The paper is dedicated to the analysis of the essence of strategic communications of museums in the context of modern cultural genesis. The ever-increasing transformation of the social environment, associated both with the growing mediatization of society, changes in the museum practices, development of communication technologies and tools, and with the growing role of the audience, which increasingly influences the work of cultural institutions and the mass media, determines the focus of attention of representatives of the relevant museum departments to search for new communication strategies and tactics. In order to comprehend the strategic communications of museum institutions in St. Petersburg, the author conducted a sociological survey of residents and guests of the city about their awareness of the museums of the Northern capital. Fragmentation and insufficiency in measurable indicators of the effectiveness of communication of the museum institutions of the city is noted. It is concluded that the respondents are most aware of the top 3 museums: Hermitage, Russian Museum and Kunstkamera; the majority of respondents are ready to go to these museums in the near future.