links to all museums via its front page, and in the intervening period the interlinking of museum websites has grown significantly. Such trends indicate a growing awareness of the web as an essential promotional tool for the sector.

At the end of 2008 NIMC surveyed the sites of the Accredited museums and associated museum services in Northern Ireland, a total of 26 sites in all.

The National Museums Northern Ireland maintains a portal site which provides outline information and access to four sub-sites, one for each of its constituent museums. All four provide information on opening hours, pricing, location and other visitor information. Three of the sub-sites provide learning and interpretative materials two or three ‘clicks’ from the home page. None of the sites allow visitor feedback or engagement other than general e-mail contact.

Similarly, the National Trust provides a portal site to its organisation, with details of its four museums embedded within this site, rather than each having a stand alone site. Detailed visitor information is readily available, with generic learning materials (as opposed to museum specific) available in a different part of the overarching website.

The other 10 museums, which alongside the National Trust, make up in the independent sector, with one exception, have discrete web sites and all provide the necessary information about visiting. Four museums – Downpatrick Railway Museum, Armagh Public Library, Railway Preservation Society of Ireland and the Royal Ulster Rifles Museum – provide online access to the collections, interpretation and/or learning material, with varying degrees of separation from the home page (between 1 and 3 ‘clicks’). One independent museum – the Somme Heritage Centre – has a web site which allows visitor engagement and feedback.

Within the local authority sector only 3 or the 19 museums have a dedicated site, i.e. one discrete from that of their Council’s site. In addition the Mid-Antrim Museum Service maintains a site separate from its participating Councils, through which pages on the five constituent museums can be accessed. To access information on the other 11 council-run museums and their associated museum services (Derry, Causeway and Craigavon) requires one to search within the main Council web site for the area. However, the difficulty of locating these museums amid the other service offered by these Councils may be negated by accurate naming or description within a search engine.

Of late two interesting developments have emerged amongst council-run museums. The first being the introduction of the means of interactive communication with site users; for instance, the blog associated with the new Mid-Antrim Museum. The second trend concerns the establishment of sites which focus on specific museum projects – www.commanet.org in connection with a Causeway Museums Service initiative, which has developed further with the launch of the community archive site at www.niarchive.org ; and the www.derry.gov.uk/wwII page on the Derry City Council site which brings together the museums’ digital resources on the Second World War.

Interestingly, comparing the responses of the NISRA survey (2002) and the RES survey (2004) a notable growth in the proportion of people either using the web to find out about museum/heritage events and facilities – from 2% to 14%. And it is highly likely that this percentage has risen significantly in the interim, and in all likelihood will continue to rise.

Above

NMNI Website


6.6.5 Direct mail

No museums appear to use ‘anonymous’ direct mail, commonly known as junk mail, as a means of promotion.

However targeted mailings are used by most museums for notification of launches, openings, or new programmes, especially by those which operate ‘Friends’ schemes. Current information indicates that 15 museums run such schemes and all use direct mail, with a further 13 museums also using targeted mailing. Increasingly ‘direct mail’ is being undertaken electronically. There is no evidence to suggest that museums are using mobile phone technology to provide individuals with specific information about programmes and activities.

6.6.6 Word of Mouth

Undoubtedly ‘word of mouth’ is a key component in museums’ promotional armoury.

All of the museums surveyed stated that personal recommendation was perceived as a fundamental element in encouraging others to visit a museum or participate in their associated activities. However, there is no evidence to suggest that any museum operates a proactive ‘word of mouth’ strategy as part of its promotional activity.

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World War II related publications

Causeway Museum Service

The use of the printed media, particularly brochures and posters, together with local newspapers would seem to be the preferred methods of promotion

6.6.7 Promotional activity

From the evidence outlined above, it would appear that museums across Northern Ireland do not undertake any significant or concerted advertising, principally because of the associated costs.

The use of the printed media, particularly brochures and posters, together with local newspapers would seem to be the preferred methods of promotion. And while the potential of the web as a means of promotion is being recognised, it is possibly not being exploited to its full potential.

Issues and questions concerning the effectiveness of such promotional methods arise when these trends and preferences are set against the findings of various survey findings. For instance, the RES (2004) survey revealed that the top four preferred methods of gaining information about museums by visitors were general advertising (56%), newspapers (40%), direct mail (21%) and brochures (20%), while the NISRA Omnibus Survey (2002) found that the top three sources of information were friends and family (42%), brochures and leaflets (41%) and newspapers/TV/radio (41%).

707. Analysis Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 71

7. Analysis

Unlike any other leisure or learning service provider, museums generate memorable and sometimes life-changing encounters with our histories through ‘real’ objects.

