Rachael Cristine Woody
Rachael Cristine Woody is a guest author for Lucidea’s Think Clearly Blog. Rachael is the Owner of Rachael Cristine Consulting, and provides services to museums, libraries, and archives. Previously she was at the Freer|Sackler Museum of the Smithsonian Institution and the Oregon Wine History Archive at Linfield College. She is active in Northwest Archivists and the Society of American Archivists, and is an alumna of the Archives Leadership Institute, a National Historical Publications & Records Commission (NHPRC) program.
Webinar recordings
Rachael Woody Webinars
Storytelling with 3D and Virtual Tours
Introduction to Visual Storytelling Platforms
The CMS as Storytelling Infrastructure
Collections Online as Storytelling Elements
Storytelling Design: Translating the Physical to Digital
Finding Story Inspiration with Collections Online
![Rachael Cristine Woody Presents: Storytelling Goals with Collections Online [webinar cover thumbnail]](https://lucidea.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/storytelling-goals-with-collection-online-webinar.jpg)
Storytelling Goals with Collections Online
Enhance Museum Collections Online with “Hidden” Troves of Information
Museum Collections Online and the Potential of AI
How to Construct Museum CMS Projects that Attract Funding
Accessibility Standards for Museum Collections Online
How to Perform Data Enhancement for Your Museum CMS
How to Incorporate Interns in Museum CMS Projects
I Finally Have a Museum CMS; Now What?
What to Do When Collection isn’t Cataloged
AMA: How to Prepare for a New CMS
Building the Case for Museum Job Salaries
How to Build a Paid Intern Program
How to Create a Value-Informed Budget
How to Prepare for a New Museum CMS
Preparing for Museum Data Migration
Figuring Out Museum Digital Storage
Strategies for Museum Data Remediation
Evaluating the Shape of Museum Data
Dismantling Barriers to a New Museum CMS
Ask Me Anything; Museum Digital Projects Webinar
How to Work with a Consultant on Museum Digital Projects
Sustainable Museum Digital Projects
Digital Projects: Staff, Volunteers, or Interns
5 Museum Digitization Myths to Delete Forever!
How to Fund Your Next Museum Digital Project
How to Identify and Select Your Next Museum Digital Project
5 Steps to Intentional Museum Work
Create a Museum Digital Project Workflow that Works
How Much Will Museum Digital Projects Cost Me?
The Essentials of Evaluating Museum DAMS vs CMS
Choose the Right Tools for Museum Digital Projects
Creating a Successful Museum Digital Project
Museum Digital Project Success Factors
Ask an Expert Anything About a Museum CMS
Ask Me Anything About Grants PART 3
Ask Me Anything About Grants PART 2
How to Put Museum CMS Data to Work
Ask Me Anything About Grants
Increase Your Audience with a Discoverable Museum CMS
Why the Multimedia Museum CMS is the New Standard
The Museum CMS Portal: Separation and Integration
Why Your Museum CMS Must be Mobile
Shopping for an Off-the-Shelf Museum CMS
Museum CMS Workflows, Standards, and Tools to Use
How to Select, Buy and use the Right CMS for Your Museum
6 Steps For Successful Museum CMS Implementation and Migration
You Need a New Museum CMS, Now What?
How to Make the Case for a (Better) Museum CMS
Museum Cultural Heritage Online Experiences
How to Evaluate Museum Digital Collections & Build Successful Digital Projects
Museum Digital Visitors: Identify, Understand, Engage
DEAI and What it Means for Your Museum
Prioritize and Plan for Museum Grant Acquisition
Secrets of Successful Grant Funding Applications
Build a Winning Grant Idea
Museum Grant Roadblock Removal: How to Get Around Obstacles and Get Into Grants
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Blog posts
Rachael Cristine Woody
An Introduction to Immersive Museum Experiences
Immersive experiences are reshaping museum storytelling. Learn how sensory design and digital storytelling can transform visitor...
Museum TrendsWatch 2025:
For Your Radar and Trend Alert
From climate-driven relocation to evolving expectations around equity and accountability, the TrendsWatch 2025 report forecasts ...
Workplace Culture Tensions in Museums: A Response to TrendsWatch’s “Short Take”
Rachael Woody takes a closer look at TrendsWatch 2025's “Short Take” titled Pulled in All Directions—a brief but timely piece on...
Museum TrendsWatch 2025: Facing the DEI Backlash
The AAM's TrendsWatch 2025 report names “Facing the DEI Backlash” as a defining challenge for the museum field. This post explor...
Museum TrendsWatch 2025: Stop, Look, Think: How to Manage Digital Vulnerabilities
When it comes to emergency response plans, museums tend to focus on the physical, analogue collections—but digital vulnerabiliti...
Museum TrendsWatch 2025: The Next Era of Volunteerism
Explore key takeaways from TrendsWatch 2025 on museum volunteerism, including challenges, opportunities, and how to create inclu...
3D Virtual Tour Example: Art of Intimidation, Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East (via Mused)
As part of our 3D storytelling series, we explore Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East’s “Art of Intimidation” exhibit, where...
3D Virtual Tour Example (Part 2): Storytelling Tools in the Tomb of Queen Meresankh
See how the 3D exhibit of Queen Meresankh’s tomb uses archival materials, contextual links, and a dollhouse-style floor plan to ...
3D Virtual Tour Example (Part 1): “Hot Spots” in the Tomb of Queen Meresankh
Step inside the ancient Tomb of Queen Meresankh III through the lens of modern 3D storytelling. Look at how Mused.com uses "hot ...
3D Storytelling and Virtual Tours for Museums and Cultural Heritage Sites
Discover how 3D and virtual tour platforms can transform storytelling in museums and cultural heritage sites. Learn about featur...
Digital Storytelling in Action: How the NYT Reconstructed Greenwood for “The Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921”
Explore how the NYT used digital storytelling to recreate Greenwood and convey the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre with empathy, contex...
Ready to Read: The Discovery Game Changer – Museum Collections Data Enhancement
We are pleased to announce that Rachael Woody's new book, The Discovery Game Changer: Museum Collections Data Enhancement, is no...
Digital Storytelling in Museums with Code-Based Exhibits: The USC Digital Voltaire Project
Explore how USC Libraries used Scalar to create the Digital Voltaire Project—a code-based exhibit combining historical letters w...
No-Code Digital Storytelling Example: Rembrandt’s Self-Portrait at Kenwood House
Explore how English Heritage’s Kenwood House uses the no-code platform Shorthand to bring Rembrandt’s Self-Portrait with Two Cir...
Exploring No-Code Digital Storytelling: Hoover’s “Fanning the Flames” Exhibit
Explore no-code digital storytelling with Hoover's 'Fanning the Flames' exhibit. See how interactive tools (Deep Zoom, Color Com...
An Introduction to Scrollytelling for Museums
Discover how museums use scrollytelling and digital storytelling platforms to create immersive narratives. This introduction exp...
Exploring Self-Determinate Multiple Pathways: An Example of Digital Storytelling
Discover how self-determinate multiple pathways offer flexible, interactive storytelling in museum exhibits. Learn from the Tene...
Digital Museum Storytelling Example: A Look at Self-Determinate Linear Pathways
Self-determinate characteristics on a linear pathway go beyond brief sidebar topics and instead offer alternative ways to naviga...
Digital Storytelling in Museums: The Prescriptive Linear Pathway in Action
Rachael Woody emphasizes that storytelling is key to engaging audiences with collections. One effective approach? The prescripti...
The CMS Digital Exhibit and Story Pathways
Digital exhibits provide powerful ways to engage audiences, but choosing the right story pathway is key. Explore how different e...
