Interview about audio tours at DIA

Notes from phone conversation with Swarupa, Alison & James.

Some cell phone tour companies the DIA is considering using: Guide by
cell, On Cell systems

DIA will be using cell-based tours for its upcoming Richard Avedon
exhibition & possibly Through African Eyes
With Acoustiguide wands, there's lots of staff time involved in
distribution of equipment, sanitizing, etc.

• Development is costly; of tours themselves; scripts, creative part,
  etc.
• TYPICALLY FOR EXHIBITIONS, COSTS RUN $40K FOR content development,
  equipment rental, etc.

• DON'T SEE VERY MANY PEOPLE USING AUDIOTOUR FOR PERMANENT COLLECTION
  POST-REINSTALLATION. NOT SURE IF DECLINE IS B/C OF ABUNDANCE OF OTHER
  INTERPRETIVE OPPORTUNITIES, IF PEOPLE DON'T KNOW ABOUT IT, OR B/C WE NOW
  CHARGE A COUPLE OF $$ FOR USE.
• People using audio tours in special exhibitions (audio tour built
  into the ticket price)
• LARGE-PRINT paper copies of text available as alternative
• stops 2-3 minutes

With cell system:

• Visitors can leave audio comments
• Text voting can occur
• development/production process is simplified. E.g. Director can just
  record comments/content into a phone - you don't have to use a
  recording studio
• piloting a cell phone tour with 6-8 stops; an adult tour FOR AVEDON
  EXHIBITION. This is in
  contrast to acoustiguide tours of gallery, which typically have 15-20
  stops & 40 minutes per tour roughly, as well as youth tours
• stops = aiming for 1-2 minute ON CELL PHONE B/C MANY PAY PER MINUTE
• Benefit - People can use their own equipment.
• drawback - DIA has historically discouraged cell phone use in
  galleries. Also, how many have their own cell phones?
• able to track usage, how much of the content they listened to, where
  people stop, how long until hang-up - visitor research component
• Cell phone COMPANY doesn't provide any web interface (for listening
  to audio content, recording audio content post-visit, etc.). DIA CAN
  LIST PHONE NUMBERS ON DIA WEBPAGE. DIA would
  have to build this. BUT DIA owns the content w/ a cell system.
• Getty Museum provides print brochures with a small thumbnail and the
  cell phone number of the object so that they can interact with it
  after the visit, comment from home
• With cell phone system, options for people participating are a lot
  broader (e.g. scholars from afar)
  How do you choose what audio responses can be accessed by other cell
  phone users?
• Try to provide a structure for soliciting responses to galleries/
  objects. Questions for responses need to be carefully positioned to
  inspire a response (not typically a yes/no question); questions are
  made for works of art that are particularly interesting/emotional,
  likely to instigate a reaction