If nothing else, Northern Ireland’s museum sector is diverse: there is a reasonable geographic spread, considerable variety in scale and focus, and each retains a unique character to the point where it may be said that no two museums are alike. Such diversity is an obvious sectoral strength, potentially offering visitors a unique experience at each and every site; a welcome change to predicable ‘sameness’ that characterises so many other leisure pursuits. However, the findings of this study suggest that such individuality has proved restrictive, hindering public perception to the point where it is unable to develop a ‘common understanding’, especially about the local museums, on what is on offer, when it is available and why it is relevant to their needs and expectations. It is suggested that this may best be addressed through a greater standardisation in how museums and their services are devised, presented and promoted.

The public’s perceptions, aspirations and experience of museums are enhanced through a combination of the impact of the building, the manner in which the collections are presented and interpreted, the services provided, the inspiration of the staff, and the means chosen to communicate the benefits of the museum experience. Museums have obviously made notable strides in trying to provide the optimum experience for their visitors and users on each count, but a number of issues do need to be addressed as a matter of urgency.

While there is an increasing awareness of the vital contribution that a marketing focus can bring to museum operations, as evidenced by the rising number of associated strategies or plans, the discipline needs to be further integrated into the corporate planning consciousness. After all, everyone in a museum is involved in marketing the organisation in some form or another. A key area for development is to build capacity, understanding and expertise across the sector, and in this regard it is imperative that museum staff have access to appropriate training, are aware of imaginative, good practice elsewhere, and have access to support and expertise as required. However, the acquisition of such expertise should not be seen as negating the engagement of people with distinct marketing expertise to advise and undertake the associated work. The sector now requires access to such expertise, and it recognises this need, if it is to be able to make a developmental leap. The point being that perceptions on the discipline needs to move from a tactical devise, occasionally employed, to being embedded in each museums strategic thinking as a matter of course.

There has been significant investment in the capital infrastructure over the last ten years. Not only has this raised the standard of the buildings in which the collections are housed, the better protecting our common heritage, but it has undoubtedly strengthened the sector’s capacity to meet visitors’ ever-growing service expectations. However, it looks as if further work is required to address the outstanding physical barriers to people wishing to access our museums. Also, for these new buildings and refurbishments to continue to meet expectations, the museum governing bodies must ensure that resources become available in the medium and long terms to allow for the ongoing replenishment of their buildings and the reinvigoration of their displays.

Temporary exhibitions are a primary means to providing greater access to objects and collections and in making a museum attractive to the repeat visitor. At present it appears that these are devised by individual museums around particular themes, anniversaries or subjects. Occasionally they are undertaken in partnership with other institutions, with notable success. Given the time and effort required to plan and deliver such exhibitions, it is essential that they are promoted well to both targeted and general audiences, and that their educational benefits exploited to the full. Such aspects could be enhanced through adopting more coherent, strategic approach to planning such exhibitions, and indeed extending this to include presenting exhibitions outside Northern Ireland and via the digital media.

The public’s perceptions, aspirations and experience of museums are enhanced through a combination of the impact of the building, the manner in which the collections are presented and interpreted

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Our Lives, temporary exhibitionCauseway Museum Service

727. Analysis Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 73

The web offers magnificent opportunities for museums to disseminate both general and targeted information, as well as an alternative means of accessing their collections and services. While there is a notable variation in museums’ web presence, again reflecting the diversity across the sector, the absence of a standardised presentation of opening times, entry fees, ‘what’s on’, and the like does not make it easy for potential visitors find out what they need to know quickly and easily. The NIMC website offers a comprehensive overview of the sector, but the approach remains ‘passive’ and does not attempt to ‘sell’ the museum visit. No museums currently use their sites to encourage active participation (through posting their learning resources, for example) and few if any use the web, e-mail or blogs for targeted communication with specific interest groups.

Museums are key attractions to both ‘out of state’ and ‘home’ visitors, and this critical role could be developed further through an active, ‘layered’ marketing strategy covering local, national and international promotions; unlocking museums contribution to other promotions (such as ‘good days-out’, late-night shopping, conferences, festivals, themed holidays, study tours or commemorations); utilising both ‘real’ and ‘virtual’ promotional methods; and built upon active partnerships with other agencies. On this last point is it critical in any future museum marketing strategy that the roles of the different participating partners are clear, discrete and complementary.

Currently there are two partnerships between local authorities in Northern Ireland to deliver museum services – the Causeway Museum Service and the Mid-Antrim Museum Service – and both collectively promote their constituent museums. The prospective new local authority structure, consequent to the Review of Public Administration, will see a similar ‘grouping’ of council-run museums across seven of the eleven proposed council areas, thus opening up the possibility for joined-up marketing and promotion shown to be successful by the current partnerships. Were this to be extended to embrace local heritage sites and attractions as well as other independent and National museums in the area, then a significant, integrated heritage ‘product’ could be marketed within and outwith each area.

Comparable benefits will come too through strengthening the thematic approach in marketing museums. The obvious theme, allied to location, is that of local identity – what defines the character of a place and distinguishes from another? Another is to build upon the strengths of the collections held This is a natural extension of what most independent museums, and some local authority-run museums (notably Lisburn Museum and Irish Linen Centre), focus upon. Some museums contributed to the NITB signature projects initiative, within which the themes where defined by both place and subject.

