Kickstarter provides an intuitive platform for launching a fundraising campaign. As a campaign manager, you establish the parameters for your Web-based project. This includes the duration on the campaign and the amount of money you seek to raise. Once the campaign begins, you need to raise all of the funds by the deadline or the project doesn’t get funded. Yes, it’s an all or nothing funding scheme. It’s that simple.

Now, for those familiar with fundraising, this might not seem like the most desirable approach. It takes a lot of time and energy to run a successful campaign. So, why would you want to proceed in this fashion when you run the risk of losing those hard earned dollars? And why not host the campaign on your own website?

The Advantages

Kickstarter offers several major advantages. The first is that the format creates a sense of urgency for both the campaign manager and the backers. There is X amount of time to raise Y number of dollars. Both parties want to meet the goal because both are passionate about the cause. Campaign managers need to provide updates on the project while mobilizing supporters and reaching out across the web to potential donors. Backers want to see the project succeed and they help to build momentum and spread the word about the project.

The second advantage is the rewards-based format. Kickstarter promotes the idea of offering “something of value” to all backers, big and small. In fact, the majority of donations on Kickstarter are $50 or less. According to Kickstarter, “Projects without a reward less than $20 succeed 35% of the time, while projects with a reward less than $20 succeed 54% of the time.” In short, give ALL donors something of value and make the gifts fit the donation level.

The third advantage is the Updates page. Here, campaign managers can keep the audience up-to-date on the project’s developments. Are there news articles on your project? How about some new pictures or video? Keep backers and potential donors hooked. It’s really hard to do this with appeal letters and other forms of traditional fundraising.

The fourth major advantage is the back-end for managing the campaign. Campaign managers have access to several beneficial tools and simple services listed on a “Manage Your Project” toolbar. The first is an Activity page. Here, information including donations and updates to the campaign are displayed in chronological order. Next is the Backer Report. This contains the names of the backers at each level with the corresponding reward. Additionally, there is a button that allows managers to export the data as an Excel-compatible spreadsheet. Next is a Messages page that allows managers to directly communicate with individual backers. Following that is a button to Edit your campaign. And, last but not least, is a button to post a new update to the Updates page.

The Campaign Page

Let’s take a quick look at the anatomy of a Kickstarter campaign profile. On the Project Home page, information is arranged in two columns. On the left, campaign managers can display a photo or video of the project. Below this is the location for the “About the Project” narrative. There are three additional tabs located above the project’s photo/video: Updates, Backers, and Comments.

The right column includes real-time information on the status of the project and a pledge button. Below this is the hierarchy of rewards and the number of backers at each level.

The “Updates” page is essentially a blog. This is a place to provide emerging details on the project. The updates keep backers connected with news and information while also providing prospective donors with additional details on the project.

The Backers and Comments page are quite basic. The Backers page lists the profiles of those who have supported the project in order of their pledge (i.e. first person listed is the first donor). However, the amount pledged by each donor is not visible to the public. This information is only made available to the campaign manager.

The Comments page is simply a place for people to leave feedback on the project. From what I have gathered so far, it is not possible for campaign managers to moderate comments. I think this is somewhat troubling, especially if you are running a perceived “controversial” campaign.

The Fine Print

If you’ve read this far and you think you might me interested in utilizing Kickstarter, then I think you should begin with the FAQ page. Keep in mind that Kickstarter is still in beta format, so you will need to submit a project idea through the Kickstarter website for approval (we heard back with a response in less than a week).

While there is no maximum amount a project can raise, donations can only be made in the range of $1 to $10,000. To begin a project, you will need to setup an Amazon Payments account. This will require a credit card and a bank account for depositing funds. Furthermore, if the project is funded, Kickstarter will charge the project a 5% fee. Additionally, Amazon will charge credit card processing fees (note: there is no Amazon fee for backers!). As for duration, projects can last from 1 to 90 days. However, we were advised that campaigns lasting 45 days or less have a higher rate of success.

More To Come

We launched our 45-day campaign to raise $10,000 on Tuesday, July 27. We are now 10 days into the campaign and we’ve managed to raise 31% of the funds. I’ll follow up in a few weeks at the conclusion of the fundraiser with more information on the actual project. I also look forward to posting additional thoughts on Kickstarter as a campaign platform. Until then, take a peek at these additional resources:

• Nina Simon’s article on why museums should consider Kickstarter on her Museum 2.0 blog.
• @Kickstarter on Twitter
• Google News

What does it mean to be a national museum? Whose stories do we reflect? What do we aspire to be? These are all common questions that I receive when people first learn about the Arab American National Museum (AANM). Understandably, the word “national” in the title can be a bit ambiguous. However, when understood in the context of the Museum’s history and its operations, things become much clearer. Read more…