Captivating Story Delivery with a Multimedia Player
Explore how museums can enhance storytelling with multimedia players, using audio-visual materials and archival content to creat...
How to Use Slideshows and Flipbooks to Offer Engaging Museum Story Visuals
Museums thrive on storytelling, and the right digital tools can make all the difference. Slideshows and flipbooks offer an engag...
Zooming Into Story Details:
How Museums Can Enhance Storytelling with Visual Tools
Visual tools such as zoom are crowd pleasers when presenting visual content online, allowing museums to create immersive and eng...
7 Digital Storytelling Elements That Live In Your Museum CMS
A museum’s Collections Management System (CMS) is more than just a catalog—it can also serve as a foundation for digital storyte...
Examining the National Galleries of Scotland’s Harryhausen Digital Exhibit
When the physical exhibit was forced to close prematurely, NGS pivoted to a fully online, digital exhibition. What resulted is a...
Translating Physical Museum Exhibits to the Digital Realm
Exhibit design has long been a cornerstone of storytelling, crafting immersive, sensory-rich experiences within museum walls. Bu...
Museum Exhibit Design as Storytelling Infrastructure
Designing an exhibit is more than arranging objects—it’s about guiding visitors through a story. But do your exhibits tell the s...
Museum Forecast 2025: The Words We Use
This is the sixth year of our forecasts for the museum field! An incredible amount of change has occurred in the sector which br...
A Year in Review: An Assessment of My 2024 Museum Forecast
At the start of 2024, I shared three forecasts for museums regarding digital programs, AI, and burnout in the museum industry. T...
Demand-Driven Museum Story Inspiration
Let's look at the numbers and consider taking inspiration from what our visitors are most interested in. This demand-driven appr...
Reimagining “Impossible” Museum Exhibitions as Story Inspiration
Online exhibits lack the constraints that can make it impossible to relate stories in a physical exhibition and can inspire us t...
Exhibitions of Past, Present, and Future as Story Inspiration
In a previous post, I covered how the flexibility of collections online can inspire online storytelling. This week we’ll tap int...
Storytelling to Inspire Reflection Using Museum Collections Online
Storytelling with online collections is impactful, whether we choose online-only or as part of a hybrid approach to museum exhib...
Museum Collections Online: Learning Through Storytelling
Digitizing museum collections introduces new and engaging opportunities for storytelling. By leveraging digital surrogates—essen...
The Role of Museum Collections Online in Storytelling & Audience Engagement
Storytelling with museum collections online allows for a great degree of flexibility, offers additional detail, and lends a dyna...
Examples of How Archives Can Be Used to Elevate Museum Collections
Last week we reviewed how archives can enhance museum collections online. This week will continue our work with an examination o...
How Archives Can Enrich Museum Collections Online
Staffed archives are in constant motion in their attempt to provide and broaden access to the archival collections.
How to Enhance Museum Collections Online with New Information
One of the wonderful things about museums is that the learning never stops. There are always projects, exhibits, and programs in...
How to Enhance the Museum Object Record with Immediately Available Information
This month’s series focuses on the enhancement of museum object data using “hidden” troves of information. Hidden is in quotes b...
Where the Gaps Live with Traditional Museum Object Cataloging
Standard museum cataloging leverages the usual set of fields that are considered best practice. We tend to refer to this informa...
Considering AI as an Empathy Generator in Museum Spaces
Museums are well established as “empathy generators”, meaning the museum space in combination with artifacts and storytelling ca...
The Application of AI for Museum Collections Online
What excites me the most about Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) application to museum work is its potential to improve...
AI Application to Museum Exhibitions
If you have a smartphone, have used a customer service chat, Googled, or asked Siri something, you have used Artificial Intellig...
What Does AI Mean to Museums?
The museum field is not one that considers itself “cutting edge” or even very technical, and yet AI can have a tremendous positi...
How to Determine the Best Funding Match for Your Museum CMS Project
Details of the five things to look for when assessing a fit between a funding opportunity and your CMS project.
Application Information that Makes a Museum CMS Project Attractive
Grant applications often require in-depth project details; expert’s list of application information that makes a museum CMS proj...
What Funders Look for in Museum CMS Projects
Funders look for a compelling story, proof of concept, clearly defined activities and costs, what else you’ve done, and referenc...
How to Identify Potential Museum CMS Projects for Funding
The number of grants that cover museum CMS work with access as the goal is increasing; what CMS work can you describe as a discr...
Museum Collections Online with Accessibility Principles 3 and 4: Understandable and Robust
WCAG Version 2.1 Principles 3 and 4: Understandable and Robust; guidance for easily readable content and access to assets via th...
Museum Collections Online with Accessibility Principle 2: Operable
Compliance with WCAG Version 2.1 Principle 2: Operable
Museum Collections Online with Accessibility Principle 1: Perceivable
Compliance with WCAG Version 2.1 Principle 1: Perceivable, affecting information published from museum CMS to an online portal; ...
Accessibility Standards for Museum Collections Online
A museum’s compliance with the ADA Title II 2024 update has benefits for its online content and for the museum’s community of us...
Museum TrendsWatch 2024: Digital Twins and Doom Loops & Combatting the Loneliness Crisis
Digital Twins is the construction of a digital surrogate for a person, place, or thing—one of several new concepts and trends in...
Museum TrendsWatch 2024: Short Take: Dropping the Degree
A museum salary must be commensurate with the value of the job being performed, not the paper degree, or lack thereof, behind it...
Museum TrendsWatch 2024: Trend 3, Decarbonizing the Future
Decarbonizing the Future Expert analysis and commentary on Museum TrendsWatch 2024
Museum TrendsWatch 2024:
AI Adolescence in Museums
Expert analysis and commentary on Museum TrendsWatch 2024: AI Adolescence from AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums
Museum TrendsWatch 2024: Culture Wars 2.0
Expert analysis and commentary on Museum TrendsWatch 2024: Culture Wars 2.0 from AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums
How to Perform Museum CMS Data Enhancement
Detailed expert guidance on the four main options for data enhancement within a CMS, and tips for when it makes sense to use eac...
How to Create a Plan for Museum CMS Data Enhancement
Detailed guidance on the elements of a data enhancement plan that will improve the discoverability of objects in the museum Coll...
How to Assess Museum CMS Data for Enhancement Opportunities
Data enhancement has the power to improve the discoverability of objects in the museum Collections Management System (CMS).
An Overview of Common CMS Data Areas to Enhance
Data enhancement has the power to improve the discoverability of objects in the museum Collections Management System (CMS)
What Does Museum Data Enhancement Mean?
Data enhancement is the improvement of object information captured within the museum CMS; it includes both updating existing dat...
How to Incorporate Interns in Museum CMS Projects: Data Cleanup and Refinement
A museum expert details how interns can be successfully included in museum CMS projects at the data cleanup and refinement stage...
How to Incorporate Interns in Museum CMS Projects: Data Creation
A museum expert details how interns can be successfully included in museum CMS projects at the data creation stage.
How to Incorporate Interns in Museum CMS Projects: Data Capture
A museum expert highlights how interns can be included in museum CMS projects at the data capture stage
How to Incorporate Interns in Museum CMS Projects
A museum expert highlights how interns can be included in museum CMS projects with three project ideas.
Create a Start-to-Finish Process for Cataloging Objects in the Museum CMS
A museum expert outlines the start-to-finish process for cataloging objects into a new museum CMS.
Determine the Most Effective Way to Capture Data for the Museum CMS
Understanding how you can load data into your new CMS will dictate which data capture options are your best path forward: focus ...
