Church: Support Your Logo With A Great Web Site
Yesterday, I wrote that it is critical for a church to invest in their logo…don’t cheap out! Once you have completed this key step, it is now important to support your church communication and marketing efforts with a great web site.
Good versus Great
It is a non-negotiable…first and foremost your church must have a web site. There is plenty of statistical proof to validate the need for a church having one. The key however is that it not be just “good” but it has to be great. Good is not good enough – it is often just one step above mediocre. Great connects with people and is relevant. Great does not mean expensive. Great means that it is professional, easy to navigate, and that it is very functional for the new visitor and the current attender. You need a “front door” for the first-time visitor and a “back-door” for your members.
Where your church logo is the first impression, your church web site is usually the second impression. Follow up your great first impression with a great second impression too.
Church Web Site Advice
Here is a little advice. Unless you have a professional web site designer in your congregation…pay to have it designed. I am a little biased but I think this should be contracted to a marketing company that does web design as part of their services and not just a web design firm. Here’s why…
Functionality and design are important but how you use your site from a marketing and communications standpoint is the real key. Your church web site needs to built with a concrete strategy for communication excellence and integrated with your “brand”. The more marketing that is integrated into your design the greater the excellence you will achieve with your communication internally and externally.
Just like your logo is an investment, your web site is an investment. It is not a static online brochure. If done correctly, it is a living, evolving, communication channel that exudes your ministry’s character and culture. Do it right once and the initial investment will pay off for your ministry in spades – for years to come.
So, does your church have an excellent web site? Would they be open to rethinking their web strategy to obtain excellence?
Image via Flickr: Arbron
Comments
David, good post! We would agree about using the marketing company because there are things that web designers don’t think about. Nice job!!
That’s it Donny. I know a lot of great web designers but they are even better when partnered with a marketing person or firm. The combination is what every church needs to do great church marketing!
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