There are many beneficial ways to use your church website if it’s built properly: event calendar, staff information, church and ministry information, and collecting offerings. But here are 3 things you didn’t know a church website could do for your ministry:
- Collect contact information for potential members. No longer do people decide to walk into a church on a Sunday just to check things out. Instead, most, first, will go to your website or social media and “look around”. If only you could know who they are and have the ability to follow up with them. You can. How to do it: create a landing page (a web page with a form) that becomes a way for you to capture their information. But first, think about what they would love to download from you. Make sure it’s worth filling out a form with their personal information. Think of a valuable solution (that your church does well) for their needs, concerns, or goals. For example: Your student team produces an activity guide for parents to connect with their students in your community. Perhaps have valuable local coupons so they can enjoy a family night out on a budget. It’s probably worth filling out a name and email address, right? Use social media to promote the guide’s link on local parenting pages.
- Extend your sermons. There’s never enough time to preach “everything”. However, an effective speaker knows it’s good to stop talking before the audience stops listening. What if you got your congregation to get additional content on a particular topic? You can. How to do it: Save something valuable for the website that you promote during the service. For example: Show a snippet of a fun or challenging video that emphasizes your sermon. Stop short and direct people to your website to see the rest. Or, have a sermon that establishes the importance of doing something (like devotions) and provides a daily video or a downloadable Biblical guide that’s available only on your church website.
- Make a first-time Guest feel comfortable. The people who wonder what your church is like but don’t want to visit in person? It’s the vast majority of people in your community. Most won’t even go to a new restaurant without checking out a website for a menu or information. Committing to attend a church in person is a much higher bar! What if your website could allow a first-time guest to walk virtually through your doors on a Sunday? You can. How to do it: Know what someone needs before they’ll visit. Most want to experience what the church is like before attending. So they’re not surprised. For example: Make sure they know (as simply as possible) where to park, and what door to enter (if it’s complicated). Then link a short video that provides an idea of what people wear to go to your church, where bathrooms and children’s areas are, and what the worship room looks and sounds like from the pews. From their point of view! Therefore, show the beginning of the worship time from a pew near the back. And then provide a link to watch the latest sermon. Or even better? Edit the sermon to a manageable short video because online, things feel much longer than in person. Finish by giving them a great reason to attend in person (get a gift or to meet someone).
About the author
Mark MacDonald is a communication pastor, speaker, consultant, bestselling author, and church branding strategist for BeKnownforSomething.com empowering thousands of Pastors and churches to become known for something relevant (a communication thread) throughout their ministries, on their church websites and social media. His church branding book, Be Known for Something, is available at BeKnownBook.com.