Have You Ever Heard Of...

Lesser known museums in the Northeastern corner of the United States Reviews, Promotion & Suggestions

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

Museums Through the Eyes of Technology

    Modern day technology has changed or altered almost every aspect of our world. We are constantly using it, whether it be a smart phone, a personal computer, or an iPod, we are always searching for new ways to be connected with a world that’s larger than ourselves.

    Larger museums across the country have discovered that using technology to engage and interact with their patrons enters them into their comfort zone, which allows the experience to be more fulfilling. They have been dubbed “high tech museums” and among them are The Smithsonian located in Washington DC, The Museum of Jewish Heritage located in New York City, and the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, Australia. According to the article "How Tech Is Changing the Museum Experience" written by Aliz Asherman, these museums are using digital technology to more easily engage with their audiences, and “enhance the visitor experience”. Experts have discovered that not only is it easier to learn from something that is interactive, but it is more likely to resonate with you well after you leave.

   The Smithsonian has changed their customs to the exclusive use of the “cell phone tour”, which incorporates interactive gaming and “augmented reality”.  It runs through an app that all patrons can download from their respective provider’s app store. The app features two language settings, English and Spanish, and provides an “overview and insight into select art pieces with hi-res images, video, audio and quotes directly from the artist”. The way the system works is that as the individual walks through the museum, they type into the app the number from a label on the exhibit sign. Patrons can learn and absorb at their own personal speed, return to previous aspects of the tour, and get the most out of their experience.

    Smithsonian head of mobile strategy and initiatives, Nancy Proctor, is enthusiastic about the new “two-way and multi-way nature of using social media and mobile in the museum experience versus typical one-way narrowcasting, and of the exchange of commentary, opinions, ideas and responses to collections, themes and concepts.” This opens the museum up to feedback from its consumers, giving them the ability to alter or improve their exhibits and expeditions.

    Not only has the Smithsonian integrated technology to help with their museum tours, but they have also created an app called LeafSnap that “crowdsources”. The app encourages users to take photographs of leaves with their smartphones and upload them, which then identifies the tree along the Eastern Seaboard. Users can share them to a central location, and tag the photo with a GPS coordinate, which allows researchers to grasp a better picture of the spread of different species, while simultaneously helping people learn to distinguish them for personal use.

     The Museum of Jewish Heritage has launched a mobile walking tour, along the lines of the one created for the Smithsonian. This app was specifically designed to include 19 historic sites in lower Manhattan, Greenwich Village, Union Square, Chinatown, Chelsea, Midtown and the East River by incorporating GPS recognition and a map. The map shows all the locations and the distance between them. Each stop on the annotated tour includes a slideshow and an audio commentary, as well as a reading by Meryl Streep of the poem that can be found inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty.

     The Powerhouse Museum has recently changed to IPads to replace LCD and plasmas for audio and visual displays for “closer engagement between museum visitor and content”. The museum has inserted QR codes in some of their galleries for access to information that would otherwise take away from the exhibition design with unattractive text. The head of digital, social and emerging technologies, Sebastian Chan spoke about the reasoning for the change, stating, “The idea that a museum should be about 'facts' is almost made redundant. This opens up a whole lot of possibilities for making museum exhibitions far more immersive and experiential, leaving the 'fact' layer for mobile and online delivery either during or before and after the gallery visit.”

     Experts weighing in on the subject state that this trend will become more customary and effective as time passes. The opportunity that this presents for smaller museums, and art galleries, is astronomical. This can set a lesser known museum apart from the rest on the list. Small museum owners can bank on the fact that people get easily agitated by listening to the same person talk for an hour (or longer) tour and would rather take it at their own pace, while simultaneously eliminating the middle man between patron and exhibit. Engaging customers in a unique and captivating way can only boost buzz about a business, shedding a positive light upon themselves. Yes, this may an expensive investment, but ultimately it will attract more customers and give back what it has taken.

     Allowing for a museum goer to have an informative but stimulating personal experience with the exhibits will not only allow for them to gather information for private use, but they will almost always talk amongst friends, coworkers and family members and spread the word. With the combined use of social media, the buzz about a lesser known museum has the potential to reach the masses. With the right marketing, a museum that’s privately owned can bud into a thriving and well-traveled destination.

