Open Forum

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

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Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
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We use this kind: Great Star Tally Counter by Office Depot & OfficeMax. They're small enough to keep in a pocket, attach to a lanyard, or simply hold. Easy to use. Sometimes, after a while, the metal finger loop will break off or the numbers can get jammed. The final number count is often more of an estimate rather than exact coaunt, especially if/when the user forgets to click or sets it down somewhere and looses track of it. But, otherwise, they work just fine and help us keep track of how many guests we encounter in some of our galleries and during some of our programs. In our temporary gallery spaces we have a digital counter that counts people as they enter one door and exit the other. This number goes up and down and helps us to better regulate crowd control. But, that's about the extent of what i know about that set up. 


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Amber Parham
Museum Educator/Performer
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Denver CO
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2017 01:08 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

Hi Marie,

We use a clicker similar to the one Amber linked to. In addition we have a spreadsheet for the person recording attendance to enter the total for each hour, at which point they reset the clicker. (One could do the same with a clipboard.) This allows us to analyze traffic over the course of the day and mitigates the rare problem of a clicker malfunctioning or walking off.

------------------------------
Gordon Umbarger
Director of Operations
National Museum of Women in the Arts
Washington DC
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-26-2017 07:56 AM
From: Amber Parham
Subject: Visitor Counter

We use this kind: Great Star Tally Counter by Office Depot & OfficeMax. They're small enough to keep in a pocket, attach to a lanyard, or simply hold. Easy to use. Sometimes, after a while, the metal finger loop will break off or the numbers can get jammed. The final number count is often more of an estimate rather than exact coaunt, especially if/when the user forgets to click or sets it down somewhere and looses track of it. But, otherwise, they work just fine and help us keep track of how many guests we encounter in some of our galleries and during some of our programs. In our temporary gallery spaces we have a digital counter that counts people as they enter one door and exit the other. This number goes up and down and helps us to better regulate crowd control. But, that's about the extent of what i know about that set up. 


------------------------------
Amber Parham
Museum Educator/Performer
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Denver CO
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2017 01:08 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

Hi Amber:
Thanks for that suggestion and link! 
Do you know what kind of digital counters you have by chance?

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-26-2017 07:56 AM
From: Amber Parham
Subject: Visitor Counter

We use this kind: Great Star Tally Counter by Office Depot & OfficeMax. They're small enough to keep in a pocket, attach to a lanyard, or simply hold. Easy to use. Sometimes, after a while, the metal finger loop will break off or the numbers can get jammed. The final number count is often more of an estimate rather than exact coaunt, especially if/when the user forgets to click or sets it down somewhere and looses track of it. But, otherwise, they work just fine and help us keep track of how many guests we encounter in some of our galleries and during some of our programs. In our temporary gallery spaces we have a digital counter that counts people as they enter one door and exit the other. This number goes up and down and helps us to better regulate crowd control. But, that's about the extent of what i know about that set up. 


------------------------------
Amber Parham
Museum Educator/Performer
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Denver CO
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2017 01:08 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

I'm not sure. But, they are installed at the entrance and exit of our two temporary galleries. As the guests enter it adds numbers to the overall count, and as people exit, the number gets smaller. This helps us with crowd control. As for tracking the exact number of visitors that come to these galleries, their tickets are either re-scanned (if there's no additional cost), or they have a separate ticket (for additional cost exhibits).

------------------------------
Amber Parham
Museum Educator/Performer
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Denver CO
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 02-14-2017 02:13 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hi Amber:
Thanks for that suggestion and link! 
Do you know what kind of digital counters you have by chance?

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-26-2017 07:56 AM
From: Amber Parham
Subject: Visitor Counter

We use this kind: Great Star Tally Counter by Office Depot & OfficeMax. They're small enough to keep in a pocket, attach to a lanyard, or simply hold. Easy to use. Sometimes, after a while, the metal finger loop will break off or the numbers can get jammed. The final number count is often more of an estimate rather than exact coaunt, especially if/when the user forgets to click or sets it down somewhere and looses track of it. But, otherwise, they work just fine and help us keep track of how many guests we encounter in some of our galleries and during some of our programs. In our temporary gallery spaces we have a digital counter that counts people as they enter one door and exit the other. This number goes up and down and helps us to better regulate crowd control. But, that's about the extent of what i know about that set up. 


------------------------------
Amber Parham
Museum Educator/Performer
Denver Museum of Nature & Science
Denver CO
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2017 01:08 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------

At COSI we have the Clearcount 3d people counters with a price of $1195.0. They require a Ethernet cable for use. Each device, mounted from a ceiling or wall, counts people entering or exiting an exhibition. You can pull a simple report that provides a total count for a specified period of time. They track every person in contact. Unfortunately this system will count the same person multiple times if the person (visitor and/or team members) comes and goes. We have our people counters running off a SQL server which takes up a license and uses additional virtual server hardware. In our opinion these people counters, while straightforward, are difficult to manage due to technical support. More recently we have switched over to Meraki MR33 wireless access points. They cost $360 plus a three year license of $150. Each device counts people carrying WiFi capable equipment and can do so even though their WiFi is not enabled. The system will only count a device once and can also show general movement around the building using a heat map. They also show how long an individual (visitor and/or team member) stays in each exhibition and whether they come back to the museum. This system requires an Ethernet cable. As an added benefit the system provides WiFi for staff and guest.

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Josh Sarver
Sr. Director of Experiences
COSI
Columbus OH
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-25-2017 01:08 PM
From: Marie Toner
Subject: Visitor Counter

Hello Wise Ones:
Can you tell me what kind of visitor counters you are using?  What is the brand?  Are there any pros & cons?
Any feedback would be great, thank you so much!
Marie

------------------------------
Marie Toner
Curator
Pearl S. Buck House
Perkasie PA
------------------------------