There are a lot of church website design companies nowadays that offer template-based solutions. It is not wrong to use templates especially if the church's budget doesn't allow a custom solution. However, there are several drawbacks when using a template-based church website.
1.It is not surprising if there are more than 100 church websites or perhaps even thousands that has the same look and feel.
2. No matter how you think the template design you picked is cool, it cheapens the look and feel when people see it on other websites.
3. You are not unique. Your church's personality is lost or not even conveyed to begin with.
4. It does not encourage repeat visits or drive more traffic.
It is understandable for a small church or a church plant to opt for the lower price solution such as templates.
However, it must also be considered that a church website is not just to have a pretty online presence but it is an investment being made for an effective online ministry and any investment has a price tag attached to it.
There are several advantages of developing a custom church website:
1. You can brand it and put together elements that reflect your church.
With template websites, you do not have any choice as far as what color scheme you want your website to have or what kind of design elements you want to put. But if you are customizing, you have the flexibility to tell the church website designer the elements that you feel would best represent your church's personality.
2. Your site is unique.
This is exactly the reason why you want a custom solution. You do not want your website to look like several hundred others. You give value to how your church looks on the web by customizing it.
3. You can enhance your user's online experience by adding interactive features.
A lot of template-based sites are limited with features. If the church website design company does offer some interactive features, it will add up to your monthly fees which eventually will cost you more money.
4. Your church's visual-appeal encourage repeat visits.
People are visual. They like colors and beautiful images by nature. We are created to be that way. If the images in your website are pleasurable, you convince them to keep coming back for more.
A customized website for your church may not be the most cost-effective option but it is an investment that is worth making.
Roman Catholic Church Website
As with all web design projects, there is much to consider and launching a successful one can take time. Here are some tips on launching your Church website successfully.
Decide what and when to launch. There are at least four different church website launching designs. Each having its own purpose:
1) The Coming Soon page - This is also sometimes called a splash page. It is a simple one page site that announces activities or events that will be happening involving the church. These are good when fliers or mailers have been issued with the church website address included. If this is the type of church web design you choose, make sure you include information such as a developers' update, more visit to :- www.automatic-content.com a podcast or some type of countdown.
2) A Soft Launch - This is useful when designing your church website to get feedback from others. It is intended not to be announced except to a chosen few. After a few days, check back with these individuals to see what they think and if they have any other ideas. It also serves as a test for the church website for ones whom have sought out the site on their own.
3) Beta Launch - This is another type of soft launch. It allows people to seek it out while at the same time informing them that it is a work in progress. These are great additions to the already established church website design. They are usually used with online service or web application rather than a blogging site or organizational site for general information. However if you are looking for a church website design for a social network, small group finder, or other organization service to run parallel to a main site, then this would be what you are looking for.
4) A Hard Launch - Unlike the other 3 types we have discussed, this one should be considered the "unveiling" of your new church website. It should be fully tested, loaded with content and information and ready to be consumed by search engines, church leaders in the area and the general public.
The content of you church web design is as important as the type of site you launch. This would include pertinent information such as your street address, more visite to :-www.javascript-magic.com affiliation or denomination, phone numbers, office hours, service times including length and location, style of worship and any information about teaching or dress.
Make sure you check your church web design for browser compatibility. They should function correctly in major browsers and should be checked frequently during the development of the site. They should pass the test with each of the 6 major browsers: Internet Explorer 6 & 7, Firefox, Safari, Opera and Chrome.
Get someone else to look over the church website design. After several weeks of a working on a website, the developer begins looking at it as a bunch of codes or just a style. A fresh pair of eyes will give you, as the developer, a new outlook on how the design is working. Try getting someone who has never seen the site before to take a look at it. You will be amazed at the information you can get from a new pair of eyes.
Both Nittu & Nirbhayk are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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