Building Audiences

The Museum of Street Culture

By Alan Govenar

One national trend I’ve been tracking is the recent rise in people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity. On any given night over a half million people in the US are coping with homelessness. Over a third of these people are …
Call for Applications: Aroha Fellowship for Museums & Creative Aging

By Elizabeth Merritt

Last week the Alliance launched the search for our first senior fellow. With the generous support of Aroha Philanthropies, this individual will spend two years advancing the work of museums with respect to creative aging. One of the goals …
Crowdsourcing a Conference on Creative Aging

By Elizabeth Merritt

Would your museum like to host a national convening on museums and creative aging? Rather than figuring out the best site for such a meeting on our own, my colleagues and I at the Alliance are inviting you to speak up. Let’s call it …
Membership Isn’t the Top of the Mountain

By Eric Bruce

Eric Bruce is the Head of Visitor Experience at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia). This is the third article in a series we are presenting on how Mia has expanded its audience. In this series of posts about the Minneapolis Institute …
Converting Family into Fans: How the Contemporary Jewish Museum expanded its reach to a new audience.

By Bob Harlow

This article originally appeared in the July/August 2017 issue of Museum magazine. Since its founding in 1984, the Contemporary Jewish Museum (CJM) had been in a 2,500-square-foot space in the lobby of the Jewish Community Federation of …
How Mia’s new strategy uses data to create personalized visitor experiences

By Clare Regan

Clare Regan is the Audience Insight Analyst at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia). This is the second article in a series we are presenting on how Mia has expanded its audience. Last month, the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia) talked …
Mia’s new strategy navigates changing consumer expectations, focuses on long-term sustainability

By Kristin Prestegaard

Kristin Prestegaard is the Chief Engagement Officer at the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia). This is the first article in a series we are presenting on how Mia has expanded its audience. At the Minneapolis Institute of Art (Mia), we’ve …
Ask, Don’t Guess: How a visitor-centered business model led to record-breaking attendance for a historic house in Oregon.

By Marta E. Bones

This article originally appeared in the May/June 2017 issue of Museum magazine. Built in 1914 by an influential Portland newspaper publisher, Pittock Mansion has a story similar to that of many other early 20th-century mansions across the …
The Road to Results: Effective Practices for Building Arts Audiences

By American Alliance of Museums

Delivered March 22, 2016, at the Building Arts Audiences: The Philadelphia Summit, Will Miller presents findings from the Wallace Foundation report, The Road to Results: Effective Practices for Building Arts Audiences (2014). Watch the …
Build Your Audience Through Strategic Organizational Alignment

By American Alliance of Museums

Internationally renowned for his expertise in arts management, Michael Kaiser discusses the importance of organizational alignment around audience-building initiatives. Kaiser uses examples from his work at the Kennedy Center and Alvin …