what artists really want

I'm working on a series of topics for a course this spring -- a syllabus, for an eight-week evening class. The course is for artists and cultural organizations, to teach them technical skills that will help them market themselves better and reach new audiences.

In years past, the topics have been pretty basic stuff, like:

• How to write a press release
• How to create an artist's press package
• How to write an artist's statement/bio
• How to work with the media
• How to brand yourself

I really want to take it step further this year and help artists learn about and how to use some of the web 2.0 tools we've been bandying about these parts for some time. But I'll need to make it very accessible and non-scary, as some artists can be a little gun-shy when it comes to computers and technology.

What topics should I include? What web tools are of actual use to artists trying to reach a broader market? What tools are of actual use to theaters, museums, and historical societies? Which of these are free, and don't require a lot of specialized technical knowledge to implement?

Here's what I am thinking about so far:

• Blogging
• Photosharing (flickr)
• Social Networks (myspace, facebook, myartinfo, others)
• Second Life
• Twitter
• Etsy

The course has eight sessions. Each class lasts about two hours, all told.

Here's how you can help:

• What other topics should I offer?
• Who would be the best person to present these topics?
• Do you have their number?

I *could* present on most of these topics myself. But that hardly means that I'm the best person for the job. What do you think? (I'm submitting this to twitter and I'll post responses as they come.)

Ronna @bethdunn How about a theme around helping artists to tell their story, using whichever medium works best eg. video/audio for non-writers?

DaveLaMorte @bethdunn: I think that there is a lot of interesting stuff that is allowing artists to interact with their audience directly.