Determine How to Most Effectively Get New Data into the Museum CMS
Understanding your options for how to get new data into your museum CMS is an important foundational element to your success.
You and Your First Museum CMS: What to Do First
Get to know your new CMS; museum expert describes the three top priorities for establishing a successful foundation for collecti...
How to Batch Process Cataloging Museum Objects
Creating a batch process for cataloging vast swaths of the collection saves hours multiplied exponentially by the number of obje...
How to Prioritize Which Museum Objects are Cataloged First
When starting a museum collection cataloging project, it is critically important to prioritize which sections of the collection ...
Building a Strategy to Catalog an Entire Museum Collection
Museum cataloging strategy will outline the collection information you have available, known resources, and available tools.
Things to Consider When Nothing in Your Museum’s Collection is Cataloged
Guidance on initial steps in cataloging your museum’s collection; what information exists, what resources are available, what pr...
Ask Me Anything (AMA): The Impact of AI on CMS Data Creation and Enhancement
The potential for AI to influence museum work in data creation and cleanup is great. However, as with all new tools, it will tak...
Ask Me Anything (AMA): How to Migrate Data into a New Museum CMS
Migrating data to a new CMS is a large task, but is very doable—especially if you make time to test and refine your data migrati...
Ask Me Anything (AMA): How to Conduct Efficient Data Cleanup
Details from a museum expert on how to conduct efficient data cleanup in preparation for a new museum Collections Management Sys...
Ask Me Anything (AMA): How to Prepare for a New CMS — Where do you begin?
The first phase of preparing for migration to a new CMS can be broken up into three main areas: gather, review, and plan.
Museum Forecast 2024
Museum professionals face many possibilities in 2024 including the opportunity to make great strides in terms of digital program...
A Year in Review: An Assessment of the 2023 Museum Forecast
Review of museum forecasts; illegalization of unpaid internships, repatriation of questionable acquisitions, and collection deve...
Museum Digital Projects: Capacity & Expectation Setting
Small museum staff often balance responsibilities and tasks of several jobs; expectation setting and creative ways to increase c...
Museum Digital Projects: Cost
When planning museum digital projects, going through a cost exercise helps show you where you have adequate resources and where ...
How to Build the Case for Museum Job Salaries
Museum expert gives details, dos and don’ts of how to navigate tough but important discussions about salaries with the decision-...
Examples for How to Calculate Museum Job Salaries Accurately
Museum expert gives details of how to put compensation data together to pinpoint accurate salary ranges for specific museum jobs...
How to Calculate Museum Job Salaries Accurately
Tips from a museum expert on how to calculate museum job salaries accurately, with detailed steps and information resources.
What Information to Gather for Museum Job Salaries
Tips from a museum expert on gathering and crunching numbers related to building your case for an accurate museum salary proposa...
Preferred Resources to Consult for Museum Job Salaries
Museum expert details resources and knowledge needed to calculate compensation and advocate for your worth as a museum professio...
How to Fund a Museum Paid Internship
Practical suggestions from a museum expert on How to Fund a Museum Paid Internship when it is not part of the operational budget
How Much Should You Pay a Museum Intern?
Deciding what to pay museum interns requires knowing how to value professional labor so we can advocate for appropriate compensa...
How to Create a Meaningful Internship Experience
Internships are experiences for new professionals who need some real-world experience as they enter the museum profession as our...
Why Do Museum Internships Need to be Paid?
Museum interns are an important resource; how they are treated and compensated is indicative of how museum work itself is valued...
How to Influence the Museum Budget
Detailed guidance from museum expert on how to influence the museum budget even when you aren’t charged with assembling or appro...
Gather Information to Inform the Museum Budget
Tips from museum expert on how and what information to gather for creating, reviewing, critiquing or asking questions of the mus...
How to DEAI the Museum Budget
Now we understand DEAI as a permanent program, museums are including it in budgets, which requires reprioritization
How to Evaluate the Museum Operating Budget
Staff and Programs are two areas within the museum budget that are ripe for evaluation when attempting to determine a museum’s v...
What a Museum Budget Says About Museum Values
Museums communicate what they value through a mission statement, strategic plan, annual budget, slush fund allocation, and fundr...
Make a Plan for Non-Standard Museum Data
Moving to a new museum Collections Management System (CMS) involves planning for the migration of your non-standard data; proven...
Craft Museum Workflows That Include the CMS
Museum workflows are administrative documents that walk one or multiple people through a functional process: overview of steps i...
Document Museum CMS Fields and Function
Museum CMS data recording is governed by professional standards; understand what fields your data is in now and fields it must m...
Gather Data and Evaluate Museum CMS Use
Moving to a new museum Collections Management System (CMS) is a good time to evaluate how museum staff use current CMS in their ...
Post-Migration Data Cleanup and Refinement
Not all museum data cleanup can occur prior to migration to a new CMS. Best practices for data refinement post-migration from a ...
Items Required for Successful Data Migration
When a museum moves to a new CMS certain data requirements must be addressed prior to migration in order for it to complete succ...
How to Prepare for Museum Data Migration
Migrating museum data to a new Collections Management System (CMS) requires completion of a series of activities before beginnin...
What Does Museum Data Migration Entail?
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody offers guidance on each of the four main data migration activities when moving to a new CMS
Museum TrendsWatch 2023: The Metaverse, Web 3.0, and Climate Change
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody offers her analysis of The Metaverse, Web 3.0, and Climate Change from the current museum T...
Ready to Read: Prepare for Takeoff: Get Your Museum Digital Project off the Ground
Book from museum expert guides professionals through prioritizing digital projects, finding grant funding, ending misperceptions...
Museum TrendsWatch 2023: Repatriation, Restitution, Reparations
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody offers her analysis of Repatriation, Restitution, Reparations from the current museum Trend...
Museum TrendsWatch 2023: The Partisan Divide
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody offers her analysis of The Partisan Divide from the current museum TrendsWatch report.
Museum TrendsWatch 2023: A Digital (R)evolution
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody offers her analysis of A Digital (R)evolution, from the current museum TrendsWatch report.
Museum TrendsWatch 2023: The Future Workplace
Museum expert Rachael Woody offers her analysis of The Future Workplace, A Digital (R)evolution, from the current museum TrendsW...
Strategies Toward a Museum Digital Storage Solution
Museum expert’s strategies for choosing a museum digital storage solution with emphasis on a using a CMS (collections management...
Considering a Museum Digital Storage Approach
Museum expert Rachael Woody offers guidance on how to determine which museum digital storage approach is the best fit for your m...
Requirements for Museum Digital Storage
Unplanned museum digital storage growth is susceptible to file-mismanagement, file corruption, and data loss
The Purpose of Museum Digital Storage
Many museum professionals struggle to find a cohesive, intuitive, and budget-friendly digital storage system they can reliably p...
Create a Plan for Museum Data Cleanup
By following standards, leveraging CMS tools, and creating strong processes you can help ensure future data cleanup is unnecessa...
Strategies for Effective Museum Data Cleanup – Part 2
Museum data cleanup Find and Replace In-System Strategy and CMS Vendor Support Strategy with required elements, directions, reco...
Strategies for Effective Museum Data Cleanup – Part 1
Museum data remediation can be overwhelming but when approached in bite-sized chunks we can perform the cleanup in a more accura...
Common Museum Data Messes to Look For
Data remediation is an important task in our museum collection management work. It is the process of updating, correcting, or or...
Evaluating the Location of Museum Digital Assets
The more you know about your data, the easier it is to make decisions regarding cleanup or migration of data and linked assets t...
Evaluating the Location of Museum Data
Knowing the location of museum data is important for data security, data redundancy, data retrieval or linking, and data extract...
