IT’S NOT ABOUT YOUR MUSEUM WEBSITE ANYMORE

NICK POOLE, CEO, COLLECTIONS TRUST

MA CONFERENCE 2009

Campaigning for the public right to access and engage with collections by:

•Promoting best practice•Encouraging innovation•Working with the sector

Campaigning for the public right to access and engage with collections by:

•Promoting best practice•Encouraging innovation•Working with the sector

Our role...Our role...

10 years in development...10 years in development...

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

10 years in development...10 years in development...

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

The transition from manual systems towards electronic documentation well advanced.

Structural and procedural standards beginning to emerge

10 years in development...10 years in development...

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

Early development of museum ‘brochureware’ websites

Some innovative work presenting virtual experiences based on collections

The heyday of digitisation begins

10 years in development...10 years in development...

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

Increasingly sophisticated and complex interactive websites

Collections data increasingly integrated into the user experience

Starting to blur the boundaries via federated search, RSS feeds, mobile platforms

10 years in development...10 years in development...

1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012

Less and less about ‘your’ website and increasingly about multi-platform, multi-channel content

Reaching a larger and non-traditional audience by syndicating content to media partners

Moving from content proliferation to content on-demand, and scalable economic models

First, a story...First, a story...

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ONLINECOLLECTION DATABASE

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ONLINECOLLECTION DATABASE

GALLERY INTERACTIVE

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WEBSITE

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WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE

?

WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE WEBSITE

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FEDERATION

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AGGREGATION

FEDERATION/SYNDICATION

GOOGLE B B C

SEARCH BROADCAST EDUCATION BLOGS APPLICATIONS

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Beyond your Website: Aggregation and SyndicationBeyond your Website: Aggregation and Syndication

Publish once, re-use many times

That re-use is no longer limited to your website

Enables us to move from being single-channel to multi-channel

BUT

You no longer control the context in which users consume your information

Puts us in the same competitive environment as publishers and broadcasters

Publish once, re-use many times

That re-use is no longer limited to your website

Enables us to move from being single-channel to multi-channel

BUT

You no longer control the context in which users consume your information

Puts us in the same competitive environment as publishers and broadcasters

ChallengesChallenges

These developments are all about the trade off between relinquishing control now in the belief that it will drive greater usage of your content in the future.

Website statistics are a blunt instrument, but at least they exist. The world of aggregation and syndication is very light on evidence.

There is a belief among funders that the value of investment in ‘digital culture’ is locked away in storage (sound familiar?). Aggregation and syndication are regarded as the way to unlock this value.

These developments always raise issues of organisational change, including lack of trust, loss of confidence, perceived loss of connection to the ‘real’ stuff.

The pace at which we have moved from ‘stock control’ to ‘content’ is faster than our ability to keep up – with the result that much of our content isn’t ready to be aggregated

These developments are all about the trade off between relinquishing control now in the belief that it will drive greater usage of your content in the future.

Website statistics are a blunt instrument, but at least they exist. The world of aggregation and syndication is very light on evidence.

There is a belief among funders that the value of investment in ‘digital culture’ is locked away in storage (sound familiar?). Aggregation and syndication are regarded as the way to unlock this value.

These developments always raise issues of organisational change, including lack of trust, loss of confidence, perceived loss of connection to the ‘real’ stuff.

The pace at which we have moved from ‘stock control’ to ‘content’ is faster than our ability to keep up – with the result that much of our content isn’t ready to be aggregated

OpportunitiesOpportunities

Reach a lot more people

Reduce the operational overhead on information creation and management

Reduce the operational overhead on maintenance and infrastructure

Open up new sources of funding and new partnerships

The potential to explore a Web 2.0 style collaborative approach to meaning

Reach a lot more people

Reduce the operational overhead on information creation and management

Reduce the operational overhead on maintenance and infrastructure

Open up new sources of funding and new partnerships

The potential to explore a Web 2.0 style collaborative approach to meaning

Thank you!Thank you!

Nick PooleChief ExecutiveCollections Trust

www.collectionstrust.org.ukwww.collectionslink.org.ukhttp://openculture.collectionstrustblogs.org.uk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/collectiontrust (#collectionstrust)

Nick PooleChief ExecutiveCollections Trust

www.collectionstrust.org.ukwww.collectionslink.org.ukhttp://openculture.collectionstrustblogs.org.uk

Twitter: www.twitter.com/collectiontrust (#collectionstrust)