Is Your Website Compliant?

By Raul Rivera

The world wide web is where most people begin shopping

In conversation with my realtor one day, he mentioned that over 75% of people now do their initial real estate shopping online.  In the same way, a vast majority of individuals who are seeking for a church begin their search online.  The question is no longer, "Does your church have a website?"  More accurately to ask is, "If someone visited your church website would they visit your church?"  Having a church website is not a luxury.  It is a necessity.  The problem is that most churches do not invest the necessary resources to make it effective. 

Concept of fishing and your church website

Jesus told Peter and Andrew in Matthew 4:19, "Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus used a familiar event to teach them the concept of winning souls.   Likewise, the concept of fishing relates to your church website.  A fisherman studies the tides, weather and timing in order to place his boat in the perfect spot.  He then casts a net in the hopes that his preparation pays off.   Studying the times and seasons, the Internet is the perfect spot for your church to cast its nets.  The actual website is the net that will capture the fish. 

The quality of your net

No fisherman is better than the net he/she casts.  On one occasion off the shore of the Sea of Tiberias Jesus told his disciples to cast the net on the other side of the boat.  It produced a catch so numerous that they were unable to haul in the net.  They were not used to having such a full net that they did not have an adequate method for hauling in such a big catch.  Can your church website bring in a big haul?  Getting people to your website is the easy part.  Getting the subsequent visit to your church depends on the quality of your website.  What message does it send to those who visit it?  I have seen a lot of websites whose poor quality sends a subsequent message to its viewers: "stay away." 

Use a website that works

Your website speaks of the excellence of your ministry.  It reflects what visitors expect to experience when they come.  As a minimum your website ought to have the following components.

• Upcoming sermon series: Planned messages allow you to spend quality time preparing messages that are high caliber. It also allows you to spend time advertising certain topics that touch people in different ways.
• Past sermons archives: This lets visitors hear you and get a taste of your messages. Oftentimes people connect after hearing just one message.
• News/Events: The news/events section keeps the congregation up to date on the latest events. This requires maintenance. It is better not to have this section than to have one that it always out of date or managed improperly.
• History of the church: Your church history is a wonderful story of how the Lord orchestrated events that led to the birth of the church.
• Doctrines: Knowing what you believe is an important piece of the puzzle for those wishing to visit your church.
• Ministries of the church: Because God's kingdom is made up of a variety of individuals all entering the kingdom in differing seasons of life, posting the scope of ministries offered at your church helps online viewers to better understand whether or not your church is a place in which they could feel connected. Let's face it, singles are more likely to be drawn in if they see that a specific time each week a group of singles meets together, etc.
• Dedicate a special section for children's' ministry: Many families will consider the children's' program as their number one priority. If you have a very nice children's program then you should tell the whole world.

Other considerations

The content of your website needs to pass IRS scrutiny.  Proper discretion needs to be exercised to ensure that you do not include language that engages in political campaigning by promoting or endorsing candidates.  Moreover, it is very easy to violate section 4958 through the pastor's personal blog or sermon sales and, copyright laws by publishing or uploading copyrighted material such as music or writings from other individuals.  In this digital world, it is a form of cultural stewardship to have a website that reflects not only the vision of the church, but also a godly pursuit of legal compliance.   At StartCHURCH, it's our goal to be a consultative resource for churches and ministries in their digital resource.  If you have concerns about the compliance side of your website, please feel free to give us a call.