Do you currently manage a church website? Have you ever taken a step back to evaluate how well it’s working? No matter how many people attend your church each week, many of the key elements of a successful church website are similar for churches of any size. In this post, we’ve compiled a few church website tips to help you when creating or improving upon your current site. Ask yourself the following questions when thinking about your own church website.
1. Are you effectively connecting with both church members and visitors?
While nothing can replace genuine, face-to-face interactions, your website can provide an opportunity for you to connect with members and visitors alike. In order to do this, you’ll need to provide options regarding how users can connect with you. For example, if you send out a regular newsletter regarding upcoming events and service opportunities, let people know. Whether you use mass text message alerts or email lists, you can provide a simple opt-in, preferably on the homepage, so users can easily subscribe. Do you use Facebook or Twitter? Place these icons directly on the homepage to show visitors they can connect with you through social media channels. Similarly, some users may want to follow your sermon series, but may not think to regularly visit your site. By creating a podcast, you can make your sermons accessible to a much wider audience, while also ensuring subscribers have immediate access to your sermons through iTunes.
2. Is your content current?
Do you regularly add new sermons and sermon series to your site? Do you keep your site fresh with announcements about upcoming events? When a current member or a potential visitor arrives at your site, it’s critical that they see what’s going on now. If it’s been several months since you’ve made any updates and the events posted have long since passed, members will not have a reason to come back, and potential visitors may choose to seek out a church with ministries that appear to be more active.
3. Are you communicating clearly with all audiences?
Some of the key elements visitors will seek out on your site are your service times and location. Are these elements prominent on your homepage? For many church visitors, your website will be the first impression they get of your church. Therefore, it’s important to answer their most common questions without making them search for the answers themselves. Furthermore, visitors will also visit your site from a variety of devices. If your visitors viewed your site from a desktop computer, phone or tablet, would they have an equally positive experience across all devices? This is a critical way to communicate effectively with all who visit your site. In order to provide your users the best experience possible, be sure your template or theme is responsive.
4. Do users find it easy to give online?
Online giving has grown significantly in the past few years. One way to ensure your members will still have an opportunity to give when they’re out of town or on vacation is to provide them with the option of setting up a recurring electronic gift. If you offer this type of service to your members, is it easily accessible from your homepage? Can they quickly login to your giving platform and easily update a credit/debit card or checking account number? In order to have an effective online donation process, the platform you choose needs to be both simple and intuitive.
5. Is your overall design engaging and intuitive?
Before choosing a new theme or template for your church website, be sure to check out a variety of church websites for inspiration. Evaluate what design elements work well and communicate effectively. Remember, your website will be the first impression many people have of your church, so it’s critical that your overall design is both engaging and intuitive.