FAQ

You can apply for DMC funding if you have a permanent presence that is physical and/or digital, and provided your collections, programs and staff/volunteers are available to the public.

Yes. DMC will still support a project that has received funding from another program. The budget you submit with your application must clearly outline how you plan to allocate all monies contributed to the project, whether from DMC, the lead organization for the project, or other organizations or funding programs.

No. It’s up to you to choose the investment stream. Your decision will depend on several factors, including your vision for the project, the needs of your target audience(s), how much content you’ll need to create, the technical complexity of the experience, the digital capacity of your team, and the resources you can contribute to the project.

The Community Stories stream is now our Small investment stream. Participants receive $15,000 and a user-friendly WordPress template to create a Community Stories online exhibit.

The names of the streams refer to the size of DMC’s investment, not necessarily the size of the project. The important question is: How much funding do you need from DMC to bring your project to life? Depending on your other funding sources and the scope of the work, you may need a medium amount for a major project, or a large amount for a mid-sized project.

We strongly recommend you submit one complete well articulated proposal rather than multiple proposals lacking details. Consider which of your topics is most compelling, relevant to target audience and timely. If you still choose to go with multiple proposals, there are two caveats: you have to meet the eligibility requirements for each stream; if more than one project is selected for investment, you’ll have to choose which one to proceed with, because we only invest in one project from an organization at a time.

You cannot submit more than one project to the same investment stream. Please read the guidelines and evaluation criteria carefully, so that you can accurately assess the work required to prepare a quality proposal.

No. Once you go through the exercise of designing and describing your project (audience, outcomes, content, user experience, technology, project team, budget and schedule), you should have a good idea of which stream you should submit it to.

You can find examples of projects funded in our Small, Medium and Large investment streams under the Funded projects tab on this website. Remember, the names of the streams refer to the size of DMC’s investment, not necessarily the size of the project. The important question is: How much funding do you need from DMC to bring your project to life?

In response to changing needs in the digital landscape, DMC is looking at new ways to share knowledge with the community. New resources will be available in the coming months. To learn more as these new initiatives are developed, keep an eye on the website and subscribe to the DMC mailing list.

There is no longer an option to do an official quick pitch. However, the questions are still helpful in guiding your application. They are listed under the “Steps” tab, Section 3.3 “Submitting a Proposal.”  For quick reference:

Subject

• What is your project about?

Target audience

• Who is your project for?

User experience

• What experience do you want your target audience to have? Put yourself in the user’s shoes and describe the experience.
• What will users see, hear, do, think, feel, etc., as they engage with your project?

Technology (Medium and Large streams only)

• Which digital tools and technologies could support the user experience, and how? Consider whether your organization can support these technologies once your online project is launched.

Project team

• Who could you work with to make your project a success? List organizations, groups or individuals who will work on, contribute to, or support the project. Describe their roles.

That depends on many factors. Generally speaking, preparing a proposal is a significant undertaking, so we always recommend starting early and submitting with time to spare.

Beginning in 2020, there is one call for proposals per year. It will include all three investment streams: Small, Medium and Large.

Projects funded through the Small investment stream don’t need a web developer or digital agency because you build them using the template provided. Projects in the Medium and Large investment streams do need this expertise on their team, but it does not have to be in place at the time you apply.

If you have chosen a developer or an agency by the time you apply, please include them in your project team and describe their relevant expertise. This can strengthen a proposal. If you’re undecided or if your organization needs to go through an RFP process to hire a developer or agency, when you apply identify some options.

We recommend that all organizations consult a digital expert when preparing their proposal for the Medium and Large investment streams. This helps determine your project’s design and development costs as well as its time frame. They can also help you identify the digital tools and technologies that will best support the user experience you want to create.

Yes.

We are interested in the team you put together to carry out your project. This can include people from the lead organization, as well as other organizations, independent experts, members of the community, etc. If you can demonstrate that you have the capacity in-house to deliver your project, your application will not be negatively affected.

We expect you to submit all support letters by the deadline. However, following a preliminary review, any organization with an incomplete application will have the opportunity to respond in a timely manner.

We provide a schedule template for the Small investment stream only. There is no schedule template for the Medium and Large investment streams. You can find details on how to create a schedule in the program guidelines for these streams. Remember to provide approximate dates, durations and details for each task. Also, make sure that there are no discrepancies in the information you provide in the project description, budget, schedule and support letters.

