In the last 11 days, 705 of you have taken our survey. Without further ado, here are the results!
Almost 90% of our survey-takers have visited a Children’s Museum before. I suppose it isn’t too surprising that people who would take our survey overlap quite a bit with children’s museum visitors. We have lots of interest from people who have visited children’s museums, we’ll need to expand our audience to those who haven’t by showing them how wonderful a children’s museum can be!
Big winners are Mini Cities, Water, and Playgrounds, with arts and crafts and baby areas not too far behind. There were tons of fantastic write-in suggestions on this one, some of the most popular were: construction, ball wall or maze, dramatic and pretend play, sensory activities, music, science/STEM exhibits, bubbles, and trains, trucks, or other vehicles.
Shows and Presentations was the only response that many said they didn’t enjoy, the write in comments indicate that this is because little kids generally want to PLAY, not sit and watch a show! Comments also mentioned that poorly maintained exhibits were a big issue that made families not enjoy a children’s museum.
I love this one! All but 2 of our survey respondents said that YES! A children’s museum would be a beneficial addition to the community!
Almost 95% of you said that you definitely would or would consider a membership to a local children’s museum! The high percentage isn’t too surprising, since people likely to take a survey about a local children’s museum and people who would consider a membership probably have a pretty significant overlap. What blew me away is the sheer numbers! It’s a great sign in terms of interest and enthusiasm in the community to have 667 people say that they are interested in a children’s museum membership in such a short time, and without a big marketing campaign or outreach effort.
West Des Moines and Downtown topped the list of locations, with Ankeny as a HUGE write in winner. Of the 146 comments in the “other” option, 55 of them were to suggest Ankeny.
The final question is hard to summarize, since it was just an open ended opportunity to tell us anything else you wanted to. Many people suggested their favorite exhibits from other museums, we have lots of fun places to visit while we plan for our permanent home! A lot of people mentioned again the importance of clean, well-maintained exhibits. And a lot of people left really wonderful, encouraging comments about how much Des Moines needs a children’s museum! A huge Thank You to everyone who took the time to take our survey!