Small Church Solution
Moving is tough. You leave your friends behind, you have to carry and unpack all those boxes, and then it’s time to get plugged in to a new church. In this age of new media, most often the first place someone will look when trying to find a new church is online. It’s often been said that you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. Your web site is making that first impression right now.
Dan Levin with ChurchSolutions.com writes:
It’s essential that your site offers at least some of the following features: a blog, social media links, surveys, forms, events and e-mail marketing. Together, these components help you not only reach clients but also involve them in your business’s future. Customers — if given the opportunity — will gladly contribute to your development and ultimate success. That’s why we’ve found having a Web site that we can control so vital to our business success.
Levin goes on to describe three common options that churches should consider when taking control of their site:
• Option 1: Develop an in-house Web design and programming department. Keep in mind that quality designers and programmers are very expensive to retain, and for a really strong Web presence, you’ll need a designer, a PHP and MYSQL programmer, and a search engine optimization (SEO) expert. This is the most difficult and expensive option, and it’s probably best left to large organizations.
• Option 2: Outsource your Web design and programming to an external firm. A good one will cost quite a bit of money up-front, and all future modifications will be tied to its team. You can also have the firm create the site in a program such as Dreamweaver. Then you can purchase the program’s sister software; in the case of Dreamweaver, that would be “Contribute,” which costs roughly $150 and is designed to allow you to make minor updates and exercise some control over the site’s operation yourself. However, the learning curve is steep, and you will need to learn at least basic Web coding in HTML and FTP. This option is less expensive than the first, but it still involves significant ongoing costs in terms of programmer time and expertise.
• Option 3: Use a content-management solution. Such vendors charge a much lower initial design fee and provide the site’s basic “skin,” or the overall look and feel. From there, you take complete control of your site through a user-friendly content-management system and control panel. This option allows you to begin with a very inexpensive version and add as you grow, implementing modules along the way such as e-commerce, billing, employee intranet, podcasts, forums, photo albums, proposals and an array of other features. For many organizations, the low cost and high flexibility of this option makes it the most attractive.
AgapeMedia.net specializes in Option 3. If you are looking for a good looking site that you can manage yourself that won’t cost thousands of dollars then contact us and we can get you up and running in no time.
Soon you’ll be making a good first impression that will lead to a lasting impression. That can lead to people being saved and encouraged in Christ! and that is what it’s all about!