Evaluating the Format of Museum Data
The format of museum data impacts the ability to successfully migrate data from one museum CMS to another; tips for data schema,...
Evaluating the Quality of Museum Data
Tips to make sure your museum data is good quality; the cleaner it is, the easier to migrate seamlessly from one CMS or spreadsh...
How to Prepare for a New Museum CMS
Covers preparing museum data so migrating to a new CMS is smooth; tools and strategies exist; success depends on quality and sha...
Museum Digital Projects: Digital File Storage
Digital files storage is important to museum digital project work; reliable storage that supports further digital project work i...
How to Chart a Course Toward a Better Museum CMS
The procurement process for a new museum CMS may be daunting; outline for the procurement process plus tips and best practices, ...
The Pros and Cons of Sticking with an Ill-Fitting Museum CMS
This post breaks down the pros and cons of an ill-fitting museum CMS and delivers talking points needed to make the case for a b...
Barriers that Prevent Museums from Moving to a Better CMS
It’s often hard for museum staff to choose a new and better CMS. This post identifies top 5 reasons, why they exist, and what to...
Museum Digital Projects: Choosing Software
This post is focused on how to choose the right software for your museum digital project work, specifically a DAMS versus a CMS.
Leveraging Existing Content with a Museum Engagement App
Blending the physical museum-going experience with enriched digital content results in more information, and more meaningful gue...
Increasing Museum Enrichment with a Museum Engagement App
Museum engagement app is built for use on smart devices; it facilitates delivery of information and encourages patron engagement
Museum Forecast 2023
Forecast for the museum field from expert Rachael Woody; focused on an evolution in ethics and subsequent museum policies.
A Year in Review: An Assessment of the 2022 Museum Forecast
Recap of how three areas helped evolve the museum field in 2022: accessibility, elimination of “entry-level” jobs, and a digital...
Museum Digital Projects: Tool Challenges
Museum digital project managers consider implementation work a tool needs, its ease of usability, and potential longevity; even ...
Museum Digital Tools: Budget and Funding
You’ll successfully move a museum digital project forward if you know how to budget, how to accurately calculate costs, and wher...
Museum Digital Projects: Standards to Follow
Covers quality, file format, and metadata (cataloging) standards as the most common standards for museum digital project work.
Applying DEI to Museum Collection Development — Part 2
Challenges museum staff face when engaging in the reparative and post-custodial models of DEI collections development; strategie...
Museum Digital Projects: Elements to Include
Museum digital project planning should include who, what, why, when and how questions; advice for project managers
Museum Digital Projects: Order of Operations
Digital museum projects are expensive; it’s important to allow time to consider project setup, elements, and needs. Typical ques...
Museum Digital Projects: Pre-Project Evaluation
Museum digital pre-project evaluation is an excellent approach to intentional work—setting you and the collections up for a more...
Ready to Read: Museum Digital Projects and You. Where to Begin?
Book from museum expert guides professionals through strategic and logistical aspects of museum digital projects, including best...
Applying DEI to Museum Collection Development — Part 1
As museums integrate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives into programs it’s important to apply a DEI lens to coll...
Museum Digital File Preservation: File Access
Basics of maintaining digital file integrity and access, tips for how museum staff can protect and preserve museum digital files...
Museum Digital File Preservation: File Integrity
Museum expert primer on digital file integrity and how the museum can help to ensure museum digital files are as healthy and who...
3 Things to Consider When Purchasing Museum Digitization Equipment
There are three things to consider before making a digitization equipment purchase: fit, time, and budget; tips from a museum ex...
Museum Digital Project Consultant: Training
Training is critical to a successful digital project and is where using a consultant can yield a high Return on Investment (ROI)...
Museum Digital Project Consultant: CMS Selection and Implementation
With CMS selection led by a consultant, decision-makers can feel confident in the chosen tool and more easily agree to the finan...
Museum Digital Project Consultant: Project Management
A museum consultant digital project manager is a great investment, because they can help streamline project work and keep it on ...
Museum Digital Project Consultant: Create the Project Framework
A museum digital project framework blueprints how to get a successful project outcome, saving time and money while identifying a...
Museum Digital Project Consultant: Assess and Recommend
Highlights several digital project types where a museum consultant can be beneficial. Outlines how a consultant can help support...
Museum Digital Project Sustainability Hacks
Prioritizing a sustainable approach to your projects will help you get the important work done while also helping protect non-wo...
3 Strategies for Museum Digital Project Sustainability
Sustainability is a practice; improves work life balance, alleviates chronic stress, ensures work you perform receives the best ...
Project Management for Museum Digital Projects
Implementing project management principles and tools saves museum staff time, keeps projects on budget and on time, and helps av...
Strategies to Effectively Work with Museum Staff, Interns, and Volunteers
Effective teams involving a hybrid of museum staff, interns, and volunteers require established communication patterns, unified ...
How to Ethically Build Museum Intern and Volunteer Opportunities
Museums are steadily transitioning from exploitative labor practices to more ethical labor practices; this should apply to inter...
How to Ethically Adapt Museum Staff Capacity for Digital Projects
It’s easy for museums to create term or contract positions to increase capacity but with minimal compensation; but it’s ethical ...
Museum Digital Project Roles for Staff, Volunteers, and Interns
Museum digital projects are inherently complex and require an understanding of the technology involved. Staff, volunteers, and i...
Museum TrendsWatch: Right-Sizing the World
Museums have largely based their success on capitalist models, using for-profit values of power, productivity, and economic metr...
Museum TrendsWatch: Emergency Response in the Face of Disaster
Many disasters are driven by climate change; museums can use their nonpartisan credibility and communications skills to build cl...
Museum TrendsWatch: Mental Health for All
Mental health for both museum staff and the external museum community is important; museums can be good for our mental and physi...
Museum TrendsWatch: Livable Communities for Our Elders
Analysis of some of society’s broader physical infrastructure issues that keep seniors from fully participating in the museum wo...
Museum TrendsWatch: Education for Our Children
Museums offer innovative educational experiences. The pandemic provided an opportunity for museums to fill a gap in educational ...
Myth #5: If it’s Digital, Toss the Original
Digitization is not a reason for disposal of the original, especially in archives. Digitization is a preservation tool, not a re...
Myth #4: Digital = Permanent
When creating digital preservation policies, consider the file types used, where and how files are saved, and how they may be ac...
Myth #3: It’s too Hard to Digitize Museum Collections
It’s a myth that digitizing museum collections is too expensive, slow, or hard from a technical perspective. Provides context an...
Myth #2: It’s Easy to Digitize Museum Collections
Museum collection digitization is not cheap, not fast, not technically easy. Museum professionals should educate stakeholders ab...
Myth #1: You Should Digitize All the (Museum) Things!
There are five museum digitization myths, and it’s time to dispel them. The first myth is that we can or should digitize the ent...
How to Calculate an Appropriately Sized Funding Request
The budget is key to a grant application; it’s the last check to ensure everything is correct and your budget request aligns wit...
How to Construct a Fundable Museum Digital Project
Overview of seven core areas to focus on in grant applications and how to construct a museum digital project to gain a competiti...
Who Funds Museum Digital Projects?
Museum funders want to support the most interesting aspects of museum work, but there are grants for foundational projects, espe...
An Interview with Arc/k Project’s Brian Pope: Citizen-Science & CHE
Interview with founder and director of Arc/k Project, Brian Pope, about the benefits and pitfalls of citizen-science and digital...
Building a Blueprint for Future Digital Projects
To help with planning digital projects, create a blueprint for where/how each pending project will fit in; elements of blueprint...
