10 Tips for a Powerful Church Website Homepage

It only takes a few seconds for a visitor to form an opinion of a church website, so churches need to have all of the moving parts working together to engage their audiences. Here is a checklist to use when you audit your homepage from a guest's perspective:

1. Headline: Most folks will read headlines and very little text, so make the prominent headline compelling. Focus on the visitor rather than the member. One example might be, "A safe place to explore your faith."
2. Main Content: Does your text answer needs and prompt next steps? Are you providing service times, contact information, links to sermons, podcasts, social media as well as insight on beliefs, key staff and upcoming events?
3. Social links: Website usability studies demonstrate web visitors are greatly interested in social media links, so use this insight to cross promote your other communication forums---provided they are up to date and attractive!
4. Contact info: To make it easy on the web guest, place your key contact information in the footer so they can find it on all pages they might land on.
5. Visual Framework: A tic-tac-toe type of grid   (9 squares) is an ideal visual to promote graphics or pictures allowing web readers to find information on the latest message, prayer request opportunities, church location information, beliefs, blog posts, a calendar, background (About) and a link to plan a visit.
6. Call to Action: Is it clear what you want a web visitor to do? Maybe a brightly colored "Get Started" button would be an effective way to keep a newcomer engaged to seek more information.
7. "I'm New" section: Research shows that over 60% of churches don't cater to web guests by providing a link just for them. Dedicate a prominent section of your web 'real estate' to this audience to make it easier to see pictures, find out about parking and other first-time answers.
8. Search bar: Having a search feature is convenient for members and newcomers alike. This feature often ranks in the Top 3 most popular elements of a website.
9. Logo: If guests are surfing for churches, having your church logo prominently featured on the website will help reinforce their impression and clarify next steps. Having a quick reference map will clarify and aid retention as well.
10. Inspirational Image or Video: Ask yourself what kind of imagery would inspire a guest to attend church here: passionate worship? Adults thriving in community? active kids ministry?