The last 25 years have been the age of digital discovery for museums and arts organizations. We see them progressively evolving from traditional marketing efforts to digital marketing involvement as they are becoming more and more aware of various marketing management tools over the years (Rentschler). We Are Social's Global Digital Report shows that the number of Internet users worldwide in 2018 is 4.021 billion, up 7% year-on-year (2018). This massive use of the Internet generates traffic to the museum's website and social media platforms from all over the world. It is also highlighted that social media has emerged as a current trend in consumer-to-consumer conversation in Bucur and Wen's article and that social media also strengthens marketing efforts for museums around the world. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay It is commonly recognized that digital marketing plays an important role in the marketing success of museums and arts organizations in reaching audiences. Not only that, it is also proven that progressive technological advancements have removed any boundaries or barriers to art appreciation across the world from Liew and Loh's article, E-marketing, Communications and the International Tourist. Belenoiti and Vassiliadis also highlighted that social media tools have broadened the concept of interaction with consumers. Since it is established that social media is the way to go, does this mean we can give up on our traditional “once useful” marketing efforts? This article will discuss how digital marketing has made traditional marketing obsolete. Digital Marketing Reaches Global Audiences The application of digital marketing and communication efforts brings a number of benefits to the international tourist and museum (Liew and Loh). The infinite duration of the exhibitions allows the museum's target audience not only to return after the visit, since there are no age limits, working hours and entrance fees for online portals (Liew and Loh). Liew and Loh also noted that museums benefit greatly from broadening their visitor profiles geographically and demographically as international tourists from around the world are able to access museum information via online portals through any information receiving device such as tablets, smartphones, laptops and desktops. Museums have always been popular tourist destinations (Kelly). World Tourism has revealed that tourism around the world has seen incessant growth over the past few decades. It has become one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world (2018). Museums and arts organizations benefit as tourism works reciprocally because the demand for museums for cultural tourists is high. As defined by the National Trust for Historic Preservation – United States, cultural heritage tourism means traveling to experience places, artifacts, and activities that authentically represent the stories and people of the past and present (Gibson 2015). Traveling as a tourist has become a normal part of everyone's life, rather than a one-off experience (Kelly). Even the centre-left British newspaper The Guardian stated that digital engagement is changing tourists' habits and behaviors (2013). International tourists of all ages and backgrounds who get information from any information receiving device would be able to plan certain goals and objectives to meetduring their visit to the museum to improve their overall experience in the museum or gallery (Liew and Loh). Ideologically, there would be a desire for inspiration and planning before the trip, and also a post-trip need to share memories and recommendations, and return (The Guardian 2013). Without their information receiving devices, international tourists would have no prior knowledge to plan their visits to museums and various entertainment. Digital marketing offers the prospect of addressing a much broader international audience than traditional marketing. Museums and arts organizations are also able to easily monitor the success rate of digital marketing through remarketing methods, organic and paid search, as well as social media interactions, while inadequately equipped traditional marketing simply does not allow museums and arts organizations artistic ways of doing so (Poparic 2018). The Impact of Social Media on Museum Marketing In the article by Vassiliadis and Balenioti, they confirmed that social media applications are becoming the new communication status quo for marketing museums and arts organizations. According to We Are Social's Global Digital Report, the number of social media users worldwide in 2018 is 3.196 billion (2018). With this magnitude of social media users, people viewing marketing content on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram would be notable. Furthermore, it has been reported that there has been a steady increase in social media users. The global increase in social media usage since January 2017 is 13% (We Are Social 2018). Zafiropoulos, Vrana and Antoniadis shared a positive example of how the British Museum uses social media to offer access to digital content, communicate ideas, encourage and facilitate discussion and market to global online audiences. Museum visitors can express their experiences on social media, share their memories and observations, and even upload photos taken during the visit. Through this, Zafiropoulos et al. they emphasized that the use of social media transforms visitors into active participants who essentially act as ambassadors for the museum. The active participation of museum goers extends the museum's reach not only to the museum's target audience, but also to the social circle of museum goers. US museums also use Facebook as a platform to distribute information about their programs and topics relevant to their exhibitions. Their posts aim to inform and prepare people for the physical visit, strengthen the experience after the visit, and create independent online experiences (Zafiropoulos et al.). On the other hand, traditional marketing efforts would not be able to extend the function to allow museum-goers to have unique experiences. Social media also allows for a participatory learning process. Vassiliadis and Balenioti show that the museum learning process is becoming more social, modern, young and at the same time fun. Zafiropoulos et al. It also attests that museums use social media to reach young audiences and provide interactive learning tools and relevant forms of interpretation. In a 2016 journal by Bitner and Albinsson, it was mentioned that millennials are exposed to digital readiness at a young age, thus leading to high social media usage. Liew and Loh also confirm that the audience of museum arts organizations is expanding to include a younger generation who are avid users of digital media. With young people occupying most social media platforms, museums are in.
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