How to Choose Your Next Digital Project Idea
The scope of your museum digital project will be influenced by the priorities of the museum, the needs of the collections, and t...
The Most Common Museum Digital Project Types
The scope of any museum digital project is influenced by the priorities of the museum, the needs of the collections, and the res...
How to Identify Museum Digital Project Ideas
Museum staff must find ways to prioritize and protect uninterrupted thinking time to generate compelling, achievable museum digi...
How to Win Museum Grant Funding for “Boring” Projects
Museum grant writing is part science, part art; your application must have sound structure, meet certain benchmarks and must cat...
Museum Professional Development: Invest in Yourself
For museum professionals, investing in yourself is a good decision, but should balance what you need versus what you have the ti...
Engage in ‘Degrowth’ for Intentional Museum Work
Museum professionals engaging in degrowth can focus on the most important aspects of their work and be more intentional with tim...
How to Evaluate Your Museum Work and Calculate Your Worth
For museum professionals; this post outlines three methods for self-evaluation—with ideas for where to find self, peer, and mark...
Create a Museum Grant Writing Roadmap for 2022
5 steps to creating a Museum Grant Roadmap for 2022, from a museum expert and consultant, proven practices
Tips for the Museum Worker: Survival Edition
Tips from a museum expert and consultant to help museum workers—and the broader museum community—survive the uncertainty of the ...
Museum Forecast 2022
Museums that prioritize accessibility, are ethical in job creation, and have the resources to pursue exciting digital projects w...
A Year in Review: An Assessment of the 2021 Museum Forecast
A review of how museum closures, collections deaccessioning, and digital collections actually evolved compared to Rachael Woody’...
7 Actions to Take for Museum Funding Readiness
Museum professionals can take a number of actions to prepare for funding opportunities; here is a game plan from a museum expert...
Applying the Liberation Model to Museum Grant Funding Inequity
Museum professionals must lobby for increased funding, proposing a liberated form of financially aiding museums via easily grant...
Part 3: Create a Museum Digital Project Workflow that Works
This post on museum digital project workflows offers expert advice on how museum professionals can become confident workflow cre...
Part 2: Create a Museum Digital Project Workflow that Works
To determine digital project workflow, project activities need to be defined, standards and specifications considered, and resou...
Part 1: Create a Museum Digital Project Workflow that Works
Museum digital projects include object digitization and cataloging; and established workflow for staff to follow is critical to ...
Part 3: How Much Will Museum Digital Projects Cost Me?
A museum digital project usually involves costs of training and education, increased personnel capacity, or working with a consu...
Part 2: How Much Will Museum Digital Projects Cost Me?
Planning a museum digital project includes knowing the costs of digitization software, museum CMS platforms, and digital asset m...
Part 1: How Much Will Museum Digital Projects Cost Me?
When planning a museum digital project, evaluate the tools and resources required to succeed; read for costs of digitization equ...
Figuring out a Museum DAMS Solution When You Only Have a CMS
If your museum has a CMS but not a DAMS (and no budget for a DAMS) there are a few ways you can creatively construct a “for now”...
The Evolution and Overlap of Museum DAMS and CMS
There are differences and overlaps between a museum DAMS and CMS, and how they’ve evolved their cross-functionality to address r...
Does Your Museum Need a DAMS?
Museum digital files are assets museum staff use to care for, manage, and represent the physical collection. Using a DAMS is an ...
Ray Harryhausen | Titan of Cinema: Reminiscing with Fantastical Creatures from Childhood
The final post in a series on the Harryhausen Titan of Cinema Experience analyzing the specific pivot to an online virtual exhib...
Ray Harryhausen | Titan of Cinema: How the Archives Enrich Virtual Exhibit Storytelling
The third post in a series on the Harryhausen Titan of Cinema Experience analyzing the specific pivot to an online virtual exhib...
How to Choose the Right Tools for Museum Digital Projects
For each museum digitization project, research and identify equipment and software tools, outline and commit to standards, keep ...
Include these Museum Digitization Standards in Your Next Project
Digitization standards for file resolution and formats should be intentionally thought of and committed to prior to any museum d...
Considering Museum Digitization Tools by Item Type
Before a museum collections digitization project, assess what types of items you have and therefore, what digitization tools you...
Ray Harryhausen | Titan of Cinema: The Translation from Physical to Virtual
The second post in a series on the Harryhausen Titan of Cinema Experience analyzing the specific pivot to an online virtual exhi...
Ray Harryhausen | Titan of Cinema Virtual Exhibition Experience
The first post in a miniseries on the Harryhausen Titan of Cinema Experience analyzing the specific pivot to an online virtual e...
The Top 3 Museum Digital Project Strategies That Lead to Success
There are 3 project management strategic areas critical to the success of any museum digital project: accountability, communicat...
How to Establish Museum Digital Project Core Areas
This post offers detailed museum digital project creation guidance on the who, what, when, why, and how components that lead to ...
A Thoughtful Approach to Museum Digital Project Creation
Most museum collection workers have no experience in project management; but digital projects must include basic project managem...
The 4 Most Important Museum Digital Project Components
Museum digital projects should always include definitions of these four components: objectives, stakeholders, resources, deliver...
How COVID Has Changed Museum Digital Projects Forever
During COVID-19, museum digital projects evolved to absolutely and urgently required, high priority, the only activity staff cou...
The Difference Between Museum Digital Programs and Projects
Attention to museum digital programs has surged due to the COVID-19 global pandemic; there are important differences between pro...
TrendsWatch 2021: Strategic Foresight
The sixth in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums Tr...
TrendsWatch 2021: COVID on Campus
The fifth in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums Tr...
TrendsWatch 2021: Who Gets Left Behind?
The fourth in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums T...
TrendsWatch 2021: Digital Awakening
The third in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums Tr...
TrendsWatch 2021: Closing the Gap
The second in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums T...
TrendsWatch 2021: Navigating a Disrupted Future
The first in a series of 6 posts from Rachael Cristine Woody analyzing the elements of AAM’s Center for the Future of Museums Tr...
How to Make Your Museum Grants Search More Efficient
Museum staff should build efficiencies into grants searching; a few minutes setting alerts and outlining project specs frees tim...
Where are the Best Places to Find Museum Grants? Part 2
Museum professionals new to grants may not know how to find the right grant for their museum; 3 of 6 go-to places to search, fro...
Where are the Best Places to Find Museum Grants? Part 1
Museum professionals new to grants may not know how to find the right grant for their museum; six go-to places to search, from a...
The First 3 Things to Do if You’re New to Museum Grants
LAM grant application can be challenging but there are proven practices and resources that give you a better chance of success; ...
Museum Forecast 2021
If museums can just financially-survive COVID-19 there is a tremendous opportunity to get incredible digital collections managem...
Revisiting 2020’s Museum Issues; Some Progress
Museums face challenges in DEAI, grant funding, and ethical labor practices. COVID-19 helped push elements of these priorities t...
The CMS: What’s Essential, What’s Hackable, and What Does It Cost?
Museum Collections Management System (CMS) choices depend on your end goal, what tools you need to get there, and how big your b...
The Essentials for a Discoverable CMS
Digital museum collections work and the CMS tools we use are more essential now than ever; this will likely remain true post-pan...
Digital Asset Management Systems Vs Collections Management Systems; Part 2
DAMS and CMS platforms have similar functionality, but there are differences in how well those work and whether they meet museum...
Digital Asset Management Systems Vs Collections Management Systems; Part 1
Collections management systems and digital asset management systems have similarities and meet similar needs; expert guidance on...