Founded on May 5, 2005, the Arab American National Museum (AANM) will soon celebrate its fifth anniversary. People are often curious about the Museum’s origins and its location. Although the Museum is still very much a startup, its roots extend back to the late 1980s. In fact, the AANM is a part of the Dearborn-based Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS). In 1987 the agency developed a cultural arts department to educate the public on Arab American culture and to provide affordable and accessible arts programming. Today, the AANM is an extension of this program and it remains a vibrant department within ACCESS. Although it is very uncommon for a museum to be part of a social service agency, ACCESS considers the arts to be just one part of a multi-component approach to providing comprehensive services for living an enriched and fulfilling life. Read more…

Upon arriving back in Michigan, I participated in a panel presentation at the Cultural Alliance of Southeastern Michigan (CASM) 2010 Annual Meeting. The presentation, entitled Socially Awkward: Learning to Navigate Web and Social Technologies, focused on the Arab American National Museum’s approach to using social technologies and raising unrestricted funds online. We were pressed for time, so there was no opportunity for questions and answers at the end. If you’ve arrived here as a result of the presentation, please do leave a comment or question, or feel free to drop me a message vial email. Thanks for stopping by!

- Devon Akmon

Now that the final exhibit graphic has been proofed and the substrate cut and finished, it’s time to move on to the last few stages of production.

Assemble The Panel

It’s time to assemble the exhibit panel. The first step is to mount the graphic to the front of the substrate. There are several different adhesives and transfer papers on the market for applying the graphic. We’ve had much success using Perma Trans inkjet transfer paper to mount graphics. The material adheres well and the end result is a smooth and clean presentation.

While one could stop after completing this task, I highly recommend adding a second surface to the panel. This helps to protect the graphic and it adds longevity to the panel (keeps those sticky fingers from damaging the graphic). Additionally, it helps to reduce glare from gallery lighting. In general, we use a 1/8 inch piece of acrylic cut to the same dimensions as the graphic and substrate. As mentioned, our preference is to use non-glare acrylic.

Admittedly, these few steps may seem daunting to a novice. Therefore, I recommend checking with a local printshop to see if this service is available. It’s relatively inexpensive and the turnaround time is usually quick. Go with what feels comfortable. While screwing up a panel is not the end of the world, it will set you back on time and money.

The final, assembled exhibit panel.

Add The Mounting Hardware

OK, the interpretative panel is now finished and ready to be mounted to the wall. Congratulations! It’s time to add the mounting hardware. Similar to the other steps in this process, there are numerous ways of approaching this task. Our preference is to use aluminum “z” clips for mounting panels. These clips are both strong and durable, as well as easy to assemble and install.There are numerous vendors for “z” clips on the Internet. If you have the tools, I recommend purchasing larger lengths and cutting them to meet the size of each individual panel. Otherwise, one can usually have them cut by the vendor.

Once you’ve got your clips cut to size, mount one of the interlocking clips to the wall at the spot where you want to hang the panel. Now, mount the second interlocking part on the back on the exhibit panel. However, before mounting the panel to the wall I recommend adding a small strip of Sintra or foam board to the lower portion of the panel. This will help stabilize the panel and keep it flush with the wall.

Pat Yourself On The Back!

Congratulations, you’re done! Take a moment to admire your hard work. As you can see from the picture below, these simple panels make a very professional gallery when hung together and placed with artifacts.

The Gallery.

- Devon Akmon

Our first tutorial focuses on roasting coffee beans with an air popcorn popper. The following short video will walk you through the steps and set you on your way to a better tasting cup of Joe. Stay tuned for a forthcoming tutorial on brewing coffee with a siphon!

- Devon Akmon

Today, exhibit houses are under pressure to alter their business strategies. These pressures are spawned by the current economic downturn and competitive influences. Clients are demanding more from their exhibit houses but wanting to pay less. Custom builds and refurbishing services are down while rental exhibits are increasingly popular. Storage, drayage and shipping costs continue to escalate, and general service contractors (GSCs) bundle services to make it more difficult to compete.

The prevailing economic winds show no sign of letting up anytime soon, at least not in Michigan. As indicated above, this means more museums are trying to get by with less and, in turn, exhibit builders are floundering. Of the two large firms based in SE Michigan, one has gone out of business and one has greatly reduced its scope of services.

A couple of years ago, when the economy started going south, we decided to look at our exhibit building options. Clearly, for medium to large scale exhibits we knew that we would need to hire a firm. However, we also realized that small exhibits and “permanent exhibit” modifications could be handled in-house. For example, our web designer has been handling more print design. Our IT staff have been identifying new ways of building/modifying interactives (an Arduino, an mp3 player and some LEDs can go a long way and save some serious cash!). And our curatorial department has been creating more with so much less.

Speaking to this, I will walk you through the steps of creating a very simple exhibit panel. This is very basic, not hard to produce and the final project will look clean and professional. There are numerous modifications one can make, so play with it to meet you needs. Normally, the panel I show below would cost a couple of hundred dollars to have made. However, this one cost us under one hundred dollars to produce.

