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A common assumption about a website is that once you build and finish a new site, you can walk away without reassessing it for a long time. You wouldn’t do this with other practical parts of your day-to-day (budget, programs, facilities, etc.), so why with your technology?

A healthy organization is bound to grow, change processes, develop new ways of communicating and continually evolve in general. Just as you regularly evaluate your church’s mission, services, programs, attendees, etc., take some time to reassess your website. Your website should evolve as you and your people evolve. Here are some reasons why you may need a website refresh:

1. Communication is always changing. This is the biggest and most important reason for a refresh. Within the span of a single year, the technology we use to communicate can change drastically. Take time to make sure your website is keeping up-to-speed.

2. Structural shift in the way you function. Maybe you're growing and going multi-site. Maybe you've changed your mission and therefore all your priorities. Or, maybe you've hired a communication team that you didn't have before. If the way you function structurally has shifted, you need to reassess how your website will cooperate with those changes.

3. Logo/brand change. There needs to be brand consistency throughout all you do. If your brand has changed, your website design probably should too.

4. Relevancy and trends. Staying on top of visual trends is relevant to the way the web functions. This does not mean staying on top of trends for the sake of being trendy – what it means is that visual queues and trends are a symptom of point #1 (the tools we use to communicate) and it's good to keep an eye on these things so that you stay relevant. 

5. Remember your website is a "living" tool - not a static device. Websites are flexible – they can deliver new content on a daily basis and are meant to be used that way. Make sure you don't treat your website like it's a dead object – your website as a whole should be growing and changing with you.

Over the past few months we've had three of our clients refresh their websites. Here's some advice they give from their own experiences:

Paul Spilker, Director of Communications, College Park Church
“We were very happy with our existing website design [developed four years ago]. In web design years, four years is more like fourteen, and more importantly, the design of our website had become an anomaly with our other communication vehicles, which had all been updated in the last 12-18 months. I’d advise other church communicators to learn to love the middle ground of continuous sustainable improvements: always asking, “What can be improved?” and “What new opportunities should we explore?”;  but also practicing discernment in asking: “What will really help us better accomplish our mission?” and “What two or three things would we most regret not doing?” 

Before

After

Rachel Riley, Communications Director, Church at the Crossing
“The biggest reason for refreshing our website was to incorporate our new discipleship strategy. After a lot of evaluation and brainstorming, we realized that there were several aspects of our website that needed addressing. It really made sense to do a website refresh, because after three years, the landscape of our church had evolved. Nothing drastic, but enough to where the website just didn’t fit quite right. In a way, it’s like an outfit. You put it on for the first time and it’s great! When you’re wearing it three years later, it might still look good, but it probably doesn’t fit the same anymore. So, time to get a new outfit! After our experience with refreshing our website, I definitely think it is important for churches to take the time and evaluate where they are with their communications, whether that’s website, weekly bulletin, social media presence, or communications policies.”

Before

After

Erica Garcia, Communications Director, Traders Point Christian Church
“When I started in this role a year ago, people who did not attend Traders Point would tell me how they liked the website, but church members would often tell me about how it was difficult to navigate. After meeting with each ministry department to ask for feedback, our team learned that our focus should be to reduce content, simplify navigation, and streamline the registration process. These small changes would positively impact many ministries in a big way. We did not have the budget to create a brand new site, so we chose to refresh our existing site. Also, when we launched our mobile app last winter, the positive response told us that responsive design was our next step. Since refreshing the site and adding in responsive design, we have received zero negative feedback. As communications professionals we know this can be a rare occurrence! Everyone is happy? That’s a true win. As the front door to our church, our website needs to be simple, easy to navigate, and match the feel of our Sunday morning experience.”

Before

After

As you think about evolving your website, ask yourself:

• How is our website being used by our people?
• How do we interact with it?
• Is it still relevant to our organization?
• What about the technology world as a whole?
• Does it meet our communication needs? Or is it lacking? Have we developed ways around these inefficiencies?