--- title: "Wednesday Buzz: When Free Admission Doesn’t Work" id: "29771" type: "post" slug: "wednesday-buzz-when-free-admission-doesnt-work" published_at: "2015-08-12T19:08:08+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T14:30:27+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2015/08/12/wednesday-buzz-when-free-admission-doesnt-work/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2015/08/12/wednesday-buzz-when-free-admission-doesnt-work.md" excerpt: "Take a data-driven dive into why free admission isn't a one-stop solution for the museum world. Plus: Is Pinterest really a social network?" taxonomy_category: - "Membership" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "attendance" - "Business" - "Membership" - "museum" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Wednesday Buzz: When Free Admission Doesn’t Work We’ve written a ton about the pros and cons of [offering free membership](http://associationsnow.com/2015/03/got-door-10-month-trial-membership-offer-found-success/) and the ways to [pay for membership without using cash](http://associationsnow.com/2015/08/must-member-dues-always-be-monetary/) . Free membership and access is certainly tantalizing, but when it comes to museums, the allure of free may be something worth resisting. Colleen Dilenschneider, an expert on nonprofit and museum engagement, [writes about how free admission affects museums (opens in a new tab)](http://colleendilen.com/2015/08/12/how-free-admission-really-affects-museum-attendance-data/) , and the results aren’t exactly pretty. “The truth is that free admission comes with a cost. Free admission is far from the engagement cure-all that some of its supporters believe it to be,” she writes, warning museums not to swiftly label admission price as the primary barrier to attendance and engagement. And free admission doesn’t always offer a long-term payoff either, according to data Dilenschneider cites from the National Awareness, Attitudes and Usage Study of Visitor-Serving Organizations. For Dilenschneider’s full analysis, [check out her post (opens in a new tab)](http://colleendilen.com/2015/08/12/how-free-admission-really-affects-museum-attendance-data/) . ### Podcast of the Day [(opens in a new tab)](http://www.marketingprofs.com/podcasts/2015/28240/Millennial-CEO-amanda-holmes-marketing-podcast) If you’re looking for a fresh leadership perspective, [turn to this conversation (opens in a new tab)](http://www.marketingprofs.com/podcasts/2015/28240/Millennial-CEO-amanda-holmes-marketing-podcast) between [Chet Holmes International (opens in a new tab)](http://www.chetholmes.com/) CEO Amanda Holmes and *MarketingProfs* podcast host Kerry O’Shea Gorgone. Holmes became CEO when she was just 24 and has plenty of insights to share on audience outreach. ### Other Good Reads **Frustrated because your ads are being blocked**, or guilty of blocking ads yourself? Check out programmer Marco Arment’s interesting blog post: [The ethics of modern web ad-blocking. (opens in a new tab)](http://www.marco.org/2015/08/11/ad-blocking-ethics) **Should you treat Pinterest like you treat SEO**, instead of treating it like social media? [Adage editor Jack Neff explores Quaker’s experiences (opens in a new tab)](http://adage.com/article/ad-age-homepage/pinterest-s-difference-social-media-lures-quaker/299872/) on the photo-intensive platform. **How does the *New York Times* recommend content to readers?** Explore its methodology [in this blog post (opens in a new tab)](http://open.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/08/11/building-the-next-new-york-times-recommendation-engine/) from data engineer Alexander Spangher. (Phil Roeder/ThinkStock) [Morgan Little](https://associationsnow.com/author/morgan-little/) Morgan Little is a contributor to Associations Now. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/morgan-little/) Tags: [#attendance](https://associationsnow.com/tag/attendance/) [#Business](https://associationsnow.com/tag/business/) [#Membership](https://associationsnow.com/tag/membership/) [#museum](https://associationsnow.com/tag/museum/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [TemplateMembers onlyMember Onboarding ToolkitNovember 5, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/11/05/member-onboarding-toolkit/) - [TemplateMembers onlyNo Show Policy for Paper PresentationJuly 20, 2018](https://associationsnow.com/2018/07/20/no-show-policy-for-paper-presentation/) - [PodcastAssociations Now Presents: Beyond the Tech Stack: How AI Is Changing the Association PlaybookOctober 29, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/10/29/associations-now-presents-beyond-the-tech-stack-how-ai-is-changing-the-association-playbook/) - [VideoThe Career Moves Every Association Leader Needs Right NowSeptember 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/24/the-career-moves-every-association-leader-needs-right-now/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2015%2F08%2F12%2Fwednesday-buzz-when-free-admission-doesnt-work%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !