Penguins and Tut--marketing through temporary exhibits

Congratulations to the South Carolina Aquarium on their uptick in admissions due to the Penguin Planet temporary exhibit.  According to the Post and Courier article yesterday--nearly 22,000 more locals and 3,000 more tourists visited YOY.  It would be interesting to know why those locals did not visit the year before?

Also the article mentions that new memberships grew more than 30% YOY.  As many museums, zoos, and botanic gardens know, those new members many times do not renew when their first year expires.  The new membership sale is often due to the offer of a discounted admission to see the current temporary exhibit.  The challenge: how to keep those members renewing year after year?    

Driven by the metrics of  getting PR coverage, sponsorship dollars, and increased  attendance and membership sales, temporary traveling  exhibits continue to roll through the museum, zoo, aquarium, and botanic garden world.  The current popular blockbuster exhibit is King Tut currently at the DeYoung Museum; it seems to be the latest spin on Body Worlds.