Modern websites are more interactive than ever before and they can serve as a repository of information for the members of the church. Members expect the church’s site to be more than just a simple landing page and some pictures of events; they expect to be able to post and speak with each other online. These features create a sense of community and can bring your church together in ways that were very difficult to do before. For the modern church website there are three features that will help your site stand out and provide your members with the services that they are looking for.
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| Social Networking Source: mkhmarketing, cc-by-3.0, Flickr |
Sermon Archives
When new members are looking to find a new church one of the first things that they will do is look for old sermons on the church website or on iTunes to make sure that the preacher is a good fit. Even long term members of your church will find that they can enjoy listening to their favorite sermons again and again. Many site developers will put a limit on the amount of information that you can have posted to the site, though some developers, like Ministry Designs, offer unlimited sermon storage. The more exposure people have to the theological leanings and tendencies of your church, the stronger their commitment will be to the church’s ministry and direction. If your church is medium or large sized, then you might also consider adding a stream to the site so that visitors and members who are unable to attend services can still see what is happening.
Social Media Integration
Because so many people use Facebook and Twitter, easy integration of those services to your site are more important than ever. Sharing and liking things on Facebook exposes a wider range of people to the events and ministry that your church provides, while Twitter access allows for an open and almost instantaneous interaction between the members and the church leadership. Members will also enjoy being able to post and tag other members when they upload pictures of church events to Twitter or Facebook.
Electronic Tithing
Tithing has long been a problem for many churches, as convincing people to give up a part of their earnings every week is not an easy task. The growth of electronic payments has made this even more difficult, because more and more people are living a cashless life. Electronic payment processing on your site will make it easier than ever for your members to make their tithes. Credit card, debit card, EFT, electronic check and PayPal integration will give your members more options to make payments, and you will see an increase not only in the number of tithes, but the amount tithed as well.
Bible Study Forums
Finally, adding forums for the different Bible studies or home study groups that your church has will make it easier for new members or visitors to find a group to join. You can set the forum threads up so that visitors can browse the general sticky threads and find out general information about the groups, while members can share more personal information and ask for prayer from other members of the group.
Churches have to be willing to adapt to new technology, and the church website is one of the best ways to integrate that technology. With the right combination of technology and a good website, your ministry will be more powerful and reach more people than it does now.
I am Morgan Moore and I have been a church leader for ten years. I have always tried to stay up to date with church technology, and I wrote this article to talk about how powerful a church website could be.
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