Step One: Create the Graphic

The first step is to draft the text for your panel. After you’ve proofread the material and are comfortable with the language and length, drop the text and any supporting graphics into a graphics application such as Adobe Illustrator. I won’t spend too much time discussing accessibility standards, but I will mention a few general guidelines one should follow:

• Avoid the use of colloquial and complex English, jargon, and technical language
• Use the active voice
• Use a sans-serif or simple serif typeface
• High contrast for type and background

For more information on sign and label standards, visit the Smithsonian Guidelines For Accessible Exhibition Design website or check out the Standards Manual for Signs and Labels from the American Association of Museums.

The text and graphics should now be laid out and the graphic panel set to its final dimensions. I generally use Adobe Illustrator to create my template. Before saving the final version, I “select all” and then “create outlines” of all the text. This helps to ensure the correct font type when printing the graphic.

Create the graphic.

Create a Proof

One could create a proof in-house if a quality printer is available. However, we generally send our templates to a high-quality printshop. We prefer to have the graphic created on a Lambda or LightJet machine. I would recommend using the Pantone Matching System to ensure the print colors meet your specification. Once your proof is ready, I highly recommend taping it to the wall at the panel’s final location. This helps to see what the panel will look like under the current lighting arrangement and, if there are similar panels nearby, it helps to ensure that the print blends in with those in the surrounding area. If the results satisfy your needs, it’s time to move on to building the substrate.

The proof of the graphic.

Prepare the Substrate

There are numerous substrates one can choose to use. However, we generally choose medium-density fiberboard (MDF). It’s cheap, durable, readily accessible and easy to work with. Mark out your dimensions on the substrate, measure again and make the cut. Be sure to cut your panel exactly to size. If a power saw is utilized then be sure to compensate for the kerf.

Once the panel is cut to size, use 600-1000 grit sandpaper to clean up the edges and surfaces of the substrate. Then, dress up the edges with several coats of paint that complement or match your graphic. I recommend at least four or five coats of paint. Don’t worry too much about the surface of the substrate; the graphic will cover one side and the other will face the wall. Once the paint dries and meets your satisfaction then you’re now ready to move on to the next step: putting the panel together.

The substrate.

Tune back in a couple of days for the second part of How To Build A Simple Interpretative Panel For An Exhibit. We’ll discuss the final steps in putting together a simple exhibit panel.

- Devon Akmon

To help illustrate my point, I’ll present you with a tangible example. We are currently in the process of developing a small exhibit on the history of coffee and its roots in the Arab world. Within the gallery, and above a display of coffee making artifacts, is a historical image of a Bedouin tribe making coffee in a tent.

Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. LC-DIG-matpc-01315. Making coffee in Bedouin tent.

This seems like a rather benign image. It’s a historical photograph that shows what one might have seen at a coffee ceremony in the early 20th century. Within the image one will notice several coffee-related elements – mortar and pestle, grinder, etc. – that would have been used during this time period. So, what’s the problem?

As many historians know, it was very common during this era for photographers to capture images of “exotic cultures” and depict them as primitives or “others.” Perhaps one of the most well-known controversies surrounds Edward Curtis and his series of photographs, The North American Indian. Curtis is accused of portraying Native Americans in the popular notions and stereotypes of the times. Similar to this, numerous photographers traveled to the Middle East in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to capture images of Arabs. Renowned scholar Edward Said is most famous for describing and critiquing “Orientalism,” which he perceived as a constellation of false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the East. Images such as this can easily fall into the category of Orientalist art and photography, especially when considering the context in which these images were produced.

The American Colony was an independent, utopian, Christian sect formed by religious pilgrims who emigrated to Jerusalem from the United States and Sweden. They were responsible for creating this and several other photographs in historical Palestine. According to the Library of Congress, “These photographs captured the interest of the public and were greatly in demand.” As you can see, these images were both popular and a good source for much needed revenue to help improve the Colony’s living conditions in a foreign land. Arguably, the interest of the sitters was not a priority.

Similar to other ephemera, a greater understanding is constructed when viewed in the cultural context in which the object was produced. Unfortunately, this is not always an easy task. By exhibiting this image in a gallery that shows the history of coffee, we run the risk of potentially reinforcing an age-old stereotype about the Arab world. Speaking to this, our curatorial team has two strategical approaches it is exploring for addressing this issue. One approach is to make a game utilizing the artifacts in the exhibit and the photograph. A label next to the image asks visitors to locate within the gallery the objects that appear in the photo. In doing so, the curatorial team hopes to place the most amount of emphasis on the objects in the photograph. Second, the team is considering whether or not a second didactic label is necessary. This one might address the stereotype head on. While one approach seeks to distract attention, the second seeks to address the issue in a more transparent way.

We have not yet discussed how we might evaluate the success of these two approaches. Right now the curatorial team is working hard to put the finishing touches on the exhibition. I presume we will further delve into this in the coming week.

Thoughts? Reactions? Do you work in a museum? Have you had similar experiences? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

- Devon Akmon