Tools to help your church website and social media strategy
Weekly podcast that explores various topics and perspectives of church web strategies.
How you deliver content dictates how your visitors can consume it, as well as what they can do with it. The easy route is often to simply a link to a file, but why restrict your audience. Give them content the way they want it, and with the ability to share it with their friends and family. The first part in this series will deal with the common approach to posting weekly bulletins; the PDF.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 68: Say No to PDF’s”
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At the beginning of every worship service, the pastor of my church welcomes all of the new visitors; regardless if they know of any are present. Sometimes we even applaud for them. Many church podcasts that I listen to also make a point to welcome all of their listeners. This includes live recordings that acknowledge they have an online audience. What does your website do to welcome new visitors? Do you simply have a statement that says “Welcome to our church”, or do you structure your site so that their needs are immediately met with lots of information and content?
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 67: Do not Just Retain, Recruit”
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Just posting a list of your beliefs and a few pictures of volunteering at a soup kitchen on your website is not enough to get new members into your church. Just like an eCommerce site, you need to establish yourself as a leader in a particular area. What makes you special? If you give your visitors an honest reason why they need to try your church out, you will distinguish yourself online and attract new members.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 66: You Are Unique, Just Like Everyone Else”
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Your congregation does not attend services because of your branding. An attractive and well thought out logo does not bring new members through the door. The teaching, culture, and community are far more important than the color of your building. Then why does improving a website tend to involve redesigning everything? Focus on regular content updates instead of aesthetic changes to create a better experience for your users.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 65: Redesign Content, Not Graphics”
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Often churches take donations to purchase flowers for the altar; and a dedication is mentioned in the bulletin that week. Other churches may have a fundraiser where members purchase a brick that is inscribed with a loved one’s name. Tributes and memorials are way to honor and remember important people in our lives. Why not tie in your website so that memorials also live in the digital space. So how can you preserve a digital legacy? There are several options I will explore in this episode, including a memorial section, microsites, and even social media
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 64: Leaving a Digital Legacy”
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In a previous article I talked about landing pages and how your church can use them. Some projects and campaigns require more breathing room, so perhaps a microsite is the solution. Here you can create a unique user experience, strengthen your church’s branding, and even drive traffic to your primary website… and of course fill seats in your church.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 63: Effectively Using Church Microsites”
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Two years ago when my family visited Disney World I noted a few things that translated to an article, and podcast, for church websites. This episode is about how to help your audience pause at the right spot to notice something on your website. This pause will help them focus on something important, and hopefully cause them to take action.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 62: Pause for a Cause”
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For a church to continue growing, it needs a strong youth ministry program. A major obstacle in that program is finding new and innovative ways to connect children & young adults to each other and the Bible’s teachings. To do that, you will need regular and honest feedback; and the web can be a mechanism to solicit it.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 61: Closing the Loop with Youth Ministry”
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When creating a call to action such as a form, the order you present your content matters a great deal. If you get your customer emotionally invested with the task they are completing, they are far more likely to complete it. By saving mundane tasks to the end of the process you greatly increase the chance clicks your submit button gets.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 60: Structuring Your Call to Action”
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Timing is everything in comedy, and also church web marketing. If you can guess when your customers will be online, you can more effectively market to them. Whether it be Email or social media, there are several ways we can use demographic information to increase the number of clicks our communications get.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 59: Timing is Everything”
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The primary motivation for viewing a website is to consume content. That content may exist to inform, persuade, or compare; but it should have a purpose that is aligned with an overall web strategy. Yet regardless of your intent or your audience not everyone will wish to consume this content just on your website. By providing multiple mechanisms to view it, you maximize your audience exposure and increase the odds of adding new members to your church.
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 58: Getting Your Content Out There”
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Communicating on social media platforms is like talking. If your conversations do not have a purpose, are not engaging, or are just plain boring; you soon will not have anyone to talk to. To keep your audience engaged, be purposeful with all your social media posts. Continue to listen for several ways you can engage them!
Continue reading “CWS Podcast – Ep. 57: Have a Purpose on Social Media”
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