How to Start a Virtual Museum. The information age has brought many amazing opportunities, including the ability to share knowledge instantly across the world. One such opportunity is creating an online museum. Museums are places to gaze upon artifacts and technology and learn about their history and purpose. Unfortunately, museum audiences are limited to those who can travel to the museum. By putting your museum online, you can expand this audience to the world. You will need some knowledge of HTML coding, a high-quality digital camera, and the patience to see your dream come to fruition.
Steps
Step 1: Create a Flowchart
- Visualize Your Online Museum:
- Imagine the home page as the lobby.
- Welcome visitors to the online museum and include plenty of links to the different “galleries” you have on display.
- Include pictures with your links to present a more visual and user-friendly environment.
Step 2: Construct Your Galleries
- Design Your Web Page:
- Divide galleries into different “rooms” like you would find in a physical museum.
- Group associated concepts together. For example, if your museum is about American history, start one page for the early-colonization period, another for the revolutionary war, and another for the drafting of the constitution.
- Include links to the next gallery in sequence at the bottom of the page to help the visitor feel more like they are in an actual museum, passing from one room to the next.
Step 3: Add Pictures to Your Galleries
- Incorporate Visual Elements:
- Include pictures you have taken of the items in your museum with captions alongside them.
- Be descriptive with the items. For example, instead of just saying “The Hope Diamond,” say “The Hope Diamond, a rare deep-blue diamond, has an extensive history which is believed to trace back to India.”
- Include links to additional information next to your initial explanation.
Step 4: Link Additional Information and Copies of Documents
- Provide Deeper Insights:
- Link additional information and copies of documents to give researchers and curious visitors the opportunity to read deeper into the information presented and to see the source.
- Include these links next to the photos and short descriptions they pertain to.
Step 5: Keep Expanding
- Continuously Add Content:
- Start with one or two galleries and keep working on adding more over time.
- Even if you do it little by little, your museum will begin to fill out with useful and interesting information.
- Remember that because your museum is online, you do not need to worry about physical constraints like floor space.
Step 6: Consider Opening a Gift Shop
- Monetize Your Museum:
- If your virtual museum is for a real museum and you have the means, consider including a small online store where visitors can buy items available in your museum’s gift shop.
- This can provide income for the museum and allow visitors to purchase books and other items to help with their continued research.
- Ensure your site is secure enough to process credit card information, and that you have the ability to ship items to the website visitors.
Community Q&A
Question: Can I make a website using Weebly.com?
- Answer: Yes, you can create a website using Weebly.com. Alternatively, you might also consider using Wix or other website builders that offer professional-looking templates. However, some advanced features may require a premium subscription.
Tips
- Be Patient: Building a website is hard work, and the scope of building an online museum can be intense. Keep working on it day by day, and you will be surprised at what you can accomplish.
- Visual Appeal: Make the website as visually appealing as possible. Dull websites that are just large blocks of text tend to drive viewers away. Including pictures with your text will make the site more attractive and help keep visitors engaged and learning.
By following these steps and tips, you can create a virtual museum that is accessible to people all over the world, allowing them to enjoy and learn from your curated exhibits.