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Have You Ever Heard of…?: NEW BLOG THAT EXPLORES MUSEUMS IN THE NORTHEASTERN CORNER IN THE UNITED STATES

BEVERLY, MA── Have you ever had a burning desire to get completely lost in the beauty of your surroundings? Have you ever found yourself sitting indoors on a rainy summer afternoon, wishing there was something new and exciting to experience? Have you ever wondered about the history of your world and what people were like before you came along?

    If so, "Have You Ever Heard Of...?", a blog about lesser known museums hidden around the northeastern corner of the United States, is the place for you to satisfy your needs. The blog indulges readers about museums that do not have much foot traffic, but deserve it, while revealing hidden gems within our immediate reach.

    Written by Endicott College student and proud New Yorker, Lauren Laurenti, the experiences of these museums are fresh and through a first timer’s critical eye. She walks you through museum tours, highlighting its best features and warning you of the bad. She also gives tips and tricks to promoting a small business, whether it be an art gallery or small museum, by utilizing social media to its fullest potential in order to reach a wider range audience.

    The long awaited release of “Have You Ever Heard Of…?” became official as of 11 AM Friday, May 9, 2014.

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

Long Island Museum of American Art, History, and Carriages

     The Long Island Museum of American Art, History and Carriages is located in Stony Brook, New York on Long Island. It is one of the most stunning and engaging museums around and most residents who are year round Long Islanders know about it or have visited, but not those who just live on the Island for the summer.

    There are many different nicknames that have been given to the museum, including the Long Island Museum and the Museums at Stony Brook. The most popular nickname is the Carriage House Museum by those who are familiar with the area. According to the museum’s official website, as an affiliate with Smithsonian, the museum is well known for its extensive collection of over 200 carriages and its broad collection of over 4,000 sculptures, paintings and prints. Becoming a Smithsonian affiliate “allows select organizations to have greater access to its collections and educational resources, sharing, educational initiatives and research efforts.”

     The volume of history that is preserved within the walls of the Long Island Museum is not only impressive, but is also a collection of the most magnificent quality and splendor. The knowledge the museum provides about the place in which you may live, or where you frequent on an annual basis, is priceless.

    The beautiful, 7 acre grounds of the museum is one of the most significant features. Stony Brook, according to Ms. Val Hunt, is a town “untouched by time” which is the perfect setting for an afternoon with your family. Walking through the gardens, smelling the flowers, are a gift given to you by the museum’s employee’s, all of whom love and take pride in their workplace. The museum provides a rich cultural familiarity, and gives its patrons a time traveling experience like no other.

Photo: Gardens in full bloom

    I had the pleasure of interviewing Val Hunt, a longtime employee of the museum, who gave me some insight behind the scenes. Ms. Hunt had many job titles at the museum when she was working full time and residing on the island; Curatorial Consultant, Objects Conservator and Exhibit Installation Specialist. She has been working as a regular consultant since her relocation to Vermont in 1999.

   Ms. Hunt has spent many years watching patrons come and go, “the museum receives about 75,000 visitors a year, the spring summer and fall are the busiest times”. Currently, the museum uses “the internet, magazines, newspapers, radio and publications” to get the word out about themselves to the community.

    The problem is that the younger generation of people do not regularly read printed publications as much as they used to, especially if it is a local newspaper or magazine. Long Island is a small place compared to many, so it is easy for people to take a day trip to a destination that may be across the island.  Ms. Hunt’s vast experience has facilitated her careful evaluations, and would like to see the museum branch out and utilize social media, expanding themselves to a younger and broader audience.

Photo: Art Conservator Val Hunt

  Using social media apps, such as Instagram and Twitter will give the museum an outlet to show how beautiful its grounds and buildings are, while being able to easily promote programs and public events. According to the website Statistic Brain, Twitter currently has 645,750,000 active users while Instagram has about 90 million. The potential for growth is undeniable. Enhancing photos with filters, and the ability to caption and explain what each photo is will also work to their benefit.

