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MARKETING AS A KEY ELEMENT

IN ACHIEVING MUSEUM’S MISSION

Alexandra Zbuchea

Especially in Eastern Europe, many museum permanent institution in the service of society
managers are still reluctant to associate their in- and of its development, and open to the public,
stitution with concepts originating from business which acquires, conserves, researches, com-
world, such as investments, marketing, promo- municates and exhibits, for purposes of study,
tion or public relations. They fear that by adopting education and enjoyment, material evidence of
a business-like approach in managing their insti- people and their environment (ICOM Statutes
tution, the museums will no longer be considered art. 2 para. 1) Therefore any museum should aim
as spaces of learning and culture, but commercial to educate and entertain its public by preserving
enterprises, interested not in preserving the heri- and valorizing its heritage. Besides this, any mu-
tage but in exploiting it only for financial reasons. seum should have a specific mission related to the
The present paper argues why such an attitude specific of its collections and of the environment
is completely wrong and presents the benefits a in which it exists.
museum could have by adopting a marketing ap-
The marketing policy of a certain museum is the
proach.
key to the successful accomplishment of its role
Marketing is more than just a practice born in a and to attraction of a diverse audience. The scope
commercial context and successfully adopted by of the museum marketing is to guarantee the
the nonprofit word. Marketing is also a philoso- achievement of its mission, but it also has other
phy regarding the organization’s role in society aims as: bringing visitors, fundraising, better or-
and the ways it could better fulfill it. The most ganization of exhibits, promotion etc. Marketing
recent definition of the concept proposed by the is increasingly more necessary, taking into ac-
American Marketing Association (www.market- count the growing complexity of the contempo-
ingpower.com) is: Marketing is the activity, set rary society.
of institutions, and processes for creating, com-
municating, delivering, and exchanging offer- The specific marketing activities are: definition of
ings that have value for customers, clients, part- the museum’s mission, resources and collection
ners, and society at large. This definition high- development, decision and description of objec-
lights that the aims of marketing are not mainly tives, evaluation of various museum activities and
commercial but are tightly related with the role of departments, exhibition projection, fundraising,
the respective organization. Marketing offers the lobbing for the museum within community, pro-
instruments of designing an offer valuable for the motion of the museum and certain exhibitions,
public of the organization, as well as for society in designing suitable services to better satisfy the
general. This aspect is vital for museums, which public (e.g. gift-shop). Museum marketing aims
are intended to serve its visitors, different com- orientation and organization of the museum’s
munities and the society. entire activity towards visitors and community/
communities, towards society in general.
The role of museums changed in time from the
keeper of (national) heritage to that of scientist, It has to focus on the visitors’ experience instead
educator, cultural partner etc. Different defini- of collecting (Kotler 1999, 30-39). Nowadays the
tions of the concept highlight one or all these as- audiences appreciate the visit in a museum ac-
pects, but the accent is increasingly more on the cording to the quality of their experience. Each
positive impact of museum on its visitors and on museum should know what are its public’s crite-
the society. For instance, one of the widest accept- ria regarding a satisfying, high quality visit. The
ed definitions is that of the International Council best way to do it is through studying its visitors,
of Museums: A museum is a non-profit making, another responsibility of museum marketing. In

Tyragetia, s.n., vol. II [XVII], nr. 2, 2008, 65-71.


