Your church website isn’t just a static page with a picture of your church and worship hours. It can be one of the most powerful tools you have in turning those first time and sporadic church visitors into highly engaged members.
It’s always difficult to know exactly what visitors are looking for in a church. One or two visits isn’t nearly enough for them to get to know the family and community they could be joining.
With so many people relying on the Internet to help them make important decisions, including where to worship, it’s time to let your website help your church bring in more regular, engaged members.
Showcase Activities, Events And Worship Hours
One of the top things that ruins how a new visitor sees your church is a bad website. Visitors want to visit your church’s site and get more details on worship hours, regular activities, charitable associations, and any upcoming events. If the site is poorly designed and doesn’t make this type of information available, visitors might think your church isn’t that interested in retaining members. A better site with all relevant information easily accessible could make a major difference in church attendance.
Offer An Email Newsletter
Some churches ask new visitors to sign up for an email newsletter during their first visit. Odds are, you’re probably going to miss a few people or new visitors might be too shy to draw attention to themselves right away. After all, they’re still on the fence about whether to join or not.
The solution is to offer an email newsletter on your website. This could be a once or twice a week newsletter filled with inspiring content and a calendar of events. Ask visitors and even current members to please sign up on the website. It’s less pressure and allows you to stay in contact with anyone who signs up, leading to more engaged members.
Include A Welcome Forum On Your Site
It’s vital to start bringing in more millennials to your church. This is the generation that know show to spread the word on social media and connect with the digital generation. The sad thing is 44% of millennials see church as an exclusive club.
Keep them coming back by offering a welcome forum on your site. Ask members to check in to the forums throughout the week to talk with visitors online. Visitors can introduce themselves, ask members questions about the church and get a better idea of the community. The idea is to make everyone feel welcome.
Provide Regular Useful Content
Your church website needs to be updated frequently. When someone visits your church, they’re probably looking for a new place to worship. Either before or after their visit, they’ll likely look for your website to learn more. What will they find?
If you want to be seen as an active church family, your site needs to reflect that. Show visitors what your church has to offer with regular blog posts, inspiring messages, personal thoughts on current events and even fun activities outside the church that are family friendly. A church that connects with members online is a church that connects in person too. This is vital to having more engaged members.
Add In Personal Stories From Members
No matter what a pastor might say, the truth about a church comes out in what members have to say about it. Add a section to your site with personal stories from members. Encourage members to submit their own stories about what they like and even dislike. Honesty is vital as it’ll make your church seem like a true family and not a fake community.
Offer Interactive Resources
One of the best ways for your website to turn church visitors into engaged members is through interactive resources. When visitors were looking for a new church, 83% said sermon quality was most important, while 74% said worship style was important.
Show them what they need to know by offering podcasts, online sermons, live chats throughout the week, downloadable ebooks for study or motivation and other digital resources. These allow visitors to connect with the church on their own terms. Before you know it, those visitors are becoming new church members.
Engaged Members Are Just A Few Clicks Away
The distance between visitors and engaged members could be just a few clicks of a mouse or taps of a finger. Help visitors get to know your church and your church family by making your website a one-stop shop filled with information and resources.
Want to turn your site into a valuable resource for bringing in new members? See how our custom church web design services help give visitors exactly what they’re looking for.