   Word of mouth and conversations with my colleagues conclude that there is a certain stigma on museums among the current generation, that they are boring and not worth their while. While larger museums are actively incorporating technology into their plans, smaller museums and galleries should utilize it in order to make themselves stand out among others. Shamelessly promoting how incredible it really is to visit a museum, or really any business, is of vital importance if history is going to teach what it is supposed to teach.

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

Incredible blog of gifs made from items found primarily in New York museums.

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

How To: Promote Your Small Business

   In 2014, there are much simpler ways to market a small business than standing outside your establishment with T-shirts and pamphlets. Nobody wants to approach the store with the sweaty, disgruntled employee guarding the door. Not to mention, how many people are you really attracting with this approach? Museums and galleries have a disadvantage to begin with. The type of patrons attending shows or tours are those who want to learn about what your business has to offer. In cases where your business is more on the entertainment side, such as several museums in Salem, MA, the attempt is to appeal to those potential patrons who are interested in witches and witchcraft. There is an alternate solution beyond scaring the daylights out of small children with your overly realistic witch costume.

   The digital age has presented new opportunities for small businesses to market and promote themselves to the masses. For little to no cost, there are ways for struggling businesses to self-promote and reach thousands of potential patrons and consumers.

   Facebook has become a mantra for promotion—Facebook has been and will always be free to sign up for as an individual, but sign up is also free for companies and businesses.

  According to Facebook, it only costs a company or business $40.00 to promote, or “boost,” themselves to 11.7 thousand Facebook users. A “boost” is a type of promotion that Facebook displays on your newsfeed, just like any other post, but is a paid advertisement. From personal experiences, most internet users will not even find a businesses’ website—they will just perform a Facebook search. Coming from a family who ran their own small business, an art gallery on Long Island, customers would always ask whether we had a running Facebook page. Facebook pages are, in most cases, easier to understand to patrons than complicated private websites. Business hours, merchandise promotion, employee’s names, sales and reviews are readily available, and all on one, simple to understand page. Administrators (or page editors) can be up to five people, meaning that five different people can update posts from the businesses’ account, share photos, edit store hours, and accept or respond to reviews. Facebook can be an easy option for any generation business owner, which makes it one of the top ways to promote a business. To make a page for your business is quite simple, even for a first time Facebook user.

    To start, search Facebook in your preferred search engine.

1.Search Facebook in your preferred search engine.

2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “Create a Page for a celebrity, band or business.”

3. A prompt will pop up to either follow the directions on the screen to sign up for an individual Facebook account or log in to a preexisting account that will be used to set up the page for the business.

4. After you create an account or log in, click on Create a Page for “Local Business or Place”.

 5. Scroll down the drop down menu for “Museum/ Art Gallery”.

6. Type in the appropriate boxes for business name, street address, city, state and be sure to include a phone number so that patrons are able to call for questions or directions.

7. When finished, click the box “Get Started” and it will bring you to the set up page that asks for a category and a description. Make sure your business description paints you in the most appealing way, using word choices that accurately and simply describe what you do and what you’re trying to achieve.

8. From here, you have the option to link any outside websites affiliated with your business to your new Facebook page. You can also customize the Facebook URL that people will type into their search engines.

9. Add a profile picture of your establishment. My suggestion would be to use a picture of your storefront or the logo you use on your business card. This way, it is easier for patrons to locate you or recognize you from the street. You can either upload a photo from your computer’s hard drive or you can take a photo off a website. (Caution: Make sure whichever picture you choose, is yours. You do not want to run into copyright issues if you are using a photo you have not taken yourself.) Click “Save Photo” and continue.

10. Add your new page to your favorites bar so it is easily accessible to you.

11. Add your location and interests.The more detail you add, the more people Facebook will reach out to for you. Set the target age group and gender you would like for your ad to reach. Scroll down the page for more.

12. Pick how much money you would like to spend DAILY. Each price comes with a certain amount of possible likes.

13. Choose when you would like the ad to end, or choose to run the ad continuously. Facebook will charge you until you cancel the ad. Click "Promote Page" when you are satisfied with your entries.

14. "Like" your new page so that your page is exposed any Facebook friends you may have.

