One of the biggest questions churches have when considering having a blog is what they should blog about.  It’s not only a common question, but a very important question as it will give your church blog focus.  So, what should you blog about?  Well, that will really be up to you.  What do you want to blog about?  It’s always best to blog about something you are interested in as it will make the posts more interesting and you are more likely to keep it going and be consistant.  If you’re having trouble coming up with a blog idea, here are 10 ideas for church blog topics: Read more…

If your church is going have a blog, what should that blog be?  How should you go about doing the blog?  Who should manage the blog?  What should you blog about?  These are all good questions to ask yourself before you start a church blog.  In this post I’ll give some tips about the who’s, the what’s, and the how’s of church blogging. Read more…

There two main ways to get a blog.

1. Start a blog on an external blog site, like blogger.com
2. Install a blog within your church website

There are benefits and draw-backs to both options as I will look at below. Read more…

Over the last several months we have been looking at ways of using the social web for church marketing.  We’ve discussed:

• Video sharing
• Facebook
• Twitter
• Podcasts

Now I’d like to move on to blogging.  Blogging can be a very powerful way to engage members, attract visitors, and gain links (which helps with search engine marketing).  It’s also a great way to add fresh, original content to your church website.  So, what is a blog? Read more…

Over the past two weeks Paul and I have posted several articles related to the Interactive Church Conference, articles about church communication and interactive church websites.  One of the big stumbling blocks a lot of churches run into when deciding whether to have an interactive website is the fear of user created content or member created content…the loss of control of the website content.

• What if someone posts theology that is not what the church teaches?
• What if someone posts something negative about the church?
• What if people spam the site?
• What if people post inappropriate content?
• What if someone just attacks our church website outright with vulgar content? Read more…
  

One of the topics we discussed at the Interactive Church Conference was about the concern some of the pastors had about how people would interact on the website.  There were a variety of concerns, but some of the main concerns were how to prevent the website from being just self-focused (the users only being focused on themselves) and having inappropriate conversations.  Not just conversations about inappropriate topics, but public conversations about private matters or members arguing over an issue instead of having a discussion.  So, how do we keep our church sites from becoming a gossipfest or places where people are constantly arguing? Read more…

Yesterday, I posted a blog on the Christian Web Trends blog about why churches should have an interactive website.  I assume every church is now chomping at the bit to get their new website , but perhaps some churches aren’t quite sure how to go about it.  Thankfully they addressed some of those issues in the Interactive Church Conference.  Read more…

I mentioned in a previous post that there were two upcoming webinars related to the “State of the Church Online” survey which was put together by Drew Goodmanson.  Last Wednesday I attended the first of the webinars, “The Truth about Church Websites and Effective Online Outreach.”  I thought I’d pass on some notes about the webinar for those who may not have been able to participate. Read more…

As the title of the conference indicates, the “Interactive Church Conference” had a large focus on interactive websites and their use within the church.  A well designed and well used interactive church website can allow members to connect with members they don’t know, deepen relationships with members they do know, and grow in their faith.  One of the greatest aspects of an interactive church website is its ability to extend “church” from being a Sunday event to being an everyday experience. Read more…

In the third article coming from the Interactive Church Conference Paul asks the question, “Are you a bridge person?”  In the previous articles Paul looked at the communication issues and solutions between church leadership and church techs.  In this third article, Paul focuses on bridge people, people who can bridge the gap between church leaders and church techs. Read more…