Dear Museum 2.0 friends, I know I that I haven't been sharing a lot on the blog, but behind the scenes, you've inspired me to write more than ever. Energized by the response to the  blog series this summer on relevance , I've decided to write a book on the topic. My goal is to make it short, the focus tight, and release it quickly: hopefully spring 2016. The book will roughly cover: what relevance is, why it matters, and when it doesn't relevance to WHO - identifying and making legitimate connections with communities of interest relevance to WHAT - making confident connections to mission, content, and form relevance as a GATEWAY to deep experiences vs. relevance as a PROCESS of deepening involvement measuring relevance  irrelevance - its dangers and distractions My goal is for this book to be relevant to anyone on a mission to matter more. That's where you come in. I'm in research mode, and I'm seeking stories and case studies from diverse institutions about...

Imagine a concise, well-designed report on audiences for cultural activities in a large urban city. Imagine it peppered with snappy graphics and thought-provoking questions about connections to research and audience development in your community. Stop imagining and check out the Rotterdam Festival's 2011 report on five years of trends in audience data and related audience development efforts. They didn't do anything shocking or groundbreaking, but what they did, they did very well: They identified the unique characteristics of Rotterdam citizens.  They created psychographic profiles of eight target types of cultural consumer in Rotterdam, based on existing European market segmentation research.  They interviewed and learned more about people representing these eight types. They identified the types' distinct interests and concerns, aspirations, media usage, and barriers to participation. They used clear, evocative language (even in translation!) to convey their ideas.  W...