ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
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I don't have much data, but I can tell you that we plan on people coming
back to the museum about once every three months - primarily to see the
current travelling exhibit.  The chief reason we keep having travelling
exhibits is to keep our membership base coming back, with blockbusters or
exotic topics there to lure new people to the center.  
This anecdotally this seems to hold with a majority of our members coming a
few times a year.  Now, our recent Dinosaurs exhibit has had a few young
dino-afficionados coming weekly, and we have had groups of Nannys that meet
here almost weekly with their kids in the small kids area.  
We also see spikes with particular programs.

-William Katzman
William Katzman			[log in to unmask]
Director of Exhibits			(828) 322-8169 x307
Catawba Science Center		(828) 322-1585 (fax)
"Try not to become a man of success, but rather to become a man of value"
-A. Einstein

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Beryl Rosenthal [mailto:[log in to unmask]] 
Sent: Thursday, January 04, 2007 9:15 AM
Subject: programs and repeat visitation

ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
institutions.
****************************************************************************
*

Hi all,
Is anyone aware of any research conducted on the role of programs in repeat
visitation?  My gut (and anecdotal experience) tells me that visitors may
come to a museum or science center to see an exhibition once or *maybe*
twice, but it is the programs that keep them coming back repeatedly, and a
major draw for members. This is more than a bar bet, I will be using this in
a planning document.
Thanks,
Beryl

Beryl Rosenthal
[log in to unmask]
Dir. of Education and Public Programs
MIT Museum
265 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02139
(617)452-2111 (t)
(617)253-8994 (f)



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