Vancouver Classic Rock Museum (VCRM):Developing Social Media to Raise Its Community Profile

Overview:

The VCRM is located in downtown Vancouver near bars and pubs which feature “Classic Rock” music.

Classic Rock is defined by the VCRM as “music from rock bands formed between the 1960’s and 1970’s (http://www.wordiq.com/definition/Classic_rock). Examples of Classic Rock include Led Zepplin, The Doors, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones.

The Museum houses a permanent collection of classic rock paraphernalia which is constantly growing. The Museum also hosts travelling classic rock exhibits.

The VCRM serves to educate the public about the history of classic rock and the influence it has on global music, fashion, and popular culture.

Purpose:

The purpose of this social media project is to implement and train staff using a variety of strategies in order to inform the public about VCRM, it focus, and upcoming shows and events.

VCRM is looking for ways to engage the public and encourage feedback and public participation using social media. It wants to reach a community beyond the geographical boundaries of the physical museum itself.

Objective:

After assessing the use of social media by the VCRM, we will recommend social media that can be useful in achieving the above purpose. We will also recommend social media tools that can be used to encourage public feedback and participation. The aim is to connect with and benefit from online communities and tools in a collaborative fashion.

Discussion:

“It’s no longer enough for a museum to put up a Web site and hope that people find it. Many museums are discovering that the Web 2.0 world lets them advance their mission online to bring in new and often younger visitors and educate a wider audience” (Fost)

The objects in a museum collection are made accessible through social media because they open up a participatory approach of experiencing and learning about them.

David Greenfield notes that there are four theories of practical applications that museum professionals should understand in the shift from the traditional museum to museum 2.0:

1. Creating a personal narrative can increase learning.2. Individuals have different levels of competencies in different areas of information (the

multiple intelligences theory)3. Museums should utilize individual styles of learning4. All learners are students and there are no boundaries on who can learn (Greenfield,1-3)

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/12/arts/artsspecial/12social.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1http://www.archimuse.com/mw2008/papers/greenfield/greenfield.html

Demographics:

What we know about classic rock listeners (http://www.wdnsfm.com/classic.html):· 56% are male, 44% female· They are 41% more likely to have attended or graduated post-secondary· The majority of listeners are in the age demographic of 18-44 years old

What we know about social media users (http://royal.pingdom.com/2010/02/16/study-ages-of-social-network-users/):· Social networks are dominated by people in the 35-44 age range· On MySpace, 33% of users are 17 yrs old or less, with the average user being 31 yrs · On Twitter, 64% are 35 years and older, with the average user being 39· On Facebook, 61% of users are 35 years and older, with the average user being 38

Looking at these demographics, it’s clear to see that it is essential for the Museum to keep up with social media and to use it to reach its target market. As well, if we want to target people in the younger age range, the Museum must be using sites such as MySpace which have a high percentage of young users and a high percentage of users who are not the typical classic rock fan. By using social media effectively, the Museum will be able to reach both the traditional classic rock fan and the untapped age market of 17 years old and younger.

Recommendations - Blogs

• Discussion about exhibits• Gives a personal voice to the

museum

Recommendations - Flickr

• Share images from museum exhibits• User-generative images as a basis for exhibits• User-generated images as a way to re-frame

cultural heritage

Recommendations - MySpace

• Connect with artists• Audio element / Listen to songs• Events schedule

Recommendations - YouTube

• Popularity of museum videos• “Behind the scenes” videos get the most play• Users can upload video responses, cover

versions of songs, or any video indicative of how they connect with classic rock culture, style, or fashion.

Recommendations - Glogster

• Create posters• Contests

• Fun and active

Recommendations - Radio Ad

• Bridge traditional media with social media• Reach out to a wider demographic

FACEBOOKVCRM is advised to create a Facebook profile because of Facebook’s engaging, welcoming, personalized presence … users already feel “at home” on Facebook, and can engage more easily and conveniently with VCRM.

-VCRM can use the Events application to invite fans or allow users to invite their own friends

-VCRM can utilize the multimedia applications connected to Facebook in order to create informal and participatory contests, such as an “identify that song” contest

TWITTERA Twitter account can allow VCRM to share updates, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, or engage in conversations with followers, quickly and informally.

We recommend that VCRM find a way to make Twitterpersonal and unique, not merely a feed of

news from VCRM’s official website.

Truly utilize the feedback and insights offered by a dialogue with the community!

Digg is a “final step” for VCRM once a strong social media presence has been established and developed on other platforms. Digg has the potential to bring together blogs, Facebook profiles, Myspace pages, etc., by promoting and connecting all these platforms with a broader community.

VCRM can go beyond merely promoting its own links to instead focus on promoting and connecting with other links that share its identities.

CONCLUSIONThe social media strategy proposed here:

-- Focuses on what makes VCRM unique and important

-- Recognizes that it will be an ongoing process

-- Connects to both local and global digital communities

General principle: promotion and marketing evolves from community-building, not the other way around!