As a church that is looking to grow, not having an online presence can be immensely limiting. Google alone performs on average 40,000 searches per second, not having a platform online therefore could easily hinder your message being reached by thousands of people within your own locality. In a modern society we often don’t have the same roots as we once did within the area that we reside, and so, even though someone may live only a couple of streets away from your church, they may never know that you are there and if they do, they may feel daunted in not knowing any Christians in which to take them.
This is where a website can significantly help the church in sharing its message. Through having an online presence, the person sitting a couple of streets away in a hopeless situation can find your church, in their own home, and seek the comfort of the Gospel and also distill any fears they may have in coming to church by just getting to know a bit more about the church and it's leaders.
A website gives you a window to all those who may not feel sure enough to come into an unfamiliar building and meet with you. It provides you with a space in which to minister, guide and help someone feel welcome before they decide to enter your church.
Not only can a website be a beacon of hope for many who don’t feel yet that they can directly interact with the church but it is also a way for members to keep updated, thereby strengthening the existing congregation. Whilst many committed Christians are in church every Sunday, undoubtedly they may still miss important messages and the irregular attendees on the fringes of church also need a way to connect, to ensure that they do not easily fall away. A website is the most logical and convenient method for people to use for this purpose.
A website is tremendously helpful for those seeking the church as well as those already within the church, however, what you may not have considered before is that a website can also provide beneficial insights into what people are seeking when they come to your website, which can help you to improve on the way that you are currently reaching out. By utilising analytics wisely, you can find out what pages are being visited most often on your website, how people are getting to your website and other vital information which will aid you in building up an accurate picture of how and why people are coming to your church and what information they are seeking. This information can help you greatly in how you outreach, how you tailor your messages and what courses will be best to run within the church, and importantly, how you communicate what is going on to the very people you are trying to speak with.
A website in this day and age is vital to any church; we live in a generation where a greater number of people are living in isolation and the internet is providing, to some, the only connection they have to the world. For the church not to have a strong presence online is a missed opportunity to share the Gospel’s message to the many who may otherwise never step foot in a church, for a fear of the unknown.
Church Edit have been specialising in websites specifically for churches for 15 years, we are the leading UK provider of Christian cloud-based software and as Christians ourselves, we understand the tailored needs of a church website. We also provide a variety of website packages to cater for all budgets.
If you have any queries about websites, our team are always happy to help, our advice is free and no question is too big or too small. You can contact us via email on hello@churchedit.co.uk, or by phone on 0121 651 1120.