Developing A Strong Web Ministry for Your Church
Sarepta Baptist Association Lunch and Learn, January 13, 2020
POWER OF THE WEB FOR MINISTRY
QUESTION: What benefits do you see of leveraging the web for ministry?
“This good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed in all the world as a testimony to all nations. And then the end will come.” – Matthew 24:14
For the first time in history you can reach the ends of the earth from your phone! Your church should think about it’s web presence as a means of proclaiming the testimony of Christ to the world!
STATE OF THE WEB
A Review of current world and US stats on most visited websites (Sept-Nov 2019):
- Need to be sure you show up on the #1 site in the world!
YouTube
- YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine, behind only Google, and is owned by Google.
- The average mobile session is 40 minutes.
- There are over 1 billion mobile videos viewed each day.
- Average visit is 10-12 minutes on the site.
- 88 percent of all Facebook users access the site from a mobile device.
- 500 million tweets are sent each day.
- 71 percent of users are reading the news on Twitter.
- User growth is expected to be only 1 percent next year, suggesting Twitter’s popularity may be leveling.
QUESTION: What do you find interesting about the top 10? Any observations?
- Facebook, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Instagram are all in the Facebook family.
- Most people use WhatsApp in place of SMS messaging, which helps to explain why it’s so popular worldwide.
- WhatsApp has 1 billion daily active users.
- 65 billion WhatsApp messages are sent each day.
- There are 100 million voice calls made each day on WhatsApp.
- 72 percent of teens use Instagram daily.
- There are 95 million new posts each day.
- Instagram users “like” 4.2 billion posts a day.
The Most Popular Social Media Sites You’ve Never Heard Of
It turns out, many of the world’s most popular social media sites are specific to China. There are two main reasons for this:
- China has severe restrictions on internet use. Sites such as Facebook and Twitter are not allowed to operate there.
- China has the world’s largest population, and this population is getting more and more affluent, meaning they have more time and money to access the internet and social media.
- WeChat & QQ are messaging apps that compare to WhatsApp.
- QZone, is China’s equivalent to Facebook.
- WeChat, QQ and QZone are all owned by the same parent company, Tencent.
- Tik Tok is similar to YouTube but videos are limited to 60 seconds.
- Tik Tok’s primary audience is China, significant users worldwide, targets teens.
- Sina Weibo, commonly referred to as just Weibo, is the equivalent of Twitter.
- 4 knowledge, 3 social, 1 shopping, and 2 porn.
- People in the U.S. spend around 2 hours per day on social media.
- 78% of all Americans aged 18-24 use SnapChat.
- Top ten begins with a cult that also takes the 8th spot – Jehovah Witness.
- 2,3 & 5 belong to Bible apps – People are interested!
- 3 spots go to Astrology.
- 2 spots to Islam.
- 7 of the top 10 are false religions!
3 WEB STRATEGIES TO DEVELOP
1. Website Strategy – We will cover this more in-depth shortly.
2. Social Networking Strategy – Jesus was alway going to the market places and interacting with the people. Social networks are the 21 century market places. Your church should be connecting with online communities.
Questions: What social networks is your church connected to?
Based on the stats, which social networks are most important? Fish the big ponds
To pursue a social network strategy contact Linda Wilkins, lwilkins@gabaptist.org
3. Video / Audio Strategy
People want video – YouTube is the #2 most visited site in the world. Their average mobile session is 40 minutes!
People want audio – 2019 Digital Summit: Randi Zuckerberg, Zuckerberg Media
“Now is the time to do audio podcasts. 90 million listeners and only 800,000 producers.”
Free live Streaming – Facebook Live & zoom.us
Free Video Hosting – youtube.com
Free Podcasting – anchor.fm
IDEA: live streaming your sermons then repurpose to video and podcasts.
To pursue a video/audio strategy contact Jon Graham, jongraham@gabaptist.org
YOUR ONLINE BRAND
Imagine someone moves into your community and they are looking for a church…
Where is the first place they will likely look?
They would search online. And when they search online, how certain are you that they will find your church?
What would they likely type in the search field?
“Churches in [name of town]”. In this scenario, where would you expect your church to show up?
Where would your church be found on the internet?
Whether you realize it or not your church is probably already listed all across the web.
Do you need a website to be found online?
No, however there are some compelling reasons to have a church website:
- A website gives search engines something to rank and point people to.
- A website allows you to provide more information about your church.
- A website that has consistent stream of content, i.e. blog posts or online sermons, help to achieve a stronger ranking.
Why are strong rankings important?
You will be found in a higher position in search results.
STEPS TO HIGHER SEARCH RANKINGS
1. Manage Your Online Brand
Whether you realize it or not your church may already be populated all across the web. Here are some important tips to take control and manage your brand:
- Search for Churches or Baptist Churches in [name of town], then look specifically for the name of your church in the results.
- Look for your position in the results, accuracy of information, visitor reviews, etc.
2. Claim Your Google Business Listing – google.com/business/
3. Claim All Your Web Real Estate
Wherever your church appears online, claim and manage those profiles. Top places include yellowpages, citysearch, yahoo, and Facebook.
QUESTION: Why claim so many listings?
It gets the word out, provides correct information, listings feed off each other, link backs to your website, more opportunities to be found!
TIP: It is a good idea to keep a ‘cheat sheet’ of the content you post in listings for consistency across the web. Title, description, etc. Keep a record of what you do, profiles you have verified, especially log-ins you create so you can refer back and know where you have been.
INFLUENCERS TO SEARCH RANKINGS
1. Ask your members and friends to go on Google page and write positive reviews.
2. Participate on popular social networks.
3. Add SSL to your website: FREE > https://letsencrypt.org/
4. Set-up a video channel on YouTube (owned by Google).
5. Check your site speed – Test site: https://tools.pingdom.com
6. Set-up for Google alerts for ongoing monitoring: http://www.google.com/alerts
IMPORTANCE OF WEB FOR VISITORS
QUESTION: What needs to be on your website for potential visitors?
- Your website is the front door of your church.
- First time visits and a decisions to visit your church are made on the web.
- Your website allows you to provide “New Here” information and directions.
- Your website introduces visitors to the pastor.
- Your website gives visitors a feel for the church.
- Your website could also be a source of encouragement and hope.
BENEFIT OF WEB FOR MEMBERS
QUESTION: How should your church web site be equipping your regulars?
- Provide ways to volunteer and be involved in church life.
- Create and encourage social media groups and connect them on the website.
- Offer a blog and keep it current.
- Have an online calendar and keep it current.
- Provide media to consume – Live streams, sermons, podcasts, teaching.
- Provide online giving, registration, and forms for comments and prayer requests.
CONCLUSION / Q & A
FREE WEB SCORE
If you would like a FREE Web Score, all you have to do is email bdollar@gabptist.org with your request. Please provide your website URL (web address) along with your contact info (phone and email). Within a week, I will send you an in-depth, personalized (not machine generated), informative Web Score report! (no strings attached.)
MORE RESOURCES
PLEASE GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK
Did this session benefit you? How was the pace of information? what did we miss? How can we make it better? Please send your feedback to bdollar@gabaptist.org.
