*beep* WELCOME to the Museum

London has three major Arts Organizations. They are: Museum London, Orchestra London and The Grand Theatre. Each has their own unique mission and has contributed to making London the Creative City it is today. Museum London caters to Londoners by making their work and the communities heritage openly accessible. Admission to the museum is free! This is an amazing idea from an arts advocate point of view. Art is for everyone and it should be readily available. The museum relies on government grants to sustain itself and therefore citizens of London are already "paying" for the service. The problem here is that I didn't know it was free for the 4 years I was living in London! Clearly, there is something wrong with that picture! The museum is living in a bubble. Only a slice of London attends... and I am unsure as to who their target audience is. So now I'm thinking- "How can this situation be remedied?"

I have to say that the best arts resource is The London Public Library- hands down. It is so accessible and it is an amazing service for the community. The Library (like the museum) is free... so why couldn't the museum get membership cards? Let me explain why this membership cards would be beneficial.

1. The museum has no way of accurately tracking who is coming into the museum. Membership cards will track their business.
2. It will help track donations. People could donate online via their membership account.
3. Membership cards could help foster a sense of commitment to the museum and pride in the facility. Membership cards are tangible and may act as reminders that there is a museum tucked away at the fork of the Thames.
4. The members may get special discounts (to the gift shop or restaurant) and may feel like they're special and that they're getting a deal. People love rewards.
5. When signing up for a membership, applicant will provide email addresses, and so they can be used for marketing purposes later.

Museum needs a following, a club, a sense of community. I realize membership cards would take time and money to implement, but in the long run it would make a marketers job a little bit easier.

I would get a card.... would you?