In the second part of a series on website content, we will discuss questions that arrise based from the premise "If Jesus Had A Website..." in order to better analyze approaches and expectations of church website content.

When we asked "Why would Jesus have a website?", we found that that there were two main purposes for having a website:

1. Creating a place for existing members to keep up-to-date on church events, announcements, and other information.
2. Reaching out to non-members.

• Welcome - Every church should have a greeting section to their website, and it should probably be the first thing a visitor to your website reads. Typically, this welcome is directed towards non-members, but it's probably a good idea to keep it light and informal to make it inviting to all.
• Contact Information - Members and non-members alike will need to have access to contact information, including, but not limited to, the church's address (street and mailing if needed), phone number, and e-mail. Directions and a map are strongly recommeded as well.
  
• Church History - You should probably include a brief history of your church for non-members. Some people like to know what kind of environment they are getting into, and the church history is a good way to see that. Is it a new, budding church, or is it long established as part of the community? What are the major milestones in the history church? Just as each church is different, each visitor to your site is looking for different things in a church, so present them with the information they need to make an informed decision whether your church is the right one for them.
• Ministries - A listing of ministries that your church provides or is involved in, along with a brief discription, is an essential tool for both members and non-members. For members, it provides a directory of different services provided by the church as well as groups to get involved with. For non-members, a collection of your church's ministries is a clear indicator of the priorities and passions of the church.
• Pastor's Page - Every church website needs a place for the current pastor/reverend/father/etc. to introduce themselves to non-members who may be curious about your church's leadership. In the case of a change in this leadership, this page can also be important for existing members as well. Encourage your pastor to make this space their own.
• Vision Statement - Once you've covered where your church as been and where you are now, it's important to address where your church is going. What are the ideals of your ministries? What role does your church want to play in the community? What services would you like to provide as a church in the future? Again, these can be key points for a non-member who is looking for a new church, or someone who unsaved in search of Truth. These also provide a defined set of goals for members of the church to refer to as well.

Make sure these sections are a part of your site, as they include the information that is most likely to be requested by a visitor to your site.

While this information builds a good structure for your website, if only this information were available it would seem kind of barren. In the next segment of this series, we'll discuss some of the other sections you may also want to include in your website that can provide a sense of liveliness to your church's site. Stay tuned!

In the first part of a series on website content, we will discuss questions that arrise based from the premise "If Jesus Had A Website..." in order to better analyze approaches and expectations of church website content.

So, why would our savior have a website?

Would He have a Blog to tell friends and family how His day went and what was bothering Him at that point in time? Probably not. How about a collection of links to all the neat stuff He's found online? Doubtful. Maybe He'd start a business selling WWJCD bracelets? Nah.

Just as Jesus went out into the real world to spread the Word of God and prepared his disciples to do likewise, today Jesus would be reaching out into cyberspace to spread the Word of God online. He spent His time on earth teaching the people he encountered about the ways of God, and then preparing them and comissioning them to go out into the world and share the gospel.

Even in this basic realization, we can see that a church website must serve double duty. It must reach out to the lost and encourage a search of Truth, as well as strengthen and connect those who have already come to Christ.

At one point in time, it was thought that a church website was effective enough if it listed the name of the church, where it was located, service times, and maybe a few blurbs about the pastor and major activities. However, in today's internet atmosphere, where people have greater expectations for all sites thanks to the increase in user participation within the web community, this basic information is not enough. Without addressing needs of the lost as well as the saved, many church websites will flounder and potentially even fail completely.

Creating a balance between these two goals is also a difficult task. If we create the site to be too "Member Friendly", then we will not devote enough attention to those who may be seeking. If we commit too many resources to reaching out to non-Christians, then existing members and fellow Christians will not participate to grow an online community for your church. We want to strive for the goal of creating a site where non-Christians can come and begin to quench their thirst for truth, as well as create an active community of believers. After all, is this not what Christ demonstrated to us in his life?

Handling these two assignments does take a lot of time and effort, which should help emphasize their importance for your church website. Thoughout the rest of this series, we will be addressing the key aspects of effective website content. Among other issues, we'll address:

• what should and should not be included
• the importance of tone
• audience considerations

If you have any more suggestions for topics that you'd like to see addressed in the coming weeks, please contact us at webmaster@ifjesushadawebsite.net.