Funworld September 2009

Come One, Come All

How museums can get in the game at IAAPA Attractions Expo 2009

by Marion Hixon

IAAPA ATTRACTIONS EXPO IS THE PERFECT PLACE for museum professionals to get a fresh perspective on how their facilities can offer education content in a new way, with components from the attractions world, says Phil Lindsey, a member of IAAPA’s museum committee and vice president of exhibits and business development at The Health Museum in Houston (www.thehealthmuseum.org). Here, he shares insight into his 20 years at the Expo and what museums can gain from attending.

What offerings at the Expo directly benefit museum members, and what are some highlights they can take away from the experience?
IAAPA Attractions Expo addresses the operational aspects of running a museum better than any trade show in the world. There’s always a state of the museum economy session at each Expo, and it’s fascinating to learn not only how non-museum professionals look at the economics of museums, but how many museum professionals don’t know how to look at their data.

How can a museum benefit from entering the attractions world?
I’ve noticed that under the world’s current economic condition, museums have started to reinvent themselves on a macro level. “Business as usual” is no longer going to work in most cases—that’s a crucial message you get from IAAPA. One great example is Air Zoo in Kalamazoo, Michigan (www.airzoo.org). It’s maintained its core message and mission, but the experience it offers has been completely reinvented. And The Health Museum has moved beyond our core mission of health education to fully embrace science education and become a science center—that’s a market necessity for us.

Would you encourage museum attendees to look at education sessions outside the museum path?
Absolutely. During the Museum & Science Center Track on Monday, Nov. 16, the museum committee points out other sessions that might be of interest. We see topics ranging from how to manage the millennial workforce to how to run your retail, human resources, or food service department; these are all topics relevant to a museum or science center, particularly if the facility is in a major market.

How should museum professionals network with one another while at the show? What can they expect to learn during the networking opportunities?
We have a social at the end of the Museum & Science Center Track day and a show floor tour that really helps attendees see what’s offered for the museum crowd.

It’s interesting to make connections at IAAPA because the discussions we have with fellow museums at the Expo aren’t the same as those we have at AZA and AAM. Our perspective is different—it’s more attraction focused. We’ve conceded that we know what we’re doing at our facilities content-wise, so looking at museums through an attractions lens helps us connect with our visitors on a different level.

What’s the best way for museum professionals to navigate the floor and find the products and services best suited for their facility?
I present a speech every year for museum attendees where I highlight the booths I think are significant and tell people how to get around. It’s humorous because there’s no way to prepare a museum professional for a giant inflatable gorilla on the trade show floor, but you build some really successful relationships on the floor.

As a museum professional, you have to look beyond the obvious thing that’s on the show floor. Instead, see the product for its core and think about how you can modify it for what you need. For instance, there are a bunch of games in existence that fit the content we’re designing. We can go to those vendors and alter their material for our needs rather than reinvent the wheel, and it’s at a much lower development cost for us.