Over the past few weeks, I’ve been going through 10 reasons why every church should invest in a website. Here, I’ll cover the ninth reason: a church website establishes a resource center.
A website is an excellent place to set up resources and information specifically for your church members, as well as for non-church members. Your church can store all kinds of helpful material on a website that may otherwise be unavailable to church members.
Here are some specific examples of what might be included in this resource center:
1. Childcare Worker Rotation List
If you have a rotation list for childcare workers, it can be difficult to make sure everyone’s in the loop. Paper copies are excellent, but they can get lost, ruined, be not immediately accessible or get outdated. Putting a childcare worker rotation list on the website is a great way to minimize these challenges.
FYI – our church’s volunteer rotation schedule is available on this website. Of course, during COVID-19, we haven’t needed to use it. But back when life was “normal,” it came in really handy.
2. Membership Directory
Churches often have printed membership directories with the pictures, names and contact info for each member. Dulin’s Grove does, and it’s really nice to have! But over time, I’ve noticed a few issues with it:
- What if there’s a typo? You can’t fix it once it’s printed – and where words are many, typos are not far.
- What if someone’s contact info changes? Again, you can’t fix it in the directory.
- Church directories get outdated quickly, unless you print a new one every year. Kids grow up. People leave. New people come in. A printed directory can’t reflect these changes.
- Not everyone may have your church directory. It may take a while before new members receive a directory. And, some people could misplace it or accidentally damage it.
Church membership directories can be stored on your church website, though. You can have everything a printed directory has – plus it’s easier to update, available to everyone and less expensive.
3. Recommended Biblical Material
Many people struggle with reading the Bible as a spiritual discipline. Others need help finding Bible-based resources to teach their kids, navigate married life, etc. In light of this, you could have a place on your website for recommended biblical material – things like Bible reading plans, kids’ resources, Christian websites and other Christian resource centers.
In conclusion, like visitor information, possibly the best place to store these church resources is on a website. It’s available to anyone anywhere and at any time, and can easily be adjusted. A website can become an important resource center for those in your church.
Thoughts? More ideas for an online church resource center? Leave a comment below!
