That of course is the blue sky overview – in the interview, Nick digs down into how that philosophy works in the site creation process.

Organizations can keep themselves safe by asking three bottom-line questions as they develop a site with a designer and programmer:

1. Do I have the skills to change each piece of content on my site? What do I need to do with a programmer and what can I do on my own?

2. I want a specific look and feel that matches my artistic point of view. What aspects of that look and feel are absolute needs, and what are things that I just want?

3. Do I trust my designer, programmer, or off-the-shelf template service? Do they listen and explain the process clearly, and do they have the skills I need to balance my needs, my wants, and my resources?

Your resources are probably the most fundamental part of the equation, and the critical ones to watch in yourself and your organization are time, money, energy, and knowledge. If out of those resources you find you only have a sliver of time and energy left, firing up a blog simply to create a news feed for your work and updates is usually the most elegant solution, and one that adds little to no financial overhead to your arts business.

Read the whole interview at chicagoartistsresource.org