Episcopal Church Foundation Vital Practices - Blogs

January 18, 2011

Resolution #3: Online Makeover

Last week I received a phone call from a newly-minted vestry member in Tennessee. He called because he’s going to propose an online makeover at his first vestry meeting in two weeks, and wondered if ECF Vital Practices had any resources to help. We do. I’ve since compiled a short list for him and any other vestry members out there who are plotting to improve their congregation’s online experience.
A Few Essentials

Kris Lee, Communications Director for the Diocese of Long Island, wrote two overviews on websites for a Vestry Papers issue on Parish Communications: “Your Website: A Communications Hub” and “Website Considerations.”
The following post is from a nonprofit marketing blog that I read regularly and includes ten great tips that can be applied to the parish setting. My favorite: be sure your homepage features “something that tugs at the heartstrings - an arresting image, a bold statement, the start of an incredible story.”

Social Networking

The Sept 2010 issue of Vestry Papers focused on technology and evangelism. The lead article featured Bishop Kirk Smith who told us to Tweet if You Love Jesus. He recommends we lay folk urge our clergy to get onto Facebook and post every day.
Worried about Facebook conversations getting out of hand? Generally, this isn’t a problem provided the hosting organization maintains a positive voice. Guidelines have been developed, however, and the Episcopal Church Center posted theirs in ECF Vital Practices’ Your Turn Section. These can be a good starting point for parishes to develop theirs.
If you’re concerned about all the time it takes to post regularly on Facebook and Twitter, I’d suggest using a free tool like HootSuite. Not only does this allow you to see all your social networking platforms at one time, it lets you schedule posts throughout the day. Regular posting is great for building community, but it can be taxing without such a tool.

Online Stewardship

Fundraising online is only increasing in effectiveness. Make sure that it’s easy for parishioners to fulfill their pledge or make a donation. Though this might sound a bit silly, many suggest a prominent “Donate Now” button on the homepage that gets larger during stewardship season and in the month of December.
Why December? Because a major study in online giving noted that more than 22% of online donations take place on the final two days of the year. This study includes other important insights which I wrote about here.
Fundraising through Facebook and other social networking sites has attracted a lot of attention recently. I wrote about Facebook Causes here and - though I’d be glad to hear otherwise - gather it’s more work than it’s worth.
Finally, constructing the actual online donation form can be a maddening exercise (I know of one Episcopal organization that is literally on their 13th draft). This excellent outline(which I just came across today) may have saved some time and effort.

Tools for Successful Email Blasts & E-Newsletters

The Email Creation Story - St. John’s in Saginaw, Michigan won an award from Constant Contact for their smart usage of email marketing. In this article, Amy Simons, communications director, talks about what makes a successful email blast.
Balancing the Good News Scale - Richelle Thompson’s post on improving newsletter content (both print and e-newsletters)

Photos and podcasts:

Resolution #1: Take Better Photos - Offers insights on how parishes can take, use and share photos through their website and Facebook.
Valuing Shared Humanity through Storytelling - Barbara Dundon of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in Philadelphia, PA creates brief and stunning recordings of congregation members’ spiritual lives. They are then posted on the St. Martin-in-the-Field website.

This is, of course, just a starting place. Please add your suggestions below!