I. Studii

order to be successful and effective in terms of would also bring financial benefits, both directly
achieving its mission, a museum should build its and indirectly. The first aspect is related to more
audience (Kotler, Kotler 1998, 38-45). ticket-sales and increased incomes for the mu-
seum’s shops. The second one means increased
Each visitor has his/her personal experience when
sponsorships due to the improved appeal of the
visiting a museum, according to various factors:
museum to a wider audience.
socio-cultural (cultural identification, continuity
of theme and story, conversation and story build- A marketing approach in museums means special
ing from evaluation stimulus, variation of stimu- strategies designed to attract resources, to raise
lus, social interaction), cognitive (the creation of money for museum’s development and bigger
mindful activity, involvement and engagement, public programs. Fundraising campaigns would
inner reflection and imagination, variation of be better designed in museums with functional
stimulus to create a meaningful whole, perceived marketing policy compared to other museums.
authenticity), psychological orientation (scene These museums would also have more successful
setters, routing and mapping), physical and en- membership schemes and would be considered
vironmental (crowding, seats, noise) (Goulding more trustworthy by donors and sponsors.
2000, 272-273). The individual short- and long-
One of the basic concepts in marketing is the
term reactions depend on emotions (joy, accep-
marketing mix. This is formed by a set of ele-
tance, surprise, sadness, anger, expectancy, etc.)
ments vital to the development of an organiza-
and mood, being also a matter of balance between
tion, elements that would be of special interest to
the person’s skills and the challenges emanating
the marketing strategy a certain organization pro-
from the museum’s exhibitions.
poses. The classic structure of the marketing mix
The interaction between individual processes and is formed by 4 elements: product, place, price and
the social situation, as well as the level of visitors’ promotion, thus the marketing mix becomes “the
participation vary greatly also. The public is en- 4 P’s”. Some debates are always active around this
couraged to participate through playful activities, arrangement, some arguing for more, others for
induced discovery experiences, by means of com- less. Nevertheless, most of the literature is orga-
bining objects, exhibits, environments and even nized around the classical concept of 4 elements
services, although museum visits are in general in the marketing mix. In the case of services, ow-
self-motivated, self-initiated and self-structured. ing to their specific characteristics, the specialists
Many visitors aim to accumulate experiences not generally prefer to add 3 additional components:
knowledge. The museum professionals have to personnel, process and physical evidence. Muse-
ensure also the attainment of the museum’s or ums offer services, so it would be justified for the
exhibitions’ educational goals while completely museum marketers to consider the 7P’s mix.
satisfying the visitors.
One of the most significant specialists in the field,
The benefits that marketing offers to museums are Philip and Neil Kotler (1998), choose for muse-
extremely significant, justifying specialized posi- ums the 4P’s model, adding fundraising as a point
tions in their administrative scheme. Proper mar- of special concern for the museum’s marketing
keting strategies lead to optimal achievements of strategy. Considering the specific of the muse-
the museums’ goals and objectives. Thus, the re- ums, at least for the European former communist
sources could be better used, and the efficiency in countries, we would consider vital 7 elements for
the organization would increase. the marketing strategy: product, additional ser-
vices, personnel, price, placement, promotion
By means of marketing the image of the mu-
and fundraising.
seum would improve, increasingly more people
would be attracted by its offer. Increased visita- The museum product forms the organization’s
tion means that more people would be exposed public offer. The offer of museums is formed by
to the museum’s messages, would benefit from its exhibitions and public programs. It consists in
cultural services, would be educated, and would presentation and interpretation of museum’s col-
have fulfilling cultural experiences. Therefore, lections, in the framework of various displays and
the cultural and educational mission of the muse- activities, aiming to transmit cultural messages,
um would be better accomplished. More visitors to educate and entertain museum’s visitors. At

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A. Zbuchea, Marketing as a key element in achieving museum’s mission

