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5 Ways Museums are Driving Revenue Through Digital Transformation 
July 26, 2021

The future of museums is virtual. Moving collections online and creating virtual environments for patrons to experience a museum's offerings exponentially expands the levels of impact and reach a museum can have. Providing digital experiences of museum collections is a necessity for museums that want to build impact, prestige, and revenue. In fact, 98% of museums agree that their highest investment priorities include online platforms and digitalizing their collections [1].   

It is clear that museums see the value of digital transformation; however, 69% of museums claimed to have a digital strategy [2], but only 23% of museums have digitalized parts of their collection [3]. This provides an opportunity for museums to get ahead of the curve. By starting a digital transformation now, a museum can capitalize on the large demand for virtual offerings while there is little supply. A strong digital backbone can prove highly lucrative for museums. Because with digitalization comes many new ways of generating revenue. How can your museum drive revenue through digital transformation? 

Museums are in dire need of innovative ways to build revenue. By October of 2020, on average, individual museums lost a total of ~$850,000 in revenue due to the pandemic. Museum directors anticipated a loss of about 35% of their annual operating income by the end of 2020 [4]. To rebound from this loss, museums are looking for innovative ways to create new revenue streams – and the answer is through digital transformation.   

Five ways museums can drive revenue through digital transformation include:  

  1. Charging admission for special online events  
  1. Offering a virtual membership  
  1. Offering virtual tours   
  1. Selling digital products  
  1. Offering virtual courses   

Charging admission for special online events is a straightforward way to generate revenue using a digital channel. Virtual events are scalable and can reach a much larger audience than traditional in-person events, where there are apparent limitations due to size and proximity variables.   

Offering a virtual membership is a way to monetize the digital offerings of a museum. Virtual memberships can provide a new interactive and engaging experience for patrons, especially those who would otherwise be unable to experience the museum's collections in person.   

Offering virtual tours of the museum at a cost can provide a valuable experience for patrons and opens a museum to the world. Virtual tours can provide a similar experience to in-person tours but enable interaction with the museum's collections in a whole new way. The Louvre is an example of a museum that offers virtual tours to the public, enabling its reach to a much greater audience [5].   

Selling digital products is an easy way to build revenue by leveraging a digital presence. Offering specialized digital learning experiences and access to high-value resources, a museum can build revenue using the unique assets in its collections. A museum that is leveraging its resources in this way is The Henry Ford. Its platform, inHub, created by Amesite, delivers globally accessible resources and community.  

Offering virtual micro-courses to patrons can be an immense source of new revenue for a museum. Hyper-focused and engaging micro-courses can help your museum build prestige and impact. Online courses are scalable and adaptable – capable of staying relevant and up to date using an AI technology-enabled platform. Patrons can interact and immerse themselves in topics that interest them, gain valuable knowledge, and access a skillfully curated and engaging educational experience.   

Leveraging digital transformation to create revenue for your museum is a worthwhile investment that can revolutionize impact, prestige, and revenue goals.   

How Can Your Museum Launch an Online Learning Environment for Your Patrons Easily and Quickly?   

Digitalizing collections and developing an online learning platform for your museum will provide unmatched benefits to impact, prestige, and revenue goals. With a robust online Community Learning Environment, your audience expands exponentially, and patrons can experience your museum anywhere in the world in an engaging and innovative way. To establish a scalable platform capable of supporting multiple resilient revenue streams, like micro-courses, virtual tours, and online special event hosting, museums should partner with a SaaS company specializing in building and maintaining online learning platforms.   

When searching for a partner, look for an online learning platform with these key features:   

  • Engaging and easy to use custom branded platforms that attract new learners and build community and brand awareness, influencing repeat business 
  • Flexible hyper-focused micro-courses with custom, relevant, and expertly curated content 
  • Turnkey systems capable of immediate implementation with no learning curve 
  • Easily scalable and globally accessible 
  • Efficiency in all systems using AI and advanced technology 
  • A value proposition that sets your museum apart 

Your museum can build revenue by leveraging digitalization. Start your transformation now.  

Amesite Offers a Single, Easy to Use, Scalable Solution   

Launch an online learning platform that focuses on building revenue by expanding the reach of your museum and establishing offerings that build reputation and prestige.   

Amesite is a high-tech AI-enabled online learning platform that creates custom-branded Community Learning Environments. Amesite offers the creation of turnkey intuitive micro-courses that require no training to use and showcase your museum's collections in innovative and engaging ways.  Amesite has an outstanding and industry-leading 98% retention rate across its educational programs.  

Amesite's platform is built on AI technology, advanced data analytic tools, and machine learning algorithms. This technological infrastructure allows courses to be flexible and customizable to each learner and stay factually up to date and relevant along the patron's learning journey. It also provides powerful insights to the museum and the learners about how they learn to improve their experience.  

Partner with Amesite to drive revenue for your museum while providing your patrons with excellent resources for education and entertainment. A host of self-paced, highly engaging, and intuitive courses can be ready for your learners in as little as 30 days.   

Amesite's smart, intuitive Community Learning Environments help museums thrive. Request a Demo!   

Learn how Amesite is helping Conner Prairie deliver a specialized digital learning platform that enables users to engage, interact and experience Conner Prairie in a whole new way.  

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Resources:   

[1] Museum and Heritage Advisor. Nov. 18, 2015. New research shows more museums are using digitization for audience engagement. https://advisor.museumsandheritage.com/supplier-news/new-research-shows-more-museums-are-using-digitisation-for-audience-engagement/ Accessed July 26, 2021.  

[2] Statisita. 2020. Do you have a digital strategy at your museum? https://www.statista.com/statistics/1200615/us-museums-with-digital-strategy-by-organization/ Accessed July 26, 2021.  

[3] Art Council. 2019. Digital Culture 2019.   https://www.artscouncil.org.uk/sites/default/files/download-file/DC2019-Museums-factsheet.pdf Accessed July 26, 2021.  

[4] American Alliance of Museums. Nov. 17, 2020. Museums Losing Millions, Job Losses Mount as COVID-19 Cases Surge. https://www.aam-us.org/2020/11/17/museums-losing-millions-job-losses-mount-as-covid-19-cases-surge/ Accessed July 26, 2021.   

[5] American Alliance of Museums. March 25, 2020. 4 Ways Museums Can Successfully Leverage Digital Content and Channels during Coronavirus (COVID-19).   https://www.aam-us.org/2020/03/25/4-ways-museums-can-successfully-leverage-digital-content-and-channels-during-coronavirus-covid-19/ Accessed July 26, 2021.