Building a Better Church Website
Even up to a few years ago your church sign was, well, your church sign. It was the first point of connection with the average person had with your church. Driving down the road they could catch your name, worship times, possibly the name of the pastor or denomination, and maybe a witty quip to catch their attention.
One thing destroyed the church sign: the internet.
All of a sudden people could simply hop on Google and search you out. Millennials are much more likley to look up your website to make decisions about visiting your church over simply seeing your sign. Now, does this mean you get rid of your church sign? NO! People still need to see your location, grab some quick details about your church. But the good news is that your website allows you to connect deeper with people via your web prescence.
A Quick Admission
As a church planter I wear a lot of hats in our congregation. Webmaster is one of them. I feel like our website is a good one, not the best, but a good one. You can check it out at www.narrative.church
But there are constantly things I am working on, trying to keep up with all the loose ends. These quick tips for your website are ones I try to live by but miss sometimes. Seek to keep getting better and improving your website, thats our goal at Narrative. In that vein here are a few things we live by:
Keep Your Landing Page Simple
Have you ever walked into someone’s house and are immedietly overwhelmed by the amount of stuff you are surrounded by? Church websites are notorious for trying to put every piece of information on their landing (home) page.
Work to simplify this. Right now our website lends itself to this via the theme we are using. As of writing this going to our website lands you with a large graphic of our current sermon series, two graphics that link you to big announcements, a quick understanding of our mission and vision, then menus to link you to sermons, events, and times and locations.
Keep your landing page simple, but allow people to connect deeper through other pages.
Tell Stories
People want to know who you are. Especially your teaching style, leadership, what you believe, and what you are doing in the community. Tell those stories.
Posting your sermons online is an incredible resource not only for your people but a good place to connect with those seeking a church. A Gallup poll released in April 2017 showed that 75% of people attend church based on the preaching. Posting sermons online give people a chance to connect before they’ve ever set foot in your church.
Use story telling to connect people with your beliefs,leadership, and what you do in the community. Those looking at your website want to get to know what your church is about. Tell that story through your leadership pages, in your beliefs and values, and how you interact with the community.
Learn From Your Betters
Look to websites that are better than yours. They may be part of your church body or they may not be. You are not looking at their doctrine or practice, simply how well they produce their website. In future posts there will be links to church websites doing it well. For now, check out the 25 Best Church Websites of 2017 by Pro Church Tools.
Building a better website is not the greatest way to reach the world with the message of the Gospel. That is a relational movement. But, having a good website is like having a welcoming entryway to your house. It makes people feel welcome.
