MARKETING OF RIJEKA MUSEUMS: CURRENT PRACTICES AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS

Purpose – The paper is dedicated to the marketing of Rijeka museums. It presents the research that encompassed a) museum professionals’ marketing knowledge and skills and their implementation in practice b) core and additional services offered by museums c) museum professionals’ opinions and attitudes about the new trends in museum marketing. Methodology – Exploratory research was conducted. Data for the theoretical foundations were collected from secondary scientific sources and by searching the websites, social networks, and promotional materials. Qualitative research in the form of in-depth, semi-structured personal interviews with key informants was performed to collect primary data. Findings – The level of familiarity with the services marketing in Rijeka museums was low, pointing to a lack of marketing professionals. Nevertheless, the need for marketing was recognised, and museums were striving to implement some generic marketing activities. The core services (exhibitions and/or collections of materials) showed predominant product orientation, with insufficient orientation on a visitor. Opinions and attitudes of interviewees on museum marketing trends were positive. However, museums could not include new content despite wishes due to the lack of capacity. Furthermore, the legal frame prevented expanding the offer of a souvenir shop. Contribution – Although the research was conducted before the onset of the pandemic, the paper provides theoretical insights and practical suggestions, which could help academics and professionals to understand better and deal with the potential opportunities and threats in museum marketing in the dramatically changing environmentns.