Recently, I have been to several museums and found some of the practices there to be interesting. Just as librarians ought to stay informed about trends in publishing, I think staying informed about trends in education and communication is also of value. I have found both good and bad points in physical layout and in communication that we can learn from. While I love visiting museums and could go on and on about them, I will focus on three themes in this post: signage, audio guides and the gift shop.
Signage: In one case, the signage was lacking enough that I not only got lost but ended up mising a fair portion of the exhibit area. In a more thoughtfully designed museum, progress through the institution was clearly marked. At the last museum I visited, progress through an area was marked symbolically so that one clearly knew how many rooms an area had in total and how far along one had progressed. In the latter case, I clearly knew where I stood.
The Lesson: Signs (this applies to the digital environment as well) should serve to orient the user. If there are steps to a process or procedure, indicate progress to the user.
Multimedia guides: Audio (and, occasionally, audio-visual) guides are a staple of many museums. Such an approach no doubt makes it easier and cheaper to cater to guests with a variety of capability in a variety of languages. The delivery mechanism often varies, with implications for the user experience. In one instance, the device progressed in an analog format (one could not skip backward and forward, for example). On the other hand, I once came across a custom programmed iPod Touch guide that had audio tracks explaining different artifacts. Supplementing these introductions, there would often be videos or related materials that a guest could choose to listen to or not. I wonder what sort of testing and planning goes into audio guide design since the implementation of these systems varies so much.
The Lesson: Automated guides can work well, but these need to grant autonomy to the user to navigate the system as they wish. Providing some optional, related materials can supplement make the tool even better.
The Gift Shop: [Many libraries and related institutions do not have a gift shop - my reference to it here is more of a metaphor for marketing and designing the user experience.] At the end of a visit to a museum, I almost always visit the gift shop, but I don’t always buy something. Often, I pick up postcards and send these off to friends or family. Occasionally, I look through the books and other items to see what is available. When shopping here, I am often looking for something to extend the experience in some fashion and am frustrated when nothing comes through.
The Lesson: The “gift shop” is the last stage of the visit and plays a role in shaping the memory that a user has of the entire experience. Did they only see gimmick style items that they’ve seen plenty of other places? Or could they find items of value to spread the story further? In this respect, I am combining a bit of Seth Godin’s “The Purple Cow” with the museum experience.
Ultimately, there is much value in trying to compare information centres, libraries and other services to institutions that have a cultural, educational or communications role. I have found some inspiration in museums. Reflecting on this experience has also helped me adopt something of the anthropologist mindset – experiencing a service as a novice, rather than as the provider.
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