Posts Tagged ‘Church Websites’
·5 Reasons Pastors Should Blog Regularly
Thursday, October 20th, 2011
Just about everyone has a blog these days, at least it seems that way. Most people out there are either trying to sell you a bunch of stuff you don’t need and the rest are informing us of their ceramic scotty dog collection. The need for useful information is at an all time high. With all of the calamity that is going on in the world around us, people are starved—even desperate—for solutions to their problems.
If you are a pastor or ministry leader you need to start blogging. Here’s a few reasons why.
1. You Can Expand Your Reach
Who better to reach out to people and meet them where they are at? Imagine changing someone’s life who lives around the world because of a post. It sounds a little outrageous, but the potential is there. People are actively searching for answers to their problems, and pastors can be the ones to help them in their time of need.
2. Blogging Connects You To Your Community
Then there is the local community. The church community. Your people. Posting regularly on your blog lets people access you in a way that they may not normally have the opportunity. They can interact with you through a discussion in the comments section of your blog. This type of interaction gives your community a voice. It lets them be heard—and when you respond to them and engage with them, you show that you care.
3. A Blog is a Great Leadership Tool
With all of the study and thought that goes into being a pastor, the potential to share and lead people in a positive direction is substantial. For example, you could do a series on what it means to be a Godly father on your blog, posting one new concept a week. If you announce that this series will be on the blog (and give out the URL) in the Sunday service, your members are sure to engage. This is just another way to help people and lead them in a positive direction.
4. Be More Human
Depending on the size of your organization, you may, or may not be perceived as human. You most likely are perceived as “super-human”. Blogging can help you better connect with people and show them that you are a real person who cares about them. Posting stories and photos from your family life and engaging in comment discussions after your post are sure-fire ways to make this happen.
5. Keep People Up to Date
Now, you may be thinking, “But that’s why we have announcements and the ‘Events’ page on the website”. That is true, but the great thing about blogs is that people can subscribe to them. Having announcements run through the blog as well as a few other channels on the web is a great way to keep people up to date with what’s going on.
Now, if you are a pastor or ministry leader, I hope that you see the value of blogging. Many times a staff member is assigned this task, which is great. However, I believe that there is great power when the leadership takes an active role in publishing blog content for the church, local and global community. The world needs to hear what you have to say.
Tags: Church Blogs, Church Websites, Pastor Blog, Web Strategy, Why should pastors blog
Posted in Best Practices · No Comments »
First Things First. Why Your Website Won’t Turn Around Your Organization
Tuesday, October 18th, 2011
There’s a story that is becoming more common every year. It goes something like this: An organization (a ministry, bookstore, non-profit) sees a decline in members, customers, tithers, etc. and they can see the obvious problem needs to be addressed. Many times the quick answer is, “lets re-design the website. It must not be working. That’ll give us the shot in the arm that we need!”. Unfortunately, this often does not help the organization at all. And this is coming from someone who is a huge advocate for well planned and designed websites.
The truth is, a website is no silver bullet.
If your organization is on the decline, then there are other issues that you should look at first. Get those in order and then focus on your web presence.
While you may see an initial increase of visitors, donations, or inquiries when you launch a new website, the deep problems of your organization will still rear their ugly head eventually, and the results will most likely be short lived.
Here’s the bottom line (in my humble opinion). A great website can help an already amazing, productive, organized, effective ministry become even better. It can help them grow at a pace greater than they are already growing. Many times, organizations look to new marketing channels, like the web, to go from decline to growth, when a website is usually most effective when growth is already taking place.
If your organization is experiencing growth and progress (however marginal), investing in your online presence is one of the best things that you can do. If you are struggling and on the decline, an effective web presence can help, but only after the deeper internal issues are worked out.
Have you seen this to be true in your organization or with your clients? I would love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to leave a comment below.
Tags: Church Web Design, Church Websites, Ministry Web Design, website design, Website Strategy
Posted in Best Practices, Marketing, Web Design · No Comments »