Investigating the Alignment Between Web and Social Media Efforts and Effectiveness: The Case of Science Centres

The adoption of Internet technologies has led to important transformations in the way in which organizations reach and interact with their audiences. The context of museums and exhibitions is also witnessing a consolidation of the usage of Web 2.0 for disseminating information and for supporting the interactions to complement, improve and augment visitors’ experiences. Despite the proliferation of online evidence about the efforts that these organizations are making to build a strong Web presence and a vibrant existence in Social Media, there is far less knowledge about the effectives of such investments from the perspective of the users. The purpose of this study is to propose a framework that allows the assessment and the discussion about the alignment between online presence of an organization and its effectiveness towards its target audience and service promise. The study builds on the analysis of Web and Social Media presence of Science Centers and addresses the whole network of Centers in Portugal. It offers an overview of different types of online efforts and resource allocation, while discussing it towards recent results about its importance for users’ awareness about the Centers.