LAMs are More Alike Than Different: Generational Change
Priorities in LAMs committed to inclusivity include creating demographically appropriate content and spaces with input from thos...
LAMs are More Alike Than Different: Physical vs Digital Nature of the Work
Assess digital collections and reallocate resources (time and CMS money) to ensure you’re delivering the best possible virtual c...
LAMs are More Alike Than Different: Precarious Labor
Library, archives, and museum staff know their work is essential, but fail to consistently translate this value; expert advice o...
CMS Data Can Prove the Value of Collection Work
A museum’s digital presence is just as important as its physical presence; we need to start using our CMS data when we speak abo...
How to Make Museum CMS Data Work for You
Mining museum CMS data helps you become more efficient and impactful, quantifying the value of activities to see what is and isn...
You Need to Pay Attention to This Museum CMS Data
Definition of museum Collections Management System (CMS) data, outlines how to find CMS data and highlight the data that provide...
LAMs are More Alike Than Different: Disaster Preparedness
Libraries, archives and museums are dealing with financial disaster due to COVID-19; advice from an expert on how to navigate ch...
The Benefits of a Discoverable CMS
Digital museum SEO is a continual practice; investing in and maintaining good SEO should be incorporated into routine maintenanc...
How to Test and Improve the SEO of Your Museum CMS
This post describes how to effectively test the SEO of a museum CMS and offers 5 methods for how to get a jump start on improvin...
SEO and the Discoverable Museum CMS
Search engine optimization (SEO) expands the reach of a museum CMS to make collections widely discoverable.
We Invite You to Leverage a New Grant Resource for LAMs
The grants toolkit empowers LAM professionals by providing information and tools needed to confidently apply for grants.
A Multimedia Museum CMS Supports User Experience Best Practices
The ability to upload, publish, and engage with multimedia files within the museum CMS is critical to meeting user experience (U...
Meet Baseline Visitor Expectations with a Multimedia Museum CMS
A museum collections management system (CMS) must appeal to digital visitors by offering related multimedia materials grouped to...
A Multimedia Museum CMS Makes a Bigger Picture Possible
Museums exhibits increasingly take digital form; as such the best CMS is a multimedia CMS, giving context to objects and meeting...
The Benefits of an Integrated Museum CMS Front and Back-End
The best museum CMS front-end results from purchasing a platform with a fully integrated front and back-end. Benefits listed.
The Cost Involved When the Museum CMS Front-End is Separate or Less Than
A museum CMS with a separate or “add on” front-end portal is better than no portal, but can come with significant added costs; t...
Considering Different Options for Delivering a Museum CMS Public Portal
Fully integrated CMS portals offer benefits for the museum, staff, and digital visitors—and should be considered over other opti...
How to Improve Collection Discovery in the Museum CMS
Discovery designed for the digital hobbyist means providing avenues for visitors to browse information, an object, or collection...
The Internal Uses and Benefits for a Mobile Museum CMS
Your museum CMS must accommodate mobile-first or mobile-primary users due to the reality of pandemic-induced working from home i...
The External Uses and Benefits for a Mobile Museum CMS
Museum patrons use mobile devices to plan and visit collections, make purchases, and donate. A great mobile CMS experience mimic...
The Future is Here: Why Your Museum CMS Must be Mobile
A mobile museum CMS contributes to visitor education, enrichment, enjoyment. It supports staff who perform work in stacks, in th...
Left Behind: The Inequity of Pandemic Relief Funds
Many inequities exist related to pandemic financial relief to people, corporations, and nonprofits, including museums; read abou...
How to Sell an Off-the-Shelf Museum CMS to Your Boss
Evidence of a museum CMS helping you do your job better is important; also tell your boss how the CMS is a good choice for the m...
What to Look for in an Off-the-Shelf Museum CMS
Learn how to evaluate an off-the-shelf (packaged) museum CMS based on Top Things to Look For (intuitive, customizable, adaptable...
Off-the-Shelf Museum CMS: When to Buy One and Where to Find One
Evidence of a museum CMS helping you do your job better is important; also tell your boss how the CMS is a good choice for the m...
How the National WWI Museum and Memorial Kept Its Employees
Disaster preparedness for museums should be proactive; in this case a WWI museum kept and redeployed staff to digitize and trans...
The Critical Difference Between Museum Deliverables and Outcomes
When writing for a museum grant, it’s important to address both the project deliverables and the project outcomes
How to Determine Museum Grant Suitability: A Check List
Applying for museum grants requires two determinations before work begins: eligibility and suitability; this post covers the lat...
How to Determine Museum Grant Eligibility: A Check List
Applying for museum grants requires two determinations before work begins: the museum’s eligibility and suitability to the grant...
How to Increase Museum Grant Success by Mastering the Lexicon
Museum grant writers pay attention to grant lexicons; this post covers grant opportunity lexicons and how to find and use them f...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Fostering Financial Sustainability
AAM offers 3 steps museums can take toward achieving sustainable finances: paying attention to data, fostering financial literac...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Financial Capital
Museum leaders must focus on financial capital—investments that generate income—and think strategically about how to grow and le...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Government Funding
Museum professionals should look at all options for increasing government funding, including advocacy, grant acquisition and inn...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Charitable Income
The future of museums depends partially on charitable income; shifts in donor behavior must be understood, anticipated and accom...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Earned Income
The future of museums depends on leaders understanding earned income, the impact of shifting markets or events, how it should be...
Museum TrendsWatch 2020: Financial Sustainability Introduction
The future of museums rests on effective financial decisions, which cover earned income, charitable income, government funding, ...
When and How to Ethically Create Museum Term Positions
Museums often lack funding to support permanent employment and turn to temporary staffing; the parameters of this must be ethica...
Economic Disaster Planning for Museums
Museums are handling the economic impact of the pandemic real time and need to plan and be better prepared for the next disaster...
Go Visit a Museum – Doctor’s Orders!
Virtual museum visits still offer health giving benefits including peace and rejuvenation. Museums should consider this for thei...
The Tools Needed to Support Remote Museum Staff
Museum leaders must make sure that staff have all the tools needed to work remotely, including a web-based CMS and options for p...
Museums as Places for Democratic Dialogue and Uncomfortable Learning
The future of museums includes encouraging visitors to learn, critically evaluate their views, engage in difficult conversation,...
Museum Advocacy: How to Write a Letter to Congressional Representatives
Museum advocacy includes writing letters to congressional representatives; advice on what to include and emphasize, how to struc...
Prioritize These Remote Museum Projects During Coronavirus—Part 2
Museum workers can focus on strategic museum projects while working remotely; future project preparation, museum management, and...
Prioritize These Remote Museum Projects During Coronavirus—Part 1
Museum workers can focus on digital museum projects while working remotely; digital asset cleanup, digital collections managemen...
What Does the Millennial Museum Visitor Want?
The future of museums depends upon attracting, engaging and keeping millennial visitors, including as donors. Includes research ...
Do You Know the Millennial Museum Donor?
From 2020 onward millennials will become an increasingly and influential demographic. The future of museums and funding depends ...
Analysis of the US Stimulus Package and What’s in it for Museums
The US stimulus package associated with the coronavirus pandemic allocates funds to museums, but it’s insufficient and more must...
The Numbers on the Millennial Museum Visitor
Millennials comprise the majority of museum visitors yet their numbers for attendance are not as high as they need to be due to ...
Is There a Decline in Museum Attendance?
There is little current data to support assertions about trends in museum attendance; urge public agencies to fund current and c...
Removing Museum Barriers to Entry for Aging Adults
The top five barriers to museum entry and enjoyment for seniors are: comfort, sensory, physical accessibility, safety, and pract...