Yes. If you plan to apply with the same project, remember to take advantage of the debrief process to get feedback on your proposal. 

We don’t provide examples, but here are some tips to strengthen your proposal. For all three investment streams, read the guidelines and application form carefully. Think about and develop strong connections between your subject, content, target audience and resources. Make sure to demonstrate a solid capacity for project management. Talk about your project clearly and with passion. For the Medium and Large investment streams, give careful consideration to your quick pitch feedback and read the technical specifications closely. Also, remember to align the user experience and the technology you will use with the other elements of your project. 

No. There should be a good fit between the audience you want to reach, the content you will present, the story you want to tell and the experience you want to create. However, we don’t want to invest in an online project that will reach only a small group of people.

No. You decide on the target audience for your project. Explain in your proposal why that audience is important for you, and why they fit best with your project.

Your goal should be a project that meets your audience’s needs in an engaging and effective way. You also need to explain in the proposal how your project is relevant to your organization, your target audience(s) and the broader community.

Think about significant people, places, periods, events, activities, discoveries, practices, traditions, movements, issues, etc. – past and/or present and – for a proposal in the Small investment stream – their impact on your community. Once you have identified a subject for your project in the Medium or Large investment stream, think about why it’s important overall, why it’s important that you tell it, the audience it targets, how you’ll tell it, and what impact you want it to have.

The lead organization must be Canadian, not necessarily the content.

No. DMC invests in complete online experiences. The application process is designed to help you describe the project you plan to develop and launch. Because the selection process is competitive, there is no guarantee of more DMC funding to develop future phases.

Projects funded through all three investment streams must be complete at launch, reflecting as fully as possible the detailed project description in the agreement.  If you decide to add content after the launch to a project funded through the Medium or Large investment stream, it should be accessible, bilingual, and written and edited to the same standard as the original project. It should also follow technical best practices. User-generated content may be in the language in which it is submitted and should be moderated.

The level of interactivity of your online project for the Medium or Large investment stream should support the experience you want for your target audience. For inspiration, look at the projects on digitalmuseums.ca, as well as award-winning projects from the wider digital cultural community (e.g. GLAMi Awards (Museweb), Media & Technology MUSE Awards (American Alliance of Museums), Museums + Heritage Awards (UK), The Webby Awards, etc.).

The content of your project for the Medium or Large investment stream should be as accessible as possible to members of your target audience(s). If a more immersive approach requiring high-speed internet is central to your vision for your project, plan an alternative experience from the outset, for users with low or limited bandwidth, that preserves the key content of your project.

The user experience has to be the same in English and French. At an early phase, we will request and verify a sample translation to make sure you’re going in the right direction.

It depends on your audience and the outcomes you have identified for them. More practically, prepare your budget and see what’s possible.

No, but the whole project must be available in English and French. Any user-generated content may be in the language of submission.

Provide some historical context for the settlers in your story. To avoid misrepresentation, you should consult meaningfully with all the peoples or groups whose stories are portrayed in your project.

No. DMC-funded projects are stand-alone, commercial-free and promotion-free experiences.

*applies only to Small investment stream
The Community Stories authoring tool is a custom-built WordPress template. Uploaded content is organized in the tool to create a bilingual and accessible virtual exhibit.

With the Small investment stream, you can create a virtual exhibit using the DMC template. In the Medium or Large investment stream, your project must provide a complete online experience for users, with content that can be viewed in any location, without specialized equipment. Examples include virtual exhibits, virtual tours, web-based games, web applications and educational resources.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
We encourage and welcome proposals for online projects that offer immersive experiences. Our technical specifications shouldn’t prevent you from achieving your vision, but we expect you to include in your proposal an approach for making the content accessible outside the immersive experience if it is not accessible to as many people as possible within it.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
Yes, but DMC funding must go to the web version only. In your proposal, you must give priority to the online project above any onsite version.

Projects funded through the Small investment stream don’t need a web developer or digital agency because you build them using the template provided. Projects in the Medium and Large investment streams do need this expertise on their team, but it does not have to be in place at the time you apply.

If you have chosen a developer or an agency by the time you apply, please include them in your project team and describe their relevant expertise. This can strengthen a proposal. If you’re undecided or if your organization needs to go through an RFP process to hire a developer or agency, when you apply identify some options.