the core of the museum product is delivering ex- museum (Zbuchea 2005c). The architecture and
perience. The outcomes of the museum visit are interior design proved to be a useful promotional
tightly related with the experiences the visitor tool for many famous museums. Sometimes visi-
has. Since the quality and intensity of the muse- tors come just to see a special display, a new wing
um visit is linked to the efficiency of the museum or special effects inside the museum. The archi-
work, when designing the museum offer the needs tecture and the interior design are seen as prom-
and interests of the visitors have to be considered ises of special museum experiences; therefore
(Kotler 1999). they attract additional visitors and set the level of
The museum offer is the result of the interdisci- expectations.
plinary research undergone by museum’s special- Designing the offer taking into account a mar-
ists. But the offer is meant for the public, not for keting strategy ensures more appeal to different
specialists. Therefore, the general audience’s ac- segments of visitors. It could attract new visitors,
cess to scientific information and to the messages who would otherwise avoid contacts with muse-
transmitted through exhibits and activities has ums. It also motivates visitors to come back more
to be easy and exciting. Marketing offers differ- often, to interact with the museum.
ent instruments for achieving this. For instance
The existence of various addition services, such
through marketing research the needs, desires
as cloak-rooms, cafeterias or restaurants, shops,
and interests of the visitors could be known,
contributes to better satisfaction of visitors, in-
therefore taken into account when designing the
creases the appeal of the museums and lead to
offer. Through marketing, the designing process
stronger positive memories of the museum expe-
could be more focused on the most effective way
rience. In order to be efficient and to contribute
of addressing visitors. Marketing also helps in de-
signing a promotional campaign, therefore in at- to the success of the museum experience and to
tracting more people to the museum. generate significant funds to the museums, all the
commercial services have to follow specific mar-
In order to be efficient, a museum has to develop a keting strategies. These would take into account
marketing approach for its offer, namely it has to the museum’s mission and characteristics, as well
have a marketing policy regarding its public offer. as the needs and desires of the museum’s visitors.
This would help to a better design of the offer, so Because of the long-term financial and image im-
as the visitors to find it interesting, fulfilling, edu- pact that these services have, they should be con-
cating and entertaining. A marketing approach sidered an important part of the marketing mix of
to museum offer would help the museum design any museum, even if at the first sight, as superfi-
auxiliary materials and services (guide books, cial one, they seem to be unrelated with the edu-
souvenirs, gallery talks etc.) that would increase cational and cultural mission of the museum.
the appeal and the benefits of the offer – both for
museum and for visitors. As we mentioned, the personnel is another part
of the marketing mix, therefore of interest to the
We stress that the visitor should not be the only marketing policy of any museum. The person-
point of reference for the marketing strategy. The nel ensure the proper preservation, the research
“curriculum” of the museum is equally important and public presentation of the museum’s collec-
(Lindauer 2005, 43-44). This is even more im- tions. Unfortunately some museums experience
portant when considering designing educational internal tensions between curators, educators,
programs, which have to be both entertaining and researchers and other employees. Some of them
educationally efficient. consider that in order to preserve the collections
A marketing approach is also useful when design- they should be as far as possible from the public,
ing the spaces open to the public. The impact on while others would give the visitors the chance
visitors is related with the appeal and the func- to touch the exhibits and even to play with them.
tionality of the public spaces of the museum. The Some think it is important to present the results
architecture of the museum – the building and of the research just to other specialists who could
the interior design, as well as the exhibitions’ fully appreciate them, while others would like to
design - facilitates better experiences, even com- open the access to the meaning of the collections
munication and interaction between visitors and to everybody.

67
I. Studii

When designing the public offer, all the personnel of different categories, services, public programs
categories involved in the preservation, research such as educational programs, conferences, film
and curation of the collections and education of projections, concerts etc. Only unusual, special
the public have to cooperate. Only mixed teams, events and programs are priced higher compared
concerned not only with the collections but also to this general practice. More attention and flexi-
with the public’s characteristics, needs and de- bility in this matter could generate more revenues.
sires, would be able to develop the offer with the We point out that higher prices have to be justi-
best public impact. fied by the offer – thus marketing product policy
has a role in the process. We also point out that
A specialized domain of marketing, called internal
price and product strategies have to be correlated
marketing, is concerned with developing proper
with the promotional strategy of the museum.
marketing policies inside the company, aiming
“internal customers” – namely the employees. From a marketing perspective, distribution refers
Internal marketing focuses on many aspects that to facilitating public’s access to museum’s offer as
finally would generate not only increased satis- well as to its collections. In general the distribu-
faction of the personnel, but also of the clients. In tion policy is limited to the physical placement
the beginning, internal marketing was considered of the museum. Most of the offer of museums is
more part of management strategies, concerning presented at the museum’s locations. This is con-
not only marketing orientation among employ- venient for the museum’s perspective, but not
ees, implementation of plans of customer care or so suitable for different public segments. Some-
internal service productivity (Varey, Lewis 1999, times, the museum message is better heard and
926-927). In the 1990s the internal marketing taken into account if it is transmitted outside its
concept was tighter related with non-economic premises.
aspects related with the personnel, the needs and
Because museums want to enlarge their public im-
interests of people working in an organization.
pact and better fulfill their mission, they tend to “go
As mentioned before, internal marketing sees the
out” more often. For instance, increasingly more
employee as a customer who has to be satisfied by
museums offer educational programs in schools or
its relations with the organizations in order to be
cooperate with other organizations for programs
more attached to the organizations, to its job and
that are taking place at partners’ locations.
to better perform its duties.
The impact of the museum outside its building
Internal marketing could be seen not only as a
could also be enhanced through itinerary exhibi-
philosophy regarding the relationships inside the
tions. In order to be culturally and educationally
organization, but also as a set of techniques, also
effective, they should be specifically designed for
associated with human resources management.
the outside public that is going to visit them. Thus
These methods are also useful for museums. The
marketing and marketing research are, again,
personnel in museums are often divided and in
needed tools. Another way to make the museum
man museums the cooperation between many de-
more accessible is to open branches in the same
partments is poor. This situation is mainly dan-
city or even in other places when appropriate.
gerous for the outcome of the museum’s activity
– for its public offer. Therefore the main aim of In order to attract visitors, a museum and its of-
internal marketing policy has to be improved fer has to be known to the public and they have
public offer by better internal practices, by in- to be appealing to different audiences. Thus the
creasing the internal cooperation and personnel development of a powerful museum image and
satisfaction. the promotion of its offer are vital. The objectives
aimed by the promotional strategy of a museum
Price and distribution are generally considered
vary from informing on the institution and stimu-
secondary-rank components of the marketing mix
lating the interest in its offer, to educating and in-
for a museum. The price strategy is important be-
fluencing public opinion, or to fundraising.
cause it could help to obtain additional incomes
for the museum. Theoretically prices are set con- Museums, as any other organization, need a strong
sidering costs, visitors, and competition. Most of positioning, therefore an appealing differentia-
the times museums have certain price levels, set tion from other organizations. Positioning means
for different types of offer: temporary exhibitions developing an identifiable image of the museum

