Once you determine
the why and what you are going to do, take the time
to investigate the various options available
when it comes to how to build it. Do we have the skills
to do this ourselves? Do we have the time? How much are
we willing to spend? Should we build it in-house, use a service-provider,
start with a pre-built site or use an all-in-one service? Each
method has its pros and cons.
Choose
the "builder" of your web site as you would choose the builder
of your home. There are many people who claim to build web sites.
Surf around the Internet and you will probably find sites that are
not so easy to use, sites whose message gets lost, and sites that
are not designed to grow.
We agree with the advice UMCOM gives: "It
is crucial that the site design, both in the way its information
is
structured
and the quality of its look and feel, be on par with the overall
experience of Internet users. Anything else leaves the church
in the position of looking inferior." Wheather you will be hiring someone, using a service-provider, or building-it-yourself, we recommend the following to books for those church leaders who will be overseeing or building your church's site:
and 
For more information, please visit web.umc.org
For an example of a church which displays excellent usability visit: www.mecklenburg.org
There are three "means" to
investigate (1) in-house, (2) service-provider, and
(3) all-in-one. Each
method has its pros and cons.
1.
In-House: Severval years ago a church required a team of highly skilled technology people willing to give
many hours towards building and maintaining a web site, count your
blessings. Times and technology have changed. There are many solutions available which do not require and web site expert but rather someone familar with technology and a passion to learn. Today many design templates are available allowing churches to "get started" quickly and rather inexpensively. Your church will need commiment to a web ministry which will require both some time, talent, and money.
2.
Service Provider: If your church lacks the skill set or
time, then a service provider will allow you to achieve a very high-quality,
state-of-the-art multimedia web presence. Having a local consultant,
a small firm, or a large firm design and build your church's web
site usually guarantees that many of the unseen important structural
issues have been addressed. Of course a state-of-the-art custom
design comes at a cost. Need a recommendation? See below
3.
All-In-One Services: Sometimes called a template-based
solution or a database-driven solution. As the web.umc.org
site puts it: "this may be the 80% solution" for churches
that are just getting started. A company develops a set of
high quality web site designs and tools that it then 'rents'
to individual congregations. If your church lacks the skill
set, time or resources this technology solution is for you.
Essentially someone else has done all the work for you.
