Hi Christian,
A few words of advice . . .
#1 Ensure a strong liaison/relationship between the 'friends' and the
museum. [This will become a lot of work once a friends group gains
momentum; so you might want to include in the strategic plan now, before
it's too late to add, "Work toward developing an annual 'paid internship'
for a student to serve as liaison, financially supported in equal shares by
the friends, the museum, and the College/Department of _______"?]
#2 Tap into the university and local community for friends . . . and
encourage 'word of mouth' advertising to attract more friends.
#3 Keep the annual fee to join the friends low (to cover administrative
costs), but rely upon events to raise funds.
#4 Ensure events are multi-faceted (if possible). Some more casual -- like
an afternoon tea with scones and conversation with the Director; a film
screening and discussion; a hands-on workshop to learn about some aspect of
the historic house; etc. Some more formal -- a cocktail hour followed by a
guest speaker, with a sit-down dinner and silent auction; a concert followed
by coffee and dessert; a wine tasting. The larger the variety of events,
the larger your potential audience.
#5 Encourage 'friends' to get their friends/companies to support your
programs. Provide them adequate tools to market the museum . . . a wish
list of oft-used goods (new and used) and services (gift certificates),
sound bites about the facility and programs, etc.
#6 Keep the 'friends' focused on their 'mission statement' so they do not
deviate into undesired/unnecessary territory.
#7 Keep them well-informed about what will be going on at the museum as far
in advance as possible.
#8 Do not expect immediate results.
I'm sure others have more to add . . .
Best wishes, sincerely,
Jay Heuman, Curator of Education
Salt Lake Art Center
20 South West Temple
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
T 801-328-4201
F 801-322-4323
E [log in to unmask]
W www.slartcenter.org
On 3/17/05 8:33 AM, "Christian Carr" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Dear fellow list members,
> I have just returned from a museum conference where reference was made to a
> session offered in years past called "With Friends Like These..." focusing on
> the potential benefits and pitfalls of "Friends" groups who function as
> fundraisers for your museum, gallery or historic site.
> Although our parent organization already has non-profit status as an
> educational institution, we are in the process of setting up a non-profit
> group to act as a fundraising organization to support the restoration of a
> historic house on campus.
> Would anyone be willing to offer words of advice or caution as we embark upon
> this endeavor?
> Thank you in advance for your input,
> Christian Carr
> Director, Sweet Briar Museum
> Assistant Professor of Arts Management
> Sweet Briar College, Sweet Briar, VA
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