Kizzy Stonell wrote:
>......  There have been tentative steps to
> look into getting a page on the internet.  Have other similar museums
> had good/bad experience of this ?

I don't think a page (or even a few pages) will do any good at all
except where you have a listing a within larger museum/tourist
attraction/special interest sites (which shouldn't cost you anything).

Any direct web presence should add value to your museum - whether it be
by increasing awareness of what you have or even selling items from the
giftshop online. It is not simply a static advertisement - it needs to
offer things the physical museum cannot and it needs to change
frequently to keep virtual visitors coming back and encourage them to
become part of a community supporting the physical museum. We have a
site covering the maritime history of Tayside
(http://www.dmcsoft.com/tamh) which covers the activities of local
museums and more. It was met with much scepticism in terms of how it
could boost visitor numbers but the e-mail we are receiving along the
lines of 'I didn't know museum x had a maritime collection' or 'We knew
nothing about this area and now would like to visit' are beginning to
change attitudes: the genealogical part of it has been a major draw.

Douglas MacKenzie


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