68
A. Zbuchea, Marketing as a key element in achieving museum’s mission

that would be correlated with the needs and hopes visitors’ needs, and it is of high quality. The activ-
of the museum’s public, in order to stimulate visi- ity of volunteers should be planned in advance, as
tation. The positioning strategy should take into part of the museum’s policy. It has to be formally
account both characteristics and mission of a mu- coordinated by a member of the medium or upper
seum, but also the public’s characteristics, needs level staff. So their activity will be effective, they
and desires. Everybody expect a museum to be a will know whom to talk to, and the museum could
space of culture and education, but increasingly easily find them when needed and could better
more people are driven to museums that are also organize their work.
places of entertainment. Thus a repositioning in
Communication with and through volunteers
this field could have better chances to attract visi-
should be part of the communication strategy of
tors (Kotler, Kotler 2000, 275, 282-284).
the museum. This strategy should also include
A museum should aim to a distinct image, to stand online communication. Following many other
out from all the other cultural and educational or- types of organizations, museums have to use the
ganizations in the region, it should be a brand. internet, including their websites, as a dynamic
This brand should be promoted both inside and marketing communication tool. While the inter-
outside museums. Useful means of promotion net, as a communication facilitator, still is under-
and brand development are mainly advertising, appreciated by many museums, the websites have
and public relations. The image of museums is been increasingly more valued as communication
also enhanced by the activities they develop (ex- channels and promotional tools. Some muse-
hibitions, public programs, shops etc.) ums recognize only the importance of websites
for transmitting information to their visitors, or
A strong and appealing museum brand attracts
other publics. Others use their webpages also as
not only more visitors, but also more sponsors
PR instruments. But websites could also facilitate
and donors. The fundraising campaigns are also
promotional activity, as well as contribute to the
facilitated. It also attracts more volunteers. Mu-
achievement of the museum’s educational mis-
seums cooperating with volunteers have various
sion.
advantages. Some of the most important are the
development of tight relationships with the local In order to develop reliable marketing strategies
community by involving different categories of and to have efficient public activity, museums
members of the community in the museum’s ac- have to know who is the public they serve, what
tivity, while also creating a friendly and familiar is their environment, what are the needs of the
interface for visitors; increase of the educational society, and what is the public impact of their
resources of the museum by raising the personnel activities. Actual information can be obtained
involved in the educational and public programs, by means of marketing research. Questionnaires
thus satisfying a larger number of visitors; re- are generally considered the most useful research
placement of some personnel activities, such as tools, but museums could successfully use focus-
guiding, visitor information etc., which permits groups and observations.
the museum specialist to dedicate more of their
Developing marketing researches on visitors is
time to research, administration of the collections
extremely beneficial (Zbuchea 2005b). Visitor
or other specific activities.
studies lead to better understanding of the visi-
The museum would fully benefit from the coop- tors, their needs and motives, their behavior, and
eration with volunteers if it also satisfies their their ways of interaction with the museum. These
needs. Thus a museum should not only take into studies also reveal what the impact of museum of-
account how to use and benefit from volunteers, fer is and identify ways of improving them. Based
but also how to gratify them. As a result, the ac- on visitor studies, museums could develop more
tivities of the volunteers will be more efficient, suitable, interesting and efficient public pro-
and they will feel more closely connected with grams, they could attract new segments of visi-
the museum, partly responsible for the museum’s tors or could convince present visitors to enter
achievements, and would be more reliable. the museum more often.
Volunteers have to be well trained and organized Following consistent marketing strategies, and
so their activity corresponds to the museums’ and adopting a marketing philosophy regarding their

