Inspiration
The Charles River Museum will reopen in April and the staff are trying to promote it as much as possible. Since the museum is difficult to find if you don't know the location well (even Google Maps doesn't lead you straight there!), we decided to turn this disadvantage into an attraction to tourists by integrating a scavenger hunt game with the map.
What it does
Our webpage contains a new map (a modified version of an older map) with directions for getting to the museum as well as the floorplan for the museum. Visitors can scan the QR code that will be posted at nearby parking lots and local businesses or at the museum entrance itself to get the map of the surrounding area with clear directions on how to get to the museum, as well as maps that show how to navigate both floors of the museum. By scanning QR codes placed throughout the museum in different exhibits, visitors will be able to access information about the exhibits on their phones and get a chance to find "easter eggs"! Prizes will be awarded to those who successfully complete the scavenger hunt; these prizes will be small gifts like movie tickets and restaurant coupons donated by local businesses in exchange for promotion at the museum. We believe this collaboration with local businesses, especially other non-profits in the area, will promote mutually beneficial business within the community and will lead to future collaborations that could include co-hosting cultural events at the museum and/or more cross-promotional advertising between businesses with which we form partnerships. The map we created also highlights a few other local businesses to use as landmarks for finding the museum; this map could be redesigned in the future to be even more detailed and include more businesses.
How we built it
We based our interactive page on the Ruby on Rails framework and the static page using Webflow. We also imported a QR code generator, but it's up to the museum to decide whether they want to use a separate QR code generator or a built-in generator. We also made use of the websites freeonlinsurveys.com and wheelofnames.com to create our scavenger hunt quiz and wheel of fortune to generate randomized prizes.
Challenges we ran into
In the beginning, we had trouble figuring out how to create an easy-to-navigate map since even Google Maps was not accurate in locating the museum and how to get to its entrance. We decided to use QR codes to show visitors a simple map with clear walkways to the museum and QR codes within the museum to link users to different exhibits that would help them complete the scavenger hunt we created. Through this simplification of the map, we were able to achieve basic approximate user orientation while avoiding the technical difficulty of GPS location.
Accomplishments that we're proud of
We were able to implement a website prototype within one day, and the website dynamic is such that museum's staff can change the map or edit exhibit information in the future. As a result, our product is easy to maintain, even for a crew who knows nothing about coding. We also developed a marketing plan to collaborate with many local businesses in Waltham that we hope will benefit the entire local community along with the museum.
What we learned
We have gained much experience from building the website, including designing the UI and designing and implementing the database. We also had a great discussion with museum staff and mentors at the hackathon to learn about developing market proposals. We learned about how to run a non-profit organization and tried to explore the possibility of the operation of a social enterprise.
What's next for Charles River Museum Scavenger Hunt Map
The website UI is rather rudimentary right now. It needs to be upgraded to be even more user-friendly in the future, and it would be great if we could connect it with the museum's Virtual Matterport (the virtual reality version of the museum) in a more integrated way instead of by directing users only to links to this. It is also necessary to start reaching out to local restaurants and businesses near the museum to form partnerships and sponsorships.
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