I put this together from what you've told me so far: our first call, your positioning notes and your photos. It's a starting point, not a final plan.
Each page has draft copy and a few photo ideas. At the bottom are some questions about the gaps I couldn't fill on my own. We'll go through them together.
Page 1 of 5
Home
A first idea for your homepage, based on your notes.
aweconductor.com
Mary Shafer
Museum executive, speaker and coach. Amplifying awe for the benefit of all.
I've spent almost 30 years in museums, from natural history to space science. The moment I care about most is the one where someone stops and says "whoa." I've seen it thousands of times in the four museums I've helped lead.
Today I help museums, mission-driven organizations and individuals make more room for that moment, because people who feel more awe tend to be more curious, more open and more connected to each other.
Ways to work together
Museums & cultural organizations
Fractional executive and advisory support: guest experience, operations, earned revenue and strategy.
Mission-driven organizations
Workshops and facilitation on awe as resilience, as a spark for learning, and as something you can design for.
Groups & communities
Talks, Awe Circles, Awe Walks and facilitated "Awed Adventures."
Individuals
Transformative coaching for transitions, big decisions and next-chapter clarity.
Where I've worked
Space Center Houston · COOPerot Museum of Nature and Science · Chief Experience OfficerNatural History Museum of Los Angeles County · 15 yearsNASA's Jet Propulsion LaboratoryGreat Lakes Science Center
If a museum CEO reads only one line, what should they hire you for first: the operations and revenue turnaround, or the awe work?
Your notes lead with awe. We can lead with either.
Is "Awe Conductor" your brand at the top of the site, or the title that sits under your name?
Of the four audiences, which one do you want the most calls from in the next six months?
That one goes first on the page. The others still get a card.
Which portrait should lead: the blue top or the pink?
Your notes say you like the colors in the blue one and asked if we can clean it up. We can.
Page 2 of 5
About
Mostly your own words from the bio and story you sent, shortened a little.
aweconductor.com/about
Hi, I'm Mary.
I'm a museum executive with almost 30 years in museums and more than 10 in executive leadership, including C-suite roles. Natural history museums, space-focused institutions, community groups: across all of it, my favorite work has stayed the same. I help people find experiences that widen their view and open them up to each other.
Some of my earliest memories are science adventures with my stepdad, a science teacher. Camping in National Parks. Stars over a campfire program. The iridescent bubble wall at San Francisco's Exploratorium, which I can still see.
In college, a family trip to Kennedy Space Center put me under a Saturn V. Years later, while working on public engagement for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, I brought my stepdad to the Phoenix Mars Lander launch. That one felt like a full circle.
Two moments turned all of that into a career. The first was at a PR firm, running publicity for the Ocean Institute's Festival of Whales as a pro bono client. After a few years of it I knew I wanted to work for curiosity and learning full time. A year later I was working in museums.
The second was the 2019 California super bloom, poppies so vast you could see them from space. Around then I started reading the science of awe, and Dacher Keltner's book Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder gave me words for what I'd been doing my whole life.
My why is simple: I want to amplify awe for the benefit of all, because a more aware, curious, open and connected community makes a better world for everyone.
Career highlights
Space Center Houston
Chief Operating Officer. Led operations back to record crowds after COVID and chaired the reimagining of the exhibition strategy, including for NASA's Artemis program.
Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Chief Experience Officer.
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County / La Brea Tar Pits
15 years in guest experience, education and communications leadership.
The early years2019 super bloomSpace Center HoustonPortrait
Questions to fill the gaps
Your notes say "millions in additional revenue" from new pricing. Can we use a real number, even a rounded one?
A real figure, even a rounded one, reads stronger.
Your stepdad ("Papa Bear") runs through your story. Is the older photo on slide 3 him, and should we name him or keep him private?
Your notes mention leading spiritual and ecstatic dance circles, and being a licensed spiritual practitioner at Agape. Should that be on the site, or kept separate from the museum work?
Your notes say "almost 30," "30" and "more than 30" years. Which one is right today?
Should the full list of roles and boards (Great Lakes, City of Hope, Ocean Institute, the Women's Chamber, the Child Educational Center) live here, or just link to LinkedIn?
