Church Marketing Plan needs Successful Church Websites and Management Software

Websites - The church / parish website and website management software are becoming one of the most important needs of a church marketing plan and forms the basis of marketing the church / parish. It is often where parish information is initially found.

The website is often one of the first places that potential families and parishioners get an overall feel and basic appreciation of the potential for their involvement in parish life.


Creating a Website - Background

Investigation in this area is critical.

The church will need expertise to create and then continually update a good website.

The initial construction of the website may come from staff, IT skilled parishioners, school IT staff or from outside consultants.

The continual updating would best be done within the parish. In-servicing staff for making these updates would be money well spent.

An option, I have found very beneficial, follows.


Management Software

Another option is to have the website embedded in to management software which allows for management of the site. This takes the site beyond the static and into the realm of continual fluid development – Web 2.0.

The expense of this option is not considerable and with negotiation within the field a reasonable monthly cost would be expected. I would suggest speaking with trusted others in deciding on the businesses offering this support. (See ‘Website Management Software Sample’ in 'Internet Applications...' chapter for a specific example.)

This software allows for various detailed reports of website usage. It could include:

• the whereabouts in the world of visitors to your site
• number of webpages they visited
• the content viewed from webpages and applications they visited
• where they entered and exited the website
• who is exploring your site, through IP (Internet Protocol) addresses
• the browsers they used to link to your website
• any commercial activities you may have as part of your website, etc.

This allows for the non-IT expert to update the website regularly, from uploading photos, literature items, to adding webpages, blogs, galleries of photos and videos, etc.

There are numerous other capacities depending on the management software.

More detail on the necessities of Websites for Churches and Website Management Software to successfully marketing the church may be found in the e-book: Church Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (2nd ed) 2010 by Bryan Foster.

e-Book Helping to Bring People Back to Church

The Catholic Leader newspaper, the leading Church newspaper in Australia, this weekend featured the new Church Marketing e-Book by Bryan Foster in its hardcopy edition.

The Church Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (2nd ed), 2010, was released earlier this year.

Fr Dan Ryan PP and Sonya Slater, Parish Administrator, from the Surfers Paradise Parish on the Gold Coast, Australia, have bought multiple copies (10) of the e-book for their parish pastoral council.

The Catholic Leader featured Fr Dan Ryan's and Sonya Slater's thoughts on the e-book and how they plan to use it.

“I find Bryan Foster’s new e-book will help considerably with marketing our Catholic parishes in the modern world. I am especially drawn to the chapters on Parish – School relationships and the uses of the internet, in particular the parish website,” said Fr Dan Ryan, Parish Priest.

“From relationships with our schools to communicating with our parishioners through to web design and blogs, this e-book gives strategies for growth opportunities within our parish,”said Sonya Slater, Parish Administrator.

“I would highly recommend this e-book to other parishes as a tool which could be used in groups or by the Parish Priest or Parish Administrator.”

The e-book is available from either of Bryan's websites at CPM and SMA. Or by contacting Bryan through email at bryan.foster@optusnet.com.au and making other arrangements.

The Church Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (2nd ed) by Bryan Foster was this weekend featured in Australia's foremost Church newspaper, The Catholic Leader.

Comprehensive Approach for Church Marketing by Bryan Foster

Comprehensive Approach for Church Marketing by Bryan Foster

Church Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (2nd ed) - Easy to Use

Church Marketing Manual for the Digital Age (2nd ed) - Easy to Use

Church Marketing Interactive Website

Interactive Website

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Come back for more as this is a fluid website which continually engages the reader as it grows and develops according to the needs of those interested in an interactive website.

Step by Step Suggestions for Church Marketing

Step-by-step suggestions enable the Parish Marketing Manager (PMM) to work toward the implementation of the Church Parish Marketing Plan (CPMP) or Church Marketing Plan (CMP) in the best way possible allowing for differing circumstances.

The original Handbook was adapted into an easy to download Church Parish Marketing e-Handbook.

The Church Parish Marketing e-Handbook aim to help make marketing your church, parish or deanery a more enjoyable and rewarding accomplishment.

It has been an aim to take away some of the trepidation various readers might feel about certain aspects of marketing.

Church Parish Marketing e-Handbook

The Church Parish Marketing e-Handbook: Easy to Use Guide to Market Your Church, Parish or Deanery by Bryan Foster is presented in an easy to understand format.

The e-Chapters are written in clear, concise note form, which both engages and motivates the reader.

The Church Parish Marketing e-Handbook totals over 180 A4 sized pages of summarised suggestions.