Visitors to the National Slate Museum and the National Roman Legion Museum walk around exhibits that might be difficult to interpret without some help. Photographs and artifacts are often hard to put into context. Printed material posted on exhibits and walls do not do the exhibits justice, since there generally is insufficient space for the volume of content, and it is difficult to tailor information for each specific type of visitor. The solution is an app known as Culture Beacon that works in conjunction with Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacons. With the app, a user can receive transmissions on his or her smartphone or tablet upon approaching an exhibit, and thus view pictures, textual content specific to that person’s indicated interests and video that provides some explanation of the particular item on display. Learn how the technology is adding value for visitors, and how it is encouraging them to interact with digital content during their visit onsite, as well as providing a financial gain for the museums.
Speaker: Rheinallt Ffoster-Jones, Programme Manager, People’s Collection, National Museum Wales