Museums have begun to develop niche markets around the services they provide; education and learning being the most apparent and arguably the most successful. Some are advertising their ‘secondary product’ – café facilities, weddings, conferences and the like. Other have begun to look at providing services which might be described as generally allied to heritage, rather than being specific to museums – genealogy being one. It is incumbent upon museums, particularly given the current economic climate, to fully examine the need, demand and benefits of enhancing the range of services provided.

Over the last decade the museum sector has moved to develop an intelligence base about its visitors. Significant work in this regard has been undertaken by the larger museum bodies that have the capacity and resources to do so, and they have benefited the sector generally through generously sharing their findings.

However, the study has highlighted the absence of consistency in surveying visitors, users and non-users, and a great variation in the methods being used and the frequency in which such activity is undertaken, particularly at a local level. The lack of resources and capacity within museums is cited as the reason why such work in not carried out more regularly. High quality intelligence is required and it is essential that the necessary steps are taken to ensure that the scope and frequency of quantitative data about museum visitors is standardised and accurate, and that this is supplemented by the capture and evaluation of the views of those who participate in museum activity, and those who do not. The variation in approaches taken by museums precludes comparisons or benchmarking to take place to a significant degree, and on this basis alone a case for co-ordinating such essential survey work on a centralised basis could easily be made.

A key benefit of such an approach would be to enable a cohesive and efficient linkage to be developed between the sector and the strategically-focused tourism bodies. This is felt to be particularly important in light of the long-term tourism strategy which is currently being shaped.

While it is imperative to secure consistent data about visitors, it is equally important to provide accurate, relevant and up to date information to them, the aim being to elicit the decision to visit a museum or use its services. The survey findings suggest that museums have yet to develop truly effective means of promoting themselves and communicating with the public: the apparent miss-match between the public’s preferred ways of getting information about museums, and the promotional means used within the sector requires further investigation. So too does the basis upon which information is provided in different languages and the effectiveness of the current directional and destination signage. While ‘word of mouth’ is seen as a key component in encouraging engagement, the sector is without a joined-up approach whereby this could be stimulated further. One way of doing so is through the development of ‘ambassadors’ within the museum Friends groups, for instance, and by actively encouraging volunteers within museums.

Such work can only meaningfully be undertaken on a cross-sectoral basis. It would appear that the absence of this dimension in the marketing and promotion of Northern Ireland museums is a structural weakness, without which the existing fragmentation will remain, but if addressed could allow the sector to take a significant developmental step forward. The recommendations that follow aim to address this weakness, enhance capacity across the sector and build upon the significant progress that has been made to date.

748. Recommendations Marketing Northern Ireland’s Museums 75

8. recommendations

1. The Accreditation Scheme for museums in the UK requires museums to provide a Forward Plan, including a statement of purpose, key aims, specific objectives and a spending plan. It is recommended that museum governing bodies make provision for the revitalisation of their buildings and displays within their Forward Plans.

2. Given the developmental needs of the local museum sector, it is recommended that NIMC lead the delivery of a marketing and audience development strategy for the museum sector, to be advanced in conjunction with the museums and other partners. This strategy will have two principle components; the first consolidating current activity, the second addressing key developmental requirements.

consolidation

The key objectives under this heading would be:

_ develop a common understanding of the respective responsibilities and activity of the various bodies involved in promoting museums and their programmes

_ revisit the audit of museums, extending the focus of the associated work to embrace intellectual as well as physical access

_ undertake an updated attitudes survey on local museums, with a focus on visitor service expectations.

_ standardise the headline data to be captured about museum visitors and the methods of capture and evaluation

_ examine the effectiveness of the directional signage to museums across Northern Ireland

_ look at the possibility of achieving greater consistency in the opening hours of museums, mindful of public demand, conservation needs and the associated resource and staffing implications

_ undertake a detailed examination of economic barriers to museum participation.

Development

The key objectives under this heading would be:

_ establish a museum marketing group to bring forward a sectoral promotional campaign

_ establish a museum exhibitions group to provide the strategic co-ordination of temporary and touring exhibitions

_ examine marketing activity across the broader cultural sector

_ the production of a marketing tool-kit for museums set around commonly agreed standards and including case studies of good practice and guidance on community engagement

_ enhance the degree to which digital technologies are used in the promotion of museums and the level of interpretation of collections on museum web sites, especially for pre-visit engagement

_ develop the opportunities for active involvement in museums through volunteering.

3. It is recommended that the NIMC training programme is used to complement the proposed plan.

4. It is also recommended that NIMC targets its existing resources and seeks additional funding which to pursue the objectives of the proposed marketing plan.

...the possibility of achieving greater consistency in the opening hours of museums, mindful of public demand, conservation needs and the associated resource and staffing implications

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Craigavon Museum Serviceexhibition panels

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