When Times Get Tough, It’s the Locals Who Keep Museums Alive
Those of us in Las Vegas can’t escape the daily headlines: we’re living through another period of economic uncertainty. The city often acts as a “canary in the coal mine,” and when Vegas feels the strain, the rest of the country isn’t far behind. Attendance dips, costs rise, and for cultural institutions, especially museums, this is hardly uncharted territory. Some will weather the storm; others may not. The difference often comes down to one key factor: locals.
The research is surprisingly consistent - museums that cultivate strong local audiences and community partnerships are better positioned to survive downturns than those who rely primarily on tourists or one-off blockbuster exhibitions.
Tourists vs. Locals: The Fragile Equation
On paper, tourists look like a dream. They arrive in large numbers, buy tickets, shop in the store, and post on social media. But during a downturn or a disruption like a pandemic, that revenue source can evaporate almost overnight. Heavy reliance on tourism-driven receipts and blockbusters has been flagged as a structural vulnerability for years. Locals, on the other hand, may not bring the same one-time windfall, but they bring something even more valuable: repeat visitation, membership stability, and advocacy. International guidance from ICOM and OECD stresses that museums are essential to local resilience, both socially and economically, and recommends building closer ties with local governments, schools, and communities.
It’s easy to forget that museums aren’t just “nice-to-haves.” In the U.S., they contribute billions to GDP and support hundreds of thousands of jobs. The American Alliance of Museums (AAM) has long emphasized that museums generate tax revenue and act as economic multipliers in their own communities.
This isn’t just an abstract argument; it’s a survival strategy. Investing in local engagement creates a self-sustaining loop: locals support the museum, and the museum, in turn, strengthens the local economy. That loop is far more durable than a fragile dependence on tourists.
The COVID-19 pandemic offered a brutal stress test. Attendance plummeted. Revenues dried up. Many institutions faced existential crises. Reports from across the sector show that museums relying heavily on tourist traffic or blockbuster income were hit hardest. By contrast, those that had already embedded themselves in their communities, through school programs, neighborhood events, and accessible pricing, were often better able to adapt and recover. This isn’t just hindsight. The ongoing cost-of-living crisis continues to depress attendance, especially among lower-income families, underscoring the need for models that build trust and loyalty close to home.
Case in Point: Santa Cruz MAH
One of my favorite examples comes from the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History (MAH). A little over a decade ago, the MAH shifted away from chasing blockbusters and toward building community partnerships. They co-created exhibits, hosted events for locals, and made the museum feel like a civic commons. The results were dramatic: engagement tripled, membership swelled, and the museum stabilized its finances, all by treating locals as the core audience rather than an afterthought.
That shift wasn’t just about programming. It was a philosophical choice: locals first, tourists second. It worked.
A Playbook for Resilient Museums
So what should museums do to thrive in the face of an uncertain economy? A review of the research points to a few clear steps:
1. Map your revenue risk. Know how much depends on tourists, blockbusters, or rentals versus locals, memberships, and schools. If your reliance on tourists is too high, that’s a warning sign.
2. Prioritize repeat-local programs. Create memberships, family passes, and weekday school programs that make locals feel like they belong. Repeat visitation provides steadier revenue.
3. Strengthen educator pipelines. Build easy-to-navigate educator portals, modular lessons, and flexible field trip models. ICOM and IMLS both highlight school partnerships as resilience levers.
4. Co-create with your community. Invite local voices into exhibit design, host neighborhood events, and create youth advisory groups. True partnerships deepen trust and loyalty.
5. Diversify earned income smartly. Keep revenue streams broad: memberships, recurring donors, rentals, and mission-driven programs. The pandemic revealed how fragile a narrow reliance on ticket sales can be.
6. Measure local impact. Track repeat visitation, local membership growth, and school partnerships. These metrics tell you more about long-term resilience than the raw numbers from a single blockbuster show.
The Bigger Picture
Local audiences are not just “nice to have” until the tourists come back. They are the lifeline of museums. By embedding deeply in their communities, cultural institutions don’t just weather downturns, they redefine themselves as essential partners in civic life. Locals have become savvy at recognizing when they’re not welcomed. A panicked BOGO offer from a museum who has ignored its community for years will not suddenly yield results; it takes a coordinated and deliberate effort to engage with local stakeholders, build trust, and deliver the types of experiences they need.
To paraphrase one report, resilience isn’t just about surviving crises, it’s about being woven into the fabric of everyday community life. That’s as true in 2025 as it was during the pandemic. If the past few years have taught us anything, it’s that when times get tough, it’s locals who keep the lights on.
References
· American Alliance of Museums (2017). Museums as Economic Engines.
· ICOM & OECD (2019). Culture and Local Development: Maximising the Impact.
· Institute of Museum and Library Services (2017). Strengthening Networks, Sparking Change: Museums and Libraries as Community Catalysts.
· Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History case study (N. Simon, 2016). The Art of Relevance.
· Sector reporting on pandemic and cost-of-living impacts (2020–2024). The Art Newspaper (and others).
· Discussions on over-reliance on tourism and blockbusters (various). Museum Next (and others).