Page 3 of 5
Articles
One idea: start with a few posts based on your "What is Awe?" slides and your story. Happy to drop this if it doesn't feel right.
aweconductor.com/articles
Notes on awe
What is awe, and why does it matter?
From your talk: awe is vastness plus novelty. What it does to us (it slows time, shrinks the ego, connects us) and the everyday places people find it, from nature and music to moral beauty and collective effervescence.
A bubble wall, a Saturn V and a super bloom
Your origin story as a stand-alone piece, with your own photos.
Awe is unique to you
The closing idea from your talk, with the awe photos you've taken yourself.
Oil puddle after the rainMalibu beachCrow watchingTulsa Botanical Garden
Questions to fill the gaps
Would you like to write posts yourself, or would you rather we write them from our calls?
Basic gives you the page and you publish when you like. Pro adds a monthly call and articles written for you.
What do museum leaders ask you about most? Those questions make the best posts.
Your "every day awe" photos are lovely. Could that be a running series on the site?
We've left out the photos your notes flag (no rights, faces to blur, your friend on the awe walk). Are the eagle nest clip and the piano photo yours to use?
Page 4 of 5
Speaking
Your photos show a few talks and a TV interview, so here's a rough version of a speaking page.
aweconductor.com/speaking
Talks and workshops
Talks and workshops for museums, mission-driven organizations and communities on what awe is, why it matters for well-being and learning, and how to design experiences that create more of it.
Vastness, novelty, the everyday places we find awe, and how to find more of it.
Past talks & media
Texas Tourism Convention, September 2021. FOX 26 Houston: Artemis launch watch party at Space Center Houston.
Texas Tourism Convention, 2021On stage, liveFOX 26 interviewSpace Center Houston
Questions to fill the gaps
Your notes say the stage photo is the Texas Tourism Convention in 2021. Was the talk called "Over the Moon"?
Where else have you spoken? Event names and years are enough. We only list what's real.
Is there a video of any talk, or a link to the FOX 26 segment?
You ran an "Observe the Moon" activity with the Exploratorium during COVID. Can we list it?
Do you want to show a starting fee, or keep it to "get in touch"?
Is "What is Awe?" a talk you give today, or a deck you're building toward one?
Page 5 of 5
Contact
A simple version for now. How people reach you is up to you.
aweconductor.com/contact
Let's talk
Have a project, an event or a question about coaching? Send me a note and I'll get back to you.
Email · LinkedIn
Questions to fill the gaps
Should coaching clients book a call straight from the site, while organizations send a message first?
Where are you based, and do you travel for speaking, or work virtually?
Do you want a contact form? If so, which email should the messages go to, and should the form sit on this page only or at the bottom of every page?
Is your phone number OK to show publicly, or email only?
Look & feel
Your design preferences
Your photos made me think of three possible directions. They're only starting points, so tell me what feels right and what doesn't.
MoonlightNight blue and moon white, from your signature photo. Calm and a little mysterious.
Super bloomPoppy orange and open sky. Warm, bright and energetic.
CosmosDeep purple and soft pink, from your space and stage photos. Bold and playful.
Questions to fill the gaps
Which direction feels like you: Moonlight, Super bloom or Cosmos?
Should the moon in your hand be your signature image, used across the site?
Type: classic and editorial, like a museum label, or clean and modern?
Is there anything you never want your site to feel like? Too corporate, too spiritual, too techy?
Still to come from your homework: 3 to 5 websites whose design you love. They can be anything, not just speakers or coaches.
Next steps
What happens after today
Here's how we get from this call to your live site.
Settle the setup invoice
I'll send it through Stripe right after our call.
One-time setup$486$450 setup (6 hours at $75/hour) plus an 8% service charge. Design, your copy and an SEO audit with keyword plan from Tori, our SEO specialist.
Monthly, Basic plan$31.32/mo$29 plus an 8% service charge. Hosting, updates and a call every quarter. No contract, and you can move to Pro any time for monthly calls and articles.
Send me your contact details
Everything I need to set up your site and your account:
Main email (for the site)
Secondary email
Phone number
LinkedIn and any other social links
I build your first version
Using your answers from today, I'll draft the full five-page site and send you a private link to review.
Up to 3 rounds of revisions
Your setup includes up to three rounds of changes.
One request: please send each round's changes all in one go, in a single email or doc. It keeps us from going back and forth and gets you live faster.