We recommend that all organizations consult a digital expert when preparing their proposal for the Medium and Large investment streams. This helps determine your project’s design and development costs as well as its time frame. They can also help you identify the digital tools and technologies that will best support the user experience you want to create.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
Yes, with one caveat. If it is a web application, DMC will cover the costs associated with it. If it’s a native app, the organization (i.e. you) must cover them.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
No, but you are free to adapt content created with DMC funding for other purposes, such as displaying a version of your virtual exhibit at a kiosk or using a game as a teaching resource. Your primary purpose in applying for DMC funding should be to create a rich and engaging online experience, not to develop content for use in an onsite presentation. 

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
Yes, we’ve seen all kinds of collaborations! It’s up to you to decide what story to tell and what experience to create, as well as how big the scope should be, and then make sure you can deliver it.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
In our experience, developing an online project usually requires collaboration between people and organizations with differing types of expertise. There is no ideal number of people on your team. Simply make sure to fill all the roles you need to complete your project.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
As an investment program with a competitive process, DMC is unable to recommend a developer or agency for your project. If you don’t already have someone in mind, we suggest you look at projects on our website and do some research online. You could also do a search to find out if there is someone in your community who can help you bring your vision to life.

*applies only to Medium and Large investment streams
Yes. In the budget template, simply enter these amounts in the Other column, and then describe each contribution in the Notes column.

Projects funded through the Small investment stream usually take 14 to 24 months to complete and are developed in three phases. Projects in the Medium and Large investment streams generally take 20 to 30 months and are developed in five phases.

Projects created through our Small investment stream are hosted on DMC’s server indefinitely. For projects in the Medium and Large investment streams, it is up to the organization to arrange for hosting. Once a project from these streams is launched, it will be linked to DMC’s website for five years.

In the Small investment stream, successful applicants are informed eight weeks after the call for proposals deadline. In the Medium and Large investment streams, the waiting period is about six months. In each case, this is the time it takes to evaluate all the proposals. For all three streams, work on a project typically begins within a month following notification.

No. Your budget should accurately reflect the costs associated with your project. Show how you calculate your costs, and provide support documentation, such as quotes. DMC’s team will review the budget for ineligible and questionable costs.

No. DMC funding can only cover eligible costs incurred after the agreement is signed.

No. However, we do expect to see a contribution (financial and/or in-kind) from the organization leading the project, along with other members of the team.

No. Your budget should accurately reflect the costs associated with your project, as well as the funding capacity of the lead organization and other members of the team.

No. Your budget should accurately reflect the costs associated with your project, as well as the capacity of the lead organization and other members of the team.

Contingency fees are not an eligible cost for DMC funding. However, these fees can be part of your organization’s contribution.

This type of contribution is generally calculated based on the number of hours or days the person estimates they will work on the project, multiplied by their hourly or daily rate.

Salary and contract costs directly associated with the creation of the online project are eligible. DMC funding can fully cover these costs, or you can divide them between DMC funding and your organization’s contribution. Your payroll costs are considered an in-kind contribution by your organization, while contract fees are a financial contribution. Remember to show how you calculated these costs. 

No. The design phase happens later for projects in the Medium and Large investment streams, so it is premature to submit a mock-up or other demo at the proposal stage. Submitted examples will not be evaluated.

The quick pitch call is the only source of feedback on your proposal in the Medium or Large investment stream. For any other question, please contact proposals@digitalmuseums.ca. 

You can apply in any of the three investment streams as long as your previous DMC-funded project was launched and went live before the deadline of the most recent call for proposals. The DMC may reject a proposal if it determines that the organization’s performance on another DMC contract was unsatisfactory or sufficiently poor to jeopardize the successful completion of a new project.

Yes, as long as your organization meets DMC’s eligibility criteria. You do not need to have received funding from DMC in the past to submit a proposal.

On average, we approve 30-50% of the proposals we receive in each investment stream.

There is a fixed amount of funding each year: $2,000,000 for the Medium and Large investment streams combined, and $200,000 for the Small investment stream. Within those envelopes, we invest in as many quality projects as we can.

Once your project is launched, it is your responsibility to evaluate whether it is meeting its outcomes. The only requirement on our side is that you set up Google Analytics for your project in the Medium or Large investment stream, and allow DMC access to the metrics.

Yes. Barring other arrangements, your organization retains full ownership of the content and material featured in your DMC-funded project, including digitized images. As part of the five-year investment agreement, your organization grants DMC a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence for communications and promotional purposes.

All proposals will be treated as confidential, subject to the provisions of the Access to Information Act (Canada) and Privacy Act (Canada) and any other relevant laws and regulations.