Cody Thomas

For many churches, a church website is viewed by pastors and church leadership as an afterthought or something insignificant to their ministry. Many churches don’t even have a website. Of the churches that do have a website, most of those are ineffective websites. Why are they ineffective? Here are just a few reasons:

• Poorly designed. Either the design is a free template design that looks bad or someone (who is not really a web designer) tried to design a site. Either way, it ended up looking bad or looking like websites from 1992.
• Lack of relevant information. Many church websites are out-of-date in their info. Their front web page is still advertising their Christmas musical from 2 years ago. Do you think a visitor will stick around on the site? No.
• Static information. Many churches see a website as just a digital billboard. It’s a place to advertise their service times and pastor’s family picture. A website should have more than just static information that never changes. If the information never changes, no one will continue to go to the site.

So, why should web design matter to churches? What’s the big deal?

I believe that the web is one of the greatest tools of our day for the advancement of the Kingdom and the Gospel. However, it is not being utilized by a large majority of churches. Web sites are not just for advertising your church service times. It can also exist for connecting people to each other in community, allowing people to be the body of Christ for each other throughout the week through interactive web tools, allowing visitors to see enough of your church so they will feel comfortable enough to come visit your services, keeping in touch with your church throughout the week, connecting people into discipleship programs, praying for each other’s needs, allowing people who would never set foot into a church building to experience church in their comfort zone in hopes that they might begin to trust the Church again, and more. That list could continue for a long time and that list continues to grow as churches advance into the web frontier.

To help you understand the importance of web design and strategy for churches, here’s an article by Terrell Sanders (featured on Rick Warren’s Ministry Toolbox):

1.  Your target audience for church growth is Internet-savvy.

Most church growth comes from what we call the 18-to-18 range – people from 18 years old to families with 18-year-old children. This also happens to be the group with the highest Internet usage. According to research by the U.S. government, teenagers and families with children at home are the most frequent Internet users of any demographic group. Using the Internet to communicate with families and young adults is a natural fit.

2.  Your Web site will be your “first impression” for many people.

Most people under the age of 40 grew up with technology, and they automatically go to the Internet for information. We have found that many families relocating to a new city will research both where to live and where to worship over the Internet.  They will often make their “first cut” shopping list before they ever come to town.

3.  If you’re not on the Web, you don’t exist to many people.

As a corollary to the previous item, people who use the Internet as their primary research tool will not know you exist if you don’t have a Web site.

A 20- or 30-something person is much more likely to use the Internet to find church service times than to look in the yellow pages or newspaper. Our informal surveys have shown that many young college graduates don’t even have yellow pages in their homes. My teenage daughter didn’t know theaters listed movie times in the newspaper – she gets them off the Web.

4.  Seekers will visit your Web site before attending your services.

The Internet provides a perfect tool for people wanting information anonymously.  Seekers who are not ready to “come to the building” will visit your Web site to see what you believe and why. Savvy organizations are using the Web to educate visitors and encourage them to take the next step. Online sermons and photos of services and events go a long way toward making a seeker feel secure enough to make a first-time visit.

5.  A whole generation exists that will seek “religion” online.

In his book Boiling Point, George Barna projects that 10 to 20 percent of the population will rely on the Internet for all of their spiritual input and output by 2010. Whether you like it or not, the prediction seems to be right on track. When these people go to the Internet with spiritual questions, who will be providing the answers? What will they be taught?

6.  The Web site is too critical to be run by a volunteer.

I can tell you stories of churches from New York to California who were disappointed or burned by volunteers who built their Web sites. What happens if your volunteer Web developer gets transferred out of state or leaves the church angry?

How do you gracefully fire a volunteer when the church’s need exceeds his or her abilities?

Church leaders frequently ask me to help them justify why they should pay large amounts of money to develop a professional site when they have a volunteer who will do it for free. I ask them if they use free volunteers to install and maintain their roof and plumbing. In three years, no large church has ever admitted it used volunteers for their roof or plumbing – it’s just too critical to depend on volunteer help.

7.  You can’t afford a cheap site.

With a high percentage of your potential visitors viewing your Web site before they visit your congregation, you can’t afford a poor quality site. All the time and money you have spent building your congregation’s resources and reputation are worthless if people won’t visit the first time. Visitors are judging the values and programs of your church from your Web site. Are your key programs properly represented? Can a Web visitor see how active your youth group is from your site?

8.  People are viewing your current Web site right now.

I can almost guarantee you that people are viewing your current site every month.  People moving into your city are researching churches before they move. People interested in changing congregations are viewing your site. Seekers who have been made aware of your church are looking for more information on your site. You may not be providing the information, but people are looking for it.

Start asking your visitors how they found out about your church. You’ll be surprised how many young families found you on the Internet. Good or bad, your Web site is generating impressions every week. The big question is – are you satisfied with the impression they are getting?

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Terrell Sanders is the president of Main Street Enterprises, an Internet consulting and development company for churches and non-profit organizations. ©Copyright 2005. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

This is a new era for the Church. The mission is the same. The message is the same. But the methods must be evaluated and revamped. The strategy for reaching your community with the Gospel must be modified to reach an increasingly web-based culture. Generally speaking, the most effective churches of the next several years will be those who put more of their resources, time and money into developing and expanding their web strategy.

Church leaders, it is up to you. I would be more than happy to talk with you further about web strategy for your church and possibly see how I can consult, strategize, design and even partner with you as you pursue with reckless abandon to advance the Kingdom in your community.