15. You can also invite your email contacts to like your business's page.

  16. Update your business's status. Tell people what you do, any sales or promotions that may be running right now. Post any recent pictures that portray your business in a way that will attract people.

17. Invite your Facebook friends to like your page.

[lesserknownmuseums-blog]

The Salem Witch Dungeon Museum, Salem, Massachusetts

     On Tuesday April 1st, The Witch Dungeon Museum in Salem Massachusetts officially opened for the spring season. On that stunning spring afternoon, my colleague and I were the only patrons in the building.

      As the pamphlet boasts, “the mood is set from the moment you enter,” with its authentic decorations and historically accurate gift shop. Although with this tactic, the museum sends a message that the only thing the owners desperately need is money. 

After a quick glance around the sparse gifts, you are then led into a creepy, high ceilinged theater where you await the reenactment of Sarah Good’s trial from 1692. At first glance, the theater looks like every other, but careful perusing brings out the individuality. From the magnificent crimson curtain, to the intricately carved benches that circulate the room and the wooden floor creaking beneath your feet, these specific elements add to the witchy atmosphere that attracts the masses during peak season in October.

     While the costumes and set have been expertly designed to send you back to 1692, the monologue of the actors could be better prepared with scripts that are less wordy and confusing for audience members to follow. With more practice and rehearsals focusing on how to project your voice, I think that the theater experience could be an authentic and entertaining way to learn about the Salem witches. With that being said, it is the beginning of the museum’s season, and the actors cannot yet mask the unavoidable jitters.

    The museum and its features are aesthetically pleasing when you first encounter them. After a 10 minute “trial,” you are told to stand up and follow a woman down into the witch dungeon. The walk down the musty and shadowy staircase brings you to stand in front of a beam from the original dungeon.  The tour guide explained that if a female rubs it she may experience good luck. The tour guide was competent in her description of what had happened in that room, 300+ years ago, beginning with the torture, the famine, and the pain that those imprisoned bore. The walls are lined with bars that trap eerie mannequins behind them, made to look like they are suffering in the conditions that the “witches” had endured.

   The ground of the dungeon was dirty and puddle ridden, as it had flooded in recent storms. It added to the spine-chilling nature of the passageways, mixing with the lingering suffering of innocent people that occurred for this museum to be in existence.

    The dripping of the water in the background mixes with the feeling of glass eyes from the mannequins, haunting you as you pass the coffin cells. The voice of the guide bounces off the stone walls like pennies against concrete.

    The layout of the rest of the museum’s passageways is like walking through the town, passing the parlor, the priest’s house and Gallows Hill, where witches hang from tree branches in mock execution.

    We stand in shock from the scene before us, tuning out the tour guide as she describes the chilling story behind Gallows Hill.

    Overall, the museum employees were extremely helpful in accommodating the only two people to pay admission that afternoon. The cast was understanding, and performed their skit in front of just two adults. The women behind the counter at the gift store were extremely helpful and friendly and the tour guide was tremendously knowledgeable about her topics of discussion.

      I would recommend The Salem Witch Dungeon Museum to anyone over the age of 7. The hanging figures and creepy tunnels are unsettling characteristics of the building and are not appropriate for small children. Those who are handicapped or have trouble with mobility will not be comfortable with the dungeon, as it is very claustrophobic. The eccentricity of the live characters playing witches and the realistically suffering dummies also are certainly not for the faint of heart.

    What draws you to this little museum instead of attending the well-traveled Salem Witch Museum just a few blocks away?

    For the low price of nine dollars a ticket, the proper audiences can experience the Witch Dungeon as a fun and exciting afternoon activity while passing through the beautiful city of Salem. This tour is more of a personal experience, and you are more likely to have a better chance at getting a tailored answer to any questions you might have. The museum encompasses the traditions of the town and its people by embracing the scarring details of its dark past. You can immediately tell that the owners of the museum have put an enormous amount of time, effort and love into their business. Twisting and utilizing history as a foundation for people to have fun, is the most effective way for people to learn about subjects that are hard to explain.  Watching the reenacted events before you allows for the severity of the situation to resonate with you well after you leave the premises.