A little over a year ago, my family moved to a new city. We now live in Grand Rapids, a couple hours away from everything we knew in East Michigan. Soon after we arrived in our new city, we recognized it was time for us to find a new church home. There are plenty of churches to choose from in Grand Rapids, and I suppose we could have gone knocking on church doors, but guess where we turned first? We got online and searched for churches in our area. Our first impression of these local churches came from their church websites. And more often than not, this was our only impression of them. It’s quite disheartening to me that there are so many churches that still do not realize the importance of church websites. I guarantee you that almost every newcomer that comes through your doors on a Sunday has been to your website.
Church Websites Matter
A website helps a new person understand what to expect when they show up for the first time on a Sunday morning. Visiting a new church is awkward and uncomfortable, to say the least, so a good website helps put people at ease by showing them who you are as a church and what you are all about.
Unfortunately, many churches do not do this well. Do you? Well, let me ask it this way: Is your website a barrier or a bridge for people? There are a few common website barriers.
Doesn’t feel like your church
Your church building feels a certain way. The people and culture of your church make a certain impact on people. What impression of your congregation do people get when they walk into your building? Many church websites don’t replicate this in-person feel very well. A church that has a warm, coffeehouse feel shouldn’t have a cold, sterile website. A contemporary church shouldn’t have a site that looks 10 years old. Do your best to extend the feel of your church to its online presence.
