In a message dated 3/12/2004 3:06:58 PM Pacific Standard Time, [log in to unmask] writes:
"No one is going to come into the museum if you have all this online."
I think it depends on what they want. And what you supply.
Perhaps we have few inquiries compared to other museums... most of our guests (98%) come for the exhibits.
A simple inquiry (an image for a 3rd grade history paper or relative in a funeral record) can be answered on line for much less than what staff hours require - and we still count that as a "referral answered" to meet our contract with the Town. (We are FINALLY getting a web page - welcome to the 1980s! ;)
An author, interior designer or homeowner deciding to restore their Victorian would need more information/detail, which a JPEG or other "fast answer" would not satisfy. Personal visit needed.
Perhaps we can actually expand our circle of service? Serving more simple needs fast, and focusing on more complex needs with more individual attention?
Just my two cents - Laura Bajuk, E.D.
Museums of Los Gatos - Art, History, Nature
PO Box 1904, Los Gatos, CA 95031
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