Before someone even considers stepping foot inside your church building, there’s a good chance they will head to your church website. As the virtual front door of your church, first impressions matter.
This means, now more than ever, it’s important to be strategic with the content you include on your church website.
Often, guests are looking for a few key pieces of information that help them learn a little about who you are as a church and what they can expect when they attend. If any of these key pieces are missing, guests may become frustrated or disinterested before they even give you a chance.
On the other hand, providing the right information in the right way can help guests feel welcome, sure, and ready to take next steps with your church.
Here are 6 key pieces of information every church website should include:
1. Plan A Visit & Preregistration
First and foremost, it’s crucial to include a “plan a visit” page on your church website. This page should be easy to find and offer clear information for guests like:
- Your address
- Parking details
- Registration information (especially for children)
- Times of services, small groups, and weekly events
- A “what to expect” section with information on the feel of your services and even what most people at your church typically wear
- Staff contact information
It’s also a good idea to include a form or link where guests can “pre-register” so your team can be on the lookout for them when they arrive on Sunday.
2. Event Calendar
Next, every church website should include an event calendar. This calendar should be organized, searchable, and updated so website viewers have a singular place to find out what’s happening at your church.
As you add events, consider adding categories like “children”, “students”, “women”, “missions”, etc. so people can easily filter the view. If your church has a lot going on, it can be easy for events to get lost in the mix, but applying filters helps to keep your calendar clear and organized.
3. Live Streaming or Message Archive
It’s important to have a live stream or message archive on your church website, or better yet, have both! Here’s why:
Live Streaming
Live streaming makes it possible for your church members to never “miss” a Sunday. If they’re traveling or sick, live stream allows people to tune in to experience the worship and sermon from afar. This also provides you with ministry opportunities to reach those who may be homebound in your community and beyond.
Message Archive
Hosting a message archive on your church website allows viewers to go back and watch or listen to past sermons. It’s a good idea to categorize these by preacher, theme, and date. If possible, include message transcripts, resource links, and subtitles on video to make it accessible for everyone.
4. Service Details
Every church website should have service details and a physical address listed. It may seem obvious, but if you’re not intentional about including crucial details, they may get overlooked.
As you think through placement, be sure to make a spot for these on the homepage of your website where the information is obvious and prominent. Remember, if people don’t know where your church is located and when your service starts, they’ll never be able to connect with your community.
5. Online Giving
Next, be sure to include online giving on your church website. According to the 2024 report, State of Church Giving, churches that offered online giving saw a 3.5% average increase in giving. Online giving isn’t optional anymore, instead, it’s a crucial tool churches can offer to make it easy, convenient, and secure for donors to give.
Keep in mind, the fewer clicks needed to be able to give, the better. To do this, include online giving in your header or menu and have it go directly to your giving page.
6. Social Media Links
Lastly, your church website should include links to your social media accounts. As a church, your social media is the place to regularly engage with those in your community. Because of this, your church website should point people to your social accounts, and your social accounts should point back to your website for more static and important information.
Next Steps
Your church website serves as a digital extension of your church, and it’s important the content is clear and purposeful. This list isn’t by any means exhaustive, but these 6 things are non-negotiable no matter the size, age, or demographics of your church.
If your church website needs some work, we’d love you to try out the church websites through Ministry Brands Amplify, an all-in-one church management software designed for churches. This means your website, giving, people management, media, and more are all in one place so you can focus more on ministry and less on software.