Visitor's 1-Star Review Fuels Viral Success for 120-Year-Old Museum
A single negative review left five years ago has become an unexpected marketing success for the New Bedford Whaling Museum. The institution has since leveraged the critique to gain significant attention and boost sales.
Five years after a visitor left the New Bedford Whaling Museum with a one-star rating, that critique has transformed into a significant marketing asset for the 120-year-old institution. The visitor had described the museum as the “worst aquarium ever,” despite the museum focusing on the history, science, and culture of whaling, not marine life.
The museum, established over 120 years ago, began to turn the lone one-star review—a stark contrast to its otherwise stellar average rating of 4.8 out of 5—into a marketing strategy. What started as an inside joke among staff led to the launch of a T-shirt last November, featuring the critical review on the back and a whale skeleton graphic on the front.
The merchandise went viral on TikTok, garnering nearly 100,000 views. The T-shirt and its hoodie counterpart became the museum gift shop's top sellers during the holiday season, increasing online sales by 24 percent year-over-year. These items accounted for nearly one-third of the museum's total sales.
Annelise Conway, the museum's chief engagement officer, described the product's success as "astronomical." The increased sales and widespread media attention, including features on CBS Evening News, have enhanced the museum's profile as an approachable and humorous institution, though its primary goal remains to raise awareness of its historical and cultural offerings.