Over 201 million people use the internet in the United States, or about 63% of all Americans. That’s almost as high as the 83% of Americans who identify themselves as Christians. If you want to reach your flock, then it’s more important than ever for your church to have a website. But it’s not enough to just have a website. Your church website design needs to be clean, easy to use, and impactful. Here are some mistakes that churches are notorious for making with their websites.

5 Common Church Website Mistakes To Avoid

Sharefaith has numerous church website designs, tips and church website ideas to help you make sure your message is heard, but there are also some common mistakes made by church websites that you’ll want to avoid. Here are 5 common church website mistakes to avoid.

No new content

One of the biggest struggles for church staff is church website maintenance. This doesn’t just mean making sure everything’s running smoothly. In order to make sure your church’s website is readily visible and relevant, you need to make regular updates to your content. A lack of updates sends the message that there’s nothing new or exciting happening within your congregation. Usually, nothing could be further from the truth, but you need to make sure events and news are updated for your website visitors. Make sure to upload an accurate church activities PDF or events calendar on a monthly basis. Start a blog with downloadable Sunday school worksheets. Be active with your church email newsletter and sign up. Set a goal of performing an update every month. Once you make it part of your routine, you may want to do small bi-weekly or weekly updates in between.

Not mobile friendly

One of our most vital church website design tips? Make sure your church website is easy to view and navigate on your phone. More people are using their phones for internet access than ever before. It also might surprise you to learn that many people are “smartphone-dependent,” meaning that they use only their phones to access the web. That means that church websites need to be mobile friendly. If your site isn’t aesthetically pleasing or accessible on a phone, you’re cutting down a lot of potential website visits. Don’t leave anyone out of the conversation. We can ensure that your site is mobile friendly.

Contact info is hard to find

If you don’t show where and when your worship services are, how can you expect people to find you? Whether your visitor is a current member or wants to find out more about your church, chances are that they will need to find some contact information. Your church’s location, staff members, and relevant contact information should be visible and easy to locate. You’d be shocked to know how many church websites fail to display this information in a way that’s easy for website visitors to find. Above all else, everyone wants to know who you are, where you are, and how to get in touch. In the local SEO industry, this is known as your NAP information — name, address, phone number.

Ignoring non-members

You might be under the impression that your church website is a resource for current members to use — and you’re absolutely right about that. But one of our favorite church website design tips is to create your site with non-members in mind. Don’t alienate newcomers who don’t belong to your congregation. While your ministries are geared towards current members, you need to think of your site as a means to attract new congregants. Focus on what members’ experience will be if they attend your church, rather than small updates for current members.

Lack of sermons

To that end, a lot of churches miss out on a great opportunity: uploading church sermons and segments of services. Current members can easily access what they missed, and more importantly, potential congregants can get a real idea of what worship services are like before they visit. By sharing what a typical service is really like, you can more accurately represent your church and what makes your worship special.

We hope these church website design tips about what to avoid will help you take a look at what you might be able to do better. And if you’re still feeling adrift in the digital world, let us help you maximize your church website’s potential!

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