Using mobile in Museums
Jo Van Hove
Founder @ iBeaken.com
Shelley Manion
Digital Learning Programmes Manager at the British Museum
Program
Going mobile
 to go mobile or not
 different devices
 advantages/disadvantages
 costs involved
Why on earth go mobile ?
Many reasons NOT to go mobile
 my visitors are too old or not interested
 we don’t have time
 we don’t have the staff
 we don’t understand anything
 we don’t have money
Why on earth go mobile ?
Many reasons to go mobile
 visitor engagement
 urge to tell more
 your image
 attract younger visitors and more families
 enhance the visitor experience
 introduce a game element
 earn money
Why on earth go mobile ?
“If you want to make
something new work, add a
game to it.”
Steve Jobs
Why on earth go mobile ?
“If you want to make
something new work, add a
collection to it.”
Jo Van Hove
Why on earth go mobile ?
Going mobile is a ‘game’ element of your
‘communication mix’
 website
 folders
 advertising
 social networks
 games / apps
 digital cartels
 serious games
What is ‘mobile’ ?
different kinds of services
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audio guides
visio guides
eshkar
QR codes
image recognition
serious games
3D reconstruction
augmented reality
NFC / RFID triggers
infrared triggers
wifi triggers
route guidance
...
What is ‘mobile’ ?
“Kids and families are more
interested in what it does
than what it tells...”
Jo Van Hove
What is ‘mobile’ ?
different kinds of devices
 custom made devices/readers
 digital cameras
 mp3 players
 note pads
 smartphones
 tablets
 PSP, Game boy, Nintendo DS
A difficult choice
Keep this in mind :
 mobile is a great part of your communication mix
 include as many people as possible
 keep it simple
 keep the investment reasonable
 appoint person that is responsible
A difficult choice
Audio guides, Apps, Mobile or a combination ?
Audioguides/Visioguides
Advantages
 good experience
 easy to use
 widely spread
 good suppliers
 revenue model
 control ‘dwell time’
Disadvantages
 ‘lone’ experience
 limited story
 no sharing on socnets
 expensive (low nr visitors)
 no visitors statistics
Apps
Advantages
 offline
 gaming
 graphics
 revenue model (max
500£/year)
Disadvantages
 exclusive technology
 expensive
 marketing
 limited users (platforms)
 low download penetration
 technology dependent
 ‘difficult’ to update
 limited space on phone
Apps
“Today’s apps are the
CD-roms of the year 2000 :
they will disappear...”
Jo Van Hove
Mobile
Advantages
 cheap(er) to deploy
 platform independent
 all phones = more users
 no space needed on phone
 fast adoption
 known from computer
 profiling and visitor
engagement
 easier to update
Disadvantages
 graphics not so sexy
 bandwidth
 roaming (no EU roaming
anymore from July 1st, 2014 !!)
Mobile
“Don’t forget your visitors
without smartphones !!”
Jo Van Hove
Figures
‘Unforced’ use (volontary use)
 maximum (!) 3% use/downloads
Figures
‘Unforced’ use (volontary use)
 maximum (!) 3% use/downloads
‘Forced’ use (obligatory use, part of the experience)
 upto 100% use (mostly audio, rarely apps/mobile)
 example Casa Batllo (Barcelona)
 example Alcatraz (San Francisco, USA)
Costs
Enhance the experience at what cost ?
 APPS : 15.000 – 100.000£/platform
 Mobile : 5.000 – 25.000£ for ALL smartphones
 Saas* Mobile/App : ‘free’ - 350£ - 4000£/year
 Audio guides : 350£/1 min or % of sales
 WIFI system : 500£ upto >30.000£
‘number of visitors x 0,03 x investment = price per user’
*SaaS = Software as a Service
Costs
“Better to invest in a good
performing WIFI system”
Jo Van Hove
Desperate what to choose ?
Mobile will only work with stimulus !
 make it worth using : content is the key !
 make it easy to use
 enter a game or collection element
 reception desk communication
 website communication
Show case
Shelley Manion
Digital Learning Programmes Manager at the
British Museum
https://voicethread.com/share/3483800/
Conclusion
Mobile is the way to go !!
 make mobile available for ALL
 it’s a myth that you need an app
 it’s not so complicated
 there are mobile solutions for all budgets
 you attract more families
 show a younger, more active image
contact
Jo Van Hove, founder
[email protected]
http://ibeaken.com
+32 475 44 04 54
twitter : @ibeaken
facebook : ibeaken