We’re All in Entertainment

Are you at MAAM Building Museums today? Me too! Drop me a line, I'd love to connect.

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[Looks furtively around, then whispers:]

We’re all in entertainment.

Sure, we may say we’re in education.

Or we’re in preservation of material heritage.

Or we’re in advocacy.

But to an economist, visiting an exhibition or museum is simply entertainment.

Among paid experiences, entertainment is a category that includes theme parks, escape rooms, retailtainment, and eater-taiment.

Among unpaid experiences, entertainment includes walks in the park, festivals, and window shopping.

Economists define “entertainment” as anything we do in our leisure time, outside of work, school, or family duties.

(If you want to get even more nerdy, a museum visit is a type of entertainment called a “cultural consumption experience good,” which is also partly a “human capital investment.” I think that last part is pretty interesting, but I digress.)

Here’s the thing:

Our visitors might not be coming for the thing we think.

That doesn’t mean we should give visitors anything they ask for. We can only give what we’ve got. But if we want them to return or recommend us, we need to understand their reasons for visiting. And those reasons might not match our assumptions.

[Looks furtively around, then whispers again:]

We’re all in entertainment.

Warmly,
Jonathan

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MtM Word of the Day:
Public domain. Creative works that are no longer under copyright, so anyone can use them freely without asking or paying. Museums often use public domain materials for exhibitions and educational programs.

NEW! The MtM Glossary of Museum Exhibitions (BETA)