Managing your website is a process that can take considerable time and energy, after all, there is content that regularly needs updating. But in the midst of everything else going on at your church it is easy for your website to fall by the wayside. So how do you stay on top of your site?

Truthfully, it's simple. Do a little at a time.

It's funny but sometimes the most "un-profound" things can have the greatest impact. Case in point, scheduling a small portion of your day, several days a week to keep your website up to date.

By breaking down the time you spend on your site into smaller chunks over multiple days you help to ensure that fresh content is being posted as it becomes available rather than saving it all for one big website work party once a week...or every couple of weeks if that's as frequently as you get to it.

The number of days each week that you spend updating your site will obviously vary depending on how quickly new content becomes available. But don't let a lack of new information prevent you from giving your site a good once over. You'll be surprised how many little tweaks you will find yourself wanting to make, or new ideas popping into your mind about how to improve your web presence. 

A little at a time will go a long way, and leave your website looking fresh and up to date; both of which are essential components of an effective website.

By now most people around town have heard of Facebook even if they are not using it. But just how significant is Facebook's reach and can it really help me interact with people in my congregation and community? Well, according to the IPO paperwork filed by Facebook, there are currently over 845 million Facebook users, of which 483 million use it daily. That's a pretty substantial user base and the odds are pretty good that many of those 845 million users live near you...and probably even go to your church. Additionally there are 100 billion connection! 

These numbers in and of themselves speak to the value of Facebook and its ability to help people connect with friends, family, coworkers and other church attenders. But what are some of the specific ways that I can use Facebook to help my congregation connect and engage in community?

The following are 5 key suggestions for ways your church to utilize Facebook.

1. Promote Events

The more ways you can clearly and creatively communicate information, the more likely people are going to be to remember it.

2.  Stir Up Discussion

Whether it is based around a sermon, a cultural issue or just a lighthearted topic, Facebook allows people to engage in conversation all week long, even when they are not physically in one location.

3. Share Media

One of the things people enjoy most on Facebook is sharing and viewing photos and videos, so why not share this type of media from church events. This is a great way to keep people in the loop of what is happening around the church.

4. Get Feedback

Facebook has a polling feature that allows you to ask questions and get feedback. Whether you ask questions about topics for future sermon series, or an idea for an event, this option allows you to collect this type of information.

5. Share thoughts

Your pastoral staff can use Facebook to share thoughts with your congregation throughout the week, not just on Sunday. Whether inspirational, reflective or personal in nature, Facebook is a tool to share this type of content more consistently.

Here's to happy Facebooking!

 *Facebook statistics were collected from AOL Daily Finance.

At 11 years old I worked an entire summer in order to purchase my first computer. Our family always had a home computer but I was never allowed to fiddle with it, in other words removing parts over the carpet and watching them accidentally fry from static electricity was highly frowned upon.  Thus began my journey to becoming a technology fanatic. Most of my abilities were learned through trial and error with my own equipment, and yes a few unsatisfied friends, they would later forgive me.
By the age of 13 I had gained quite a bit of computer knowledge and was able to effectively navigate through most operating systems and hardware issues.  I used this knowledge to help many of my friends and their families. For those of you who are familiar with the statement “turn it off and turn it back on again”, yes I used this many times, unfortunately it didn’t work 95% of the time, but hey why not give it a try.
I continued to grow my technical skills through high school and into college. I always knew that I wanted to be involved in the technology world. When I began working at Church Web Works it was truly a dream come true. We not only get to use powerful software, we get to build it as well! There is nothing more rewarding than working for an innovative company that builds software that truly works. This makes Technical Support a fairly easy job for me, in other words if you’re a client and you have questions, please……

“Call on me everything is alright”
“I’ll be the one to help you fix your site”
“Listen up, I can guarantee”
“Before you hang up you’ll be happy”

Dan Cooper
Church Web Works
Technology Support

Open Mic Night - Dan Cooper from Churchwebworks on Vimeo.

 In case you have somehow managed to escape the announcement of our new free 30 day trial offer, that is exactly what we are offering to anyone who is not already using our product. Why would we do that you ask? Well, to be completely honest, we believe in our product. We believe the ease of use and functionality of CWW is incredible and a great tool for helping churches reach both their congregation and community. For that reason we want to allow potential users of CWW the opportunity to take the system for a test drive. Often times it simply takes getting behind the wheel to really understand what is possible with the product.

If you are a current user of CWW you might be thinking to yourself, "what about me, I'd love a free month of service" and that is exactly why we are offering a free month to you as well if you refer someone to us and they remain a client for at least two months. Not too shabby!

So, if you have a pastor friend who is in need of a website, refer them to us. They'll get a free trial and if they remain with CWW for two months, you will get a free month of service as well.

After all, who doesn't like FREE!

In case you don't live in the Northwest like we do, or weren't watching the weather reports over the course of the last week, a fairly massive snow and ice storm (at least by our standards) blanketed our neck of the woods. So, in an attempt to have a little fun and get creative, our staff held the "Annual White Rain Molding Contest." The following photographs document a few of the masterpieces we created. If you would like to see the full gallery, you can do so on our Facebook page!

With 2012 about to begin, New Year's resolutions are on the minds of a lot of people. Whether it's losing weight, starting a new hobby, restoring a broken relationship, etc., people are looking to make progress in their lives. The same should be true for your church when it comes to your website and overall web presence since it is such a valuable part of your connection/outreach strategy.

 While it goes without saying that each church has different areas that could use improvement, the new year is the perfect time to evaluate what those areas might be for you and your church. The following is a list of possible areas to consider investing time and energy to improve.

1. Logo - While a logo redesign goes beyond simply the scope of your website and touches on the overall branding of your church, perhaps this is an area that your church needs to address.

2. Website images - Using high quality images greatly improves the look of your website, while clip art and pixelated photographs can have an equally strong negative effect. Use good images!

3. Content - Fresh, timely content is essential. If your content is out of date, your website will not be effective in helping people learn about your church.

4. Home Page - Your homepage is the most visited page on your site so it is vital to have your most important information ie. service times, contact information, calendar, etc. either on your home page or clearly linked to from your home page.

5. Navigation - If a person cannot easily navigate your site, it doesn't matter how good your content is. People need to be able to find their way around without confusion. Period.

6. Media - It is incredibly helpful for people to be able to download sermons, watch videos, view event photographs, etc. If you don't have this type of content on your page perhaps this is the year to begin adding it.

7. Staff Information - This is one of the first pages people look for when they are investigating your church via your website so it is valuable to have this content available.

8. Blog - A blog is a great way for your staff to share information, insights, personal perspectives, etc. 

9. Facebook/Twitter - A strong social media presence can be of value in terms of sharing information and helping people engage in conversation with one another while not at church. However, in order for this to be successful a great deal of intentionality needs to be given to these social mediums.

10. Redesign - Perhaps your church is not simply in need of a few tweaks but an overall redesign. If this is the case begin planning what you would like your new site to look like and schedule out when you would like it to take place.

 While there are countless areas that can be addressed, the important thing is to make progress. Continue evaluating your web presence in 2012 and take the necessary steps to develop a website that will be helpful to both those who attend your church and those who are looking for a church home.

Happy New Year!

 As Christmas rapidly approaches we want to wish all of you, our partners in ministry, a very Merry Christmas. It has been a great privilege to work with you and as we posted last week, some wonderful things have taken place over the last year.

As 2012 knocks on the door we are excited about what the new year holds and believe that God will continue to bless you and your churches as you continue to share God's love with those in your community and around the world.

 Have a merry Christmas and happy New Year!

Blessings,

From all of us at Church Web Works!