69
I. Studii

mission, museums could be more efficient both ter use of collections and wider presentation of
culturally/educationally, and financially. Some their collections; increased visitation and more
of the most important benefits marketing offers efficient public programs according to visitors’
to museums are: resource development and their and society’s needs and desires. Museums would
efficient use; successful fundraising; museum be better socially integrated and culturally suc-
branding and attractive image development; bet- cessful organizations.

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Marketingul – element cheie în atingerea misiunii unui muzeu

Rezumat
Muzeele din Europa de Est sunt destul de reticente la ideea adoptării unei perspective de marketing care să le
guverneze activitatea. Această atitudine este dată în principal de teama asocierii muzeului cu atribute comerciale,

70
A. Zbuchea, Marketing as a key element in achieving museum’s mission

precum şi de necunoaşterea beneficiilor pe care le pot obţine adoptând strategii de marketing. Marketingul nu este
numai o practica de afaceri, ci este o filosofie privind rolul în societate al unei organizaţii, precum şi cu privire la
căile de îndeplinire a acestuia. Prin urmare, marketingul se poate aplica în orice tip de organizaţie, inclusiv într-
un muzeu, contribuind la îndeplinirea misiunii culturale, educative şi sociale a acestuia, determinând creşterea
eficienţei activităţii sale. Instrumentele utile oricărui muzeu pentru derularea unei activităţi corespunzătoare de
marketing sunt: poziţionarea, mixul de marketing, strategii de marketing intern, studii de marketing, relaţii pu-
blice, fundraising etc. Prin intermediul acestor instrumente de marketing, muzeul va putea să îşi proiecteze mai
bine oferta şi activitatea, va avea o imagine publică mai bună, va atrage mai multe fonduri şi va avea mai mulţi
vizitatori.
Lucrarea urmăreşte evidenţierea beneficiilor pe care marketingul le poate aduce muzeelor, precum şi prezentarea
unor concepte şi instrumente esenţiale pentru aplicarea marketingului în muzee.

Маркетинг – ключевой элемент в осуществлении миссии музея

Резюме
Музеи Восточной Европы довольно сдержанно относится к идее применения маркетинга в своей
деятельности. Это связанно, главным образом, с боязнью за том, что маркетинг в музее может приобрести
формы жестокой простоты рынка, а кроме этого существует и психологический барьер. Маркетинг не толь-
ко вещь сугубо практическая, но и особая философия о роли той или иной организации в обществе, о пути
реализации этой роли. Маркетинг – это скорее определённый склад ума, за который стоит целая теория.
Маркетинг можно применять в любой организации, в том числе в музее, обеспечивая осуществление куль-
турной, воспитательной, социальной функции музея и определяя повышении эффективности его деятель-
ности. Маркетинговая политика предполагает существования несколько важных элементов. Среди них
– определении миссии, главной задачи и целей, перспективный план, маркетинговое образование, связи с
общественностью, финансовый прогноз. При наличии этих элементов, музей сможет более чётко проекти-
ровать свою деятельность, приобрести «качественное лицо», привлечь и иметь больше посетителей.
Работа отвечает на вопрос что несёт с собой маркетинг в музее и для чего он нужен. Автор, считает, что
музеям в условиях рыночной экономики необходимо усвоить маркетинговое мышление и внедрить
маркетинговое поведение.

10.01.2008

Alexandra Zbuchea, lecturer, Department of Communication and Public Relations, National School of Political
and Administrative Studies, Bucharest, Romania

71

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