Museum Labor Resources for Professional Advocacy
Museum professionals have options for professional advocacy including information that supports salary negotiations; here is a l...
Unpaid Internships: A Reason to DEAI the Museum Budget
Museum unpaid internships are common; commitment to Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion (DEAI) is a reason to priori...
The Role of Museum Core Values
A museum’s mission statement and strategic plan are created based on core values held by museum staff, informing the future of m...
Teens, Smartphones, and the Myth of What Museum Engagement Looks Like
Visitor engagement with museum collections and exhibits includes the use of technology to augment and expand their experience an...
Museum Digital Project Specifications
If a digital museum project requires working with a digitization vendor, museum staff must put digital project specifications in...
When to Consider Museum Digitization Vendors
Digitization is costly either done in-house or by a vendor; museum staff should assess digitization needs and risks/benefits of ...
Using the Museum CMS to Offer Cultural Heritage Experiences
Immersive digital cultural heritage experiences (CHEs) can be constructed with the support of a museum Collections Management Sy...
Museum Conferences Share 2020 Vision
List of 2020 museum conferences. With schedule, travel, and budget constraints, museum professionals need a strategy for plannin...
Museum Forecast 2020
Skills for special librarians and virtual librarians are awareness of trends, new technologies and resources, and building subje...
Resources for Museums on How to Identify and Articulate Value
Museum sustainability depends on articulating the value of what museums do and why it matters; here is a list of resources to he...
A 2019 Recap of Museum Issues
The future of museums depends on an understanding of issues that impacted the profession in 2019; review of trends.
#AskACurator Day
Museums and social media are a great combination; Twitter makes museum professionals more available to the public, answering que...
Establishing Museum CMS Best Practices
The museum collections management system (CMS) will be most accurate and effective if museum staff first establish standards and...
Museum CMS 101: Workflow and Record Construction
If selected and used correctly, the museum collections management system has the power to positively impact museum staff work an...
Ready to Read: How to Select, Buy, and Use a Museum CMS
Rachael Cristine Woody’s book How to Select, Buy, and Use a Museum CMS helps you find the best collections management system for...
How to Test, Vet, and Purchase a New Museum CMS
Successful museum CMS selection includes identifying and prioritizing CMS specifications, and exercising due diligence through t...
How to Identify Specifications for a New CMS
Selection of a museum collections management system involves understanding stakeholder requirements and developing specification...
How to Form a Museum CMS Procurement Team
Forming a procurement team is the first step in acquiring a new museum collections management system; here are some best practic...
How to Prepare for a Museum Collections Management System Migration
Tips on how to ensure a seamless transition when migrating digital collection content from one museum CMS to another.
Museum Opportunities and How a Collections Management System Can Help
A museum collections management system is more than a vault for data; it is a digital space for innovation, collaboration, and r...
The Changing Definition of Museums
Museum professionals need a definition of what a museum is, to develop museum strategies for the future. ICOM asks are museums p...
5 Steps to Museum Volunteer Project Success
Whenever your volunteer project season may begin, it’s important to make sure you set your volunteers up for success.
7 Steps to Kick-Start Museum Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion Practices
Museum Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Inclusion (DEAI) practices are gaining momentum within the museum field.
How to Begin Your Search for the Right Museum CMS
Selecting a museum collections management system includes identifying vendors, compiling criteria, deal breakers, involving stak...
Why You Need a (Better) CMS
Museum professionals rely on the data within the CMS to assist them in making informed decisions. A better CMS will support thei...
The Importance of Internal Stakeholders to the Museum CMS
A museum collections management system (CMS) must meet internal stakeholder needs (collections managers, curators, educators, co...
Museum Challenges and How a CMS Can Help – Part 2
Museums face common challenges; a museum collections management system (CMS) often represents a solution to issues with DEAI or ...
Museum Challenges and How a CMS Can Help – Part 1
Museums face common challenges; a museum collections management system (CMS) often represents a solution to issues with past pra...
The Cost of Free Collections Management Systems
Museum collections managers must consider the pros and cons of open source of a free CMS; there are hidden costs which can be pr...
Hamilton: The Exhibition – A Review
Museum interactive exhibit Hamilton: The Exhibition embodies diversity, equity, accessibility, inclusion (DEAI)
Museum TrendsWatch 2019: Homelessness and Housing Insecurity
Museums should develop strategies addressing trends outlined in the CFM TrendsWatch report including Homelessness, Blockchain, S...
Museum TrendsWatch 2019: Self-Care
Museums should develop strategies addressing trends outlined in the CFM TrendsWatch report including Decolonization, Blockchain,...
Museum TrendsWatch 2019: Blockchain
Museums should develop strategies addressing trends outlined in the CFM TrendsWatch report including Decolonization, Blockchain,...
Museum TrendsWatch 2019: Decolonization
Museums should build strategies that address trends outlined in the CFM TrendsWatch report including Decolonization, Homelessnes...
Museum TrendsWatch 2019: Truth, Trust, and Fake News
Museum strategy should address trends affecting museums outlined in the CFM TrendsWatch report including Trust, Decolonization, ...
Who are the Stakeholders in Museum Digital Projects?
Museum staff should think about the needs of digital museum projects stakeholders, including staff, board members, patrons, rese...
Responsible Practices for Working with Communities and Collections
Museums have ethical responsibility for objects representing ethnographic communities; engage communities early and often; they ...
How to Construct a Museum Digitization Equation
Accurate digitization equations are necessary for successful museum digitization project planning; they provide a reliable estim...
What to Do When It’s Your First Museum Digitization Project
Planning and preparation are key to successful museum digitization projects; determine needs including hardware and collections ...
Building a Comprehensive Museum Digital Program
Museum digital projects must include comprehensive digital program covering equipment used, standards followed and digitization ...
How to Build Sustainability into Museum Digital Projects
Museum sustainability strategies secure the future of the museum; digital projects rely on sustainability planning as they are l...
How Museums Can Effectively Collaborate
Museum collaboration is essential; it’s often the way to save money or increase funding while developing digital projects, trave...
3 Common Hurdles to Get Over and Get into Grants
Tips for overcoming common hurdles to grant writing in museums and archives.
Shared Museum Catalogs Are the Future
shared museum catalogs meet digital visitor expectations for access to objects and discovery of contextual information while off...
How to Build a Successful Museum Strategy
A successful museum strategy has 3 main components: operational, funding, digital. Departmental decisions are aligned with museu...
5 Methods to Improve the Museum Digital Experience
5 main methods for improving museum digital visitor experience include practicality, visitor immersion, accessibility, mobile op...
Museum Digital Collections User Types & Expectations
Museums must understand and address digital user types and digital visitor expectations as they develop museum digital collectio...
Museum Online Presence: Critical to Income Stream
Healthy museums acquire income from several of funding streams; museum online presence plays a large part in keeping museums eli...
Museum Social Media and the Museum Collections Management System
A museum collections management system is a major content contributor in a museum social media strategy. Museums should use Face...
Creating a Museum Grant Writing Roadmap for 2019
Successful museum grant applications require planning, applying for appropriate funding, prioritizing and timing. Museum grant w...
5 Prompts to Prioritize Museum Digitization Projects
Digital museum collections management. When digital presence supports non-digital work, museums maximize benefits of museum digi...
How to Evaluate a Museum Digital Collection
As part of museum collections management, staff owe it to digital visitors to review and update past digitization work to promot...
The Importance of Sustainable Museum Cataloging & How to Achieve It
Catalogs must meet the needs of the museum and the wants of the audience; choose and implement sustainable museum cataloging rul...
