FAQ

What is Museum Store Sunday all about?

A.  Museum Store Sunday is a global annual event celebrating the stores and their mission-related products which play a vital role in helping arts, cultural and nonprofit attractions educate and thrive.

The key messages are that museum stores and related nonprofit retailers offer:

●       Shopping with a Conscience and Purpose –by shopping at your local museum, cultural, historic, or natural attraction, you are actively contributing to its future sustainability and success. You are also helping to support small businesses, independent suppliers and artisan makers.

●       Unique Mission-related Products and Shopping – Museum Store Sunday invites holiday shoppers to “BE A PATRON” by purchasing the quality gifts filled with inspiration and educational value that are found at museum stores and related nonprofit retailers. Many of these gifts are exclusive to their store and cannot be found anywhere else.

●       A Meaningful Experience –shoppers will find a fun, relaxing and meaningful experience and be satisfied that proceeds from purchases from museum stores will help support the mission and programming of the organizations.

Q. How will it benefit my organization?

●       Boost your income – in 2018 participants reported average increases of 47% (gross sales), 42% (net sales), and 21% (transactions) from the 2017 Museum Store Sunday.

●       Attract new audiences – showcase your store, products and organization to new customers and visitors. In 2018, stores experienced a 35% increase in visitors and museums experienced an 11% increase in visitors on average from the 2017 Museum Store Sunday.

●       Increase awareness – attract and receive press and media coverage and social engagement by being part of Museum Store Sunday’s international reach. Stores received global coverage in print, radio, television and online from major news outlets, such as the Associated Press, USA Today, Architectural Digest, and The Guardian.

Q. We want to get involved, but we don’t know where to start. What do we do?

A. First, sign up to participate using the Registration Form. Participation is free and available to all museum stores and related nonprofit retailers, such stores from zoos, aquariums, parks, botanical gardens, historic sites, and more.

Second, plan your event or promotion for Museum Store Sunday – ideally something that will attract shoppers and publicity in the run-up to the day as well as appeal to your museum members and constituents. A combination of event/promotion such as an artisan trunk show or book signing combined with a special discount or product promotion such as a free gift.

Third, collaborate with colleagues from your organization’s marketing, communications, membership and visitor experience departments to get everyone involved and excited and be sure to inform your store staff about the “why” behind Museum Store Sunday.

Q. How do I promote my Museum Store Sunday activities?

A.  Access and use the marketing tool kit to find the official Museum Store Sunday logo, digital assets, marketing and social media content, and a schedule of implementation so you won’t miss a beat. Promote to your members and customers via your website, email marketing, and social media using #museumstoresunday, #beapatron, #shopmuseumstores.

Share your plans with us so we can help you promote your event via the Museum Store Sunday website and social channels. Once you register, you will have access to the Museum Store Sunday Locator where you will be able to upload your store and institution details, including photos of your store and organization. The Locator is where customers in your area can easily find you and shop!

Q. How do I get buy-in from my organization?

A.  Although Museum Store Sunday is now in its sixth year, many of your colleagues may be unaware of it or have other priorities. Use the key messages listed above to explain the objectives and how it will benefit your organization.

Museum Store Sunday provides your store staff and other front line staff with a great platform to engage with customers, as the team at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco found:

“Our artisan trunk shows at the de Young and the Legion of Honor combined with our 20% storewide discount that we offered to everyone, members and non-members alike, created an exciting and fun-filled day in the stores. Customers were delighted to use the discount to their advantage by shopping for everyone on their holiday gift list.”

Q. We don’t have the time or resources to get involved - what do we do?

●       Sign the store – It’s as easy as putting up a Museum Store Sunday sign in your store to join the celebration. Download a ready-made sign from the tool kit, print it out on your office printer and place it in your store – it’s as simple as that!

●      Ask a vendor – Many suppliers to your store are eager to help and provide resources and support. A product launch or trunk show is an easy way to create an event without any inventory (and if you’re online only, consider planning a virtual demo!)

●       Pool your resources – Approach other local museum stores to join forces and create a special Museum Store Sunday area event, such as a Passport Program or pool resources to create cooperative advertising.

●       Use the free assets – there is a multitude of free resources in the tool kit, such as the official logo, ready-made table-top sign, digital graphics for social media, and templates for postcards, ready for your use in-store or online.

Q. We’re not a 'museum’- is it still relevant to us?

A.  Absolutely! Museum Store Sunday is all about promoting the value and importance of nonprofit retail with its curated products and unique experiences. Besides museum stores, participation is open to all independently operated nonprofit retailers located at zoos, aquariums, botanical gardens, historic sites, performing arts, libraries, cathedrals, parks, and other related nonprofits.

Q. We aren’t open on Sundays so we can’t take part - can we?

A.  Yes you can! Organizations in similar situations have:

●       Celebrated Museum Store Sunday on another day during the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend, for example the Friday and Saturday before.

●       Created an online-only event and promotion, extending it through Cyber Monday.

●       Held a special Sunday opening for a limited time frame – creating an unique event highlight.

Q.  We have our own brand identity and can’t use other logos - does this matter?

A.  Museum Store Sunday is a campaign, not a brand – so of course it's fine to use your own institution’s branding to promote your activities. However, if you do have the opportunity to use the Museum Store Sunday logo, it would be greatly appreciated as it helps build consumer awareness of the campaign.

Q. We don’t have access to our organization’s social media channels - how can we use social to promote Museum Store Sunday?

A. Connect and collaborate early with your marketing & communications team (or whoever handles your social media channels) by informing them about the win-win-win benefits. Museum Store Sunday is a great story that benefits everyone – the store, the institution, and the public, and makes for some engaging and unique content.

Q. I still have questions about Museum Store Sunday. What should I do?

A.  Reach out to info@musuemstoresunday.org and someone is available to assist.