Hi All First time poster, long time listener. At Glasgow Museums, we take pride in the fact that we do not charge admission for any of our venues, as we consider the publics right to access the collection to be one at the core of the service we provide. That is not to say, however, that there is not continual discussion round this provision (I believe that we hold the collections in trust and indeed on behalf of society). In terms of tracking, we use a clicker to monitor numbers, but we also use various methods to gauge our audience. The comments box is one, but there are also various Visitor Studies Projects ongoing as part of this process. We have used one to one interviews, and an emailing system that responds with a post visit questionnaire. I don't think the use of a plastic idea would be conducive to the visitor experience as people as a whole do not like to be labelled. What I would recommend (I am an amateur at this it has to be warned) is the following: 1.) Pre visit questionnaires that use a combination of qualitative and quantitative research. 2.) Focus Groups on a select audience. 3.) Shadowing visitors - or even shared visitations. 4.) Post visit questionnaires. All of these techniques can help identify your audience and learn from them. Indeed the possibility of electronic tracking is very interesting, especially with the use of PDAs which can also give substance to collections interpretation. Robin Patel Glasgow Museums -----Original Message----- From: Museum discussion list [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ruth Terry Sent: 12 July 2006 18:18 To: [log in to unmask] Subject: [MUSEUM-L] Admission ticket alternatives I am in the process of investigating the various forms of ticketing/admissions tracking of those museums that do charge admission. We currently are using a plastic tag that works like a paperclip, but the cost is a bit high and visitors have commented that they don't like them because they do not stay on during their visit. We are a hands-on science center in the midst of big changes, so the possibility of technological tracking is very interesting to us. I am interested in learning how various museums track paid attendance - reciepts, stickers, tags, etc - including price, effectiveness and how the staff and visitors feel about the various methods. Thanks so much in advance for you help. Ruth Terry Visitor Services Supervisor McWane Science Center Birmingham, AL ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes). -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.9.10/386 - Release Date: 12/07/2006 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.0/388 - Release Date: 13/07/2006 ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).