3 Things to Look for When Choosing a Museum Collections Management System
Selecting a museum collections management system requires meeting today’s and tomorrow’s needs and choosing a vendor who meets a...
Museums in Financial Trouble: Sell, Close, or Plan a Museum Merger?
Museums suffering financial instability must make strategic decisions about selling, closing or merging, Examples of museum merg...
Identifying Museum Funding Roadblocks
Museum professionals need to understand why grant applications haven’t been successful in order to identify and pursue successfu...
2019 Master Plan for Museum Professionals
Museum expert Rachael Cristine Woody advocates for creating a professional master plan, identifying benchmarks to achieve and ac...
Shifting Concepts of Preservation in a Digital World
Archival preservation practices are transforming in the digital environment; there are new principles that apply to digitized an...
RTI Digitization in the Museum
2D digitization often isn’t enough in a museum; However, RTI is an alternative option for objects that are mostly 2D, but requir...
How to Increase Museum Conference ROI
Tight operating budgets mean limited conference funds and museum staff must think hard about which conferences they’re going to ...
How to Conference on a Museum Budget
Attending museum conferences is important for professional development; here are 8 tips for cutting attendance costs to stay wit...
Ready to Read: A Survivor’s Guide to Museum Grant Writing
Lucidea Press announces Rachael Cristine Woody’s book Survivor’s Guide to Museum Grant Writing for those wanting to increase gra...
Relevance & The Museum’s Role in Social Wellbeing
Museums play a role in enhancing social wellbeing of a community and also deliver significant economic impact.
Museums: Actions for Integrating Empathy
Museums play an important role in cultivating empathy; they need to integrate empathy into their own identity through inreach no...
Museums: Cultivators of Empathy
Museums play an important role in cultivating the quality of empathy, increasing the emotional, educational, and economic succes...
Making Museums Accessible
Museums are key players in the movement to making the cultural sector accessible for persons with disabilities in both their phy...
The Decay of Museums Leads to Irreparable Loss
Inadequate funding for museums and resulting decay are systemic issues everywhere—even in countries with successful economies an...
The Value of Cultural Heritage Experiences in the Museum
To entice visitors, museums offer Cultural Heritage Experiences in tandem with online exhibits that include videos, interviews a...
3D Digitization in the Museum – Part 2: LIDAR
3D digitization options that have emerged as leaders in the museum and cultural heritage fields are photogrammetry and LIDAR sca...
3D Digitization in the Museum – Part 1: Photogrammetry
3D digitization options that have emerged as leaders in the museum and cultural heritage fields are photogrammetry (this post) a...
Who Owns Digital Culture? An Important Question Museums Must Consider
Museums who provide digital renderings of cultural property can greatly aid in preservation, restoration, education, and enjoyme...
The End of Net Neutrality & The Museum Digital Visitor
Museums must develop actionable plans to safeguard their digital existence. Remaining unresponsive to the end of net neutrality ...
The Future of Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR & VR) in Museums
Museums have an opportunity now to be proactive in the augmented and virtual reality realms and deliver a more immersive experie...
Working Your Museum’s Problems to Find Solutions
Museums should systematically identify problems in order to express needs and find solutions, particularly in regard to grant ap...
Museum Grant Application: What Happens if You Fail?
Grant writing is challenging; museums can get better with practice. Leverage failure to be a stronger applicant in future and in...
Museum Project Break Down—A Template
Museum staff should apply project management principles to any project, grant funded or in house. It’s easiest to start at proje...
Museums with Zero Funding—Stop Saying These 4 Phrases
Museums must approach grant funding strategically in order to craft winning grant applications. This post explores pitfalls to a...
5 Times LAMs Should Bring in a Consultant
Libraries, archives and museums need consultants under specific scenarios, including digitalization, preservation, cataloging an...
When Your Archives and Special Collections Aren’t Special
Museum staff must be familiar with archives and special collections theory and standards for care, storage, management, organiza...
Navigating the Museum | Archive Relationship
Archival materials are critically important to correctly interpreting a museum’s objects and require a holistic approach to coll...
Define Museum Success & Measure It
Museums must define and measure project success, showing willingness to be held accountable, learn and improve; project manageme...
How to Best Leverage Museum Volunteers
Museums should think beyond traditional volunteer roles and create new opportunities and training that benefit both volunteer an...
Effective Technology Training for Museum Volunteers & Interns
Museum expert Rachael Woody offers proven practices for volunteer & intern training to ensure effective use of your museum’s col...
The Intersection of Libraries, Archives & Museums
Libraries, archives & museums (LAMs) may be physically separate but digitally aligned. Collections management systems enable sha...
8 Tips to a Bulletproof Grant Proposal
Museum expert Rachael Christine Woody offers 8 tips that will ensure your museum’s grant proposal is strong and improve chances ...
Museum Grant Pitfalls—Know & Avoid Them
Museum expert Rachael Christine Woody describes 7 museum grant pitfalls to avoid if your museum wants to be a stronger applicant...
Top 4 Funding Ideas for Museums
Museum expert Rachael Christine Woody shares her top four museum funding ideas that are well received by granting agencies.
Museum Diversity, Equity, Accessibility & Inclusion Resources and Practices
Museum staff can adopt diversity, equity, accessibility, inclusion statements and develop practices that help meet their DEAI-re...
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eBooks
A Survivor’s Guide to Museum Grant Writing
Rachael Cristine Woody
A Survivor’s Guide to Museum Grant Writing takes a pragmatic approach to such topics as seeing each grant application as an opportunity, learning and moving on from inevitable failures, using grant acquisition to provide valuable financial sustenance to the museum without negatively impacting staff, and applying a systematic, common sense methods that builds the necessary skills to survive the grant writing process and thrive within it.
Demystifying Data Preparation for a New CMS
Rachael Cristine Woody
Learn how to prepare museum data for a new CMS.
This book outlines how to prepare museum content (data and assets) for migration to a new museum collections management system through a process of data evaluation, data remediation (cleanup), and data preparation—demystifying what can be an intimidating process and leading to the other side, where your data awaits you in a shiny new CMS.
Grants Workbook & Templates
Lucidea Press
Grant funding is increasingly important to the future of heritage institutions. We know how challenging it can be to apply for grant funding, especially when time and expertise are hard to come by. This workbook provides an introduction to grant application elements, an overview of information to prepare for each application section, and four sample project templates.
How to Select, Buy, and Use a Museum CMS
Rachael Cristine Woody
How to Select, Buy, and Use a Museum CMS explains how to search for, select, buy, implement, and maximize the value of a museum collections management system. In order to deliver the best return on investment in a collections management system, staff need to know:
How to begin the search for the right CMS; how to navigate the procurement process; how to prepare for what migration will entail; what workflows, standards, and tools they should be aware of, and how to use a CMS to its maximum potential.
Museum Digital Projects and You. Where to Begin?
Rachael Cristine Woody
Digital projects are critically important to a museum’s mission of caring for and providing access to its collections. With that in mind, Museum Digital Projects and You. Where to Begin? covers the components of a successful museum digital project, how to create and manage a successful digital project, how to choose the right tools for museum digital projects, evaluating the museum DAMS vs CMS, how much museum digital projects cost, and creating a museum digital project workflow that works.
Prepare for Takeoff: Getting Your Museum Digital Project Off The Ground
Margot Note
Learn the secrets of successful museum digital projects
Museum digital projects require personnel who are subject-matter experts, technologists, and project managers. Once you have knowledge, skills, and abilities accounted for, it is time to learn the strategies necessary to create and execute your project. Prepare for Takeoff: Getting Your Museum Digital Project Off The Ground will guide you through all aspects of the initiative and help set you up for success.