In connection with the 4th of July holiday, I read and pondered the Declaration of Independence. I thank God for the Founding Fathers and their passion for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In this historic document, Thomas Jefferson wrote: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal”. While we do believe that all men are created equal, it is our firm conviction that all websites are NOT created equal.

A big part of our job at Church Plant Media is to educate pastors and their teams about what makes up a good website. Some guys really like the bells and whistles of Flash-based websites, but few of them consider if those bells and whistles are good to have. Unless Flash is used sparingly, it can distract from the message and hinder its effectiveness with search engines. A good adage to remember is: just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. “Less is more” rings true when you are striving for usability.

But what does that have to do with a “good website” and what “goods” should you be looking for?

Our team consistently focuses on 5 “goods” when we build our websites: good news, good design, good code, good system, and good support. We think these 5 goods will help you define your paradigm for what a good website is. If nothing else, they will give you some good ideas for what you should be looking for.

Good News

There are many companies owned by believers who build websites for churches, but very few of them have a defined statement about their gospel beliefs. Fewer still require each of the churches they serve to sign and uphold that statement. This is probably due to a desire for more sales and less friction. But the gospel is a stumbling block after all. We have learned that is far better if they stumble before the partnership, in order to avoid second guessing it later. So we would strongly encourage you to be sure that the company you work with loves the gospel as much as you do. In our desire to maintain full disclosure on the gospel, we’ve published our Gospel Agreement as a litmus test for all of our partners.

Good Design

It’s been said that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” but that could also mean that some people just love what is ugly. Please understand that we are not here to slam websites with unfortunate designs. We are very aware that not everyone has the same taste or even the same categories for taste. Our team has been building ministry websites long enough to know that diversity is alive and well in the opinions of God’s people. With that said, there is a big difference between good design and bad design. A good design should be easy to navigate and easy on the eyes. Usability is key. If people can’t find your content, it does not exist. So as you consider your design, think about your user’s needs first.

Good Code

If you have ever gone through a building project, I’m sure you’ve wrestled with all of the big decisions along the way. You need to decide on what materials, fixtures, frames, windows, etc., to use in your construction. You select materials that have been built to last and withstand the test of time. In the same way, the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) http://www.w3.org has established certain universal web standards for the Internet. These standards define good code structure and the separation of content from presentation. If this kind of tech talk bakes your noodle, no worries… just know that our developers take care of all the technical “heavy-lifting” for you, so you don’t have to worry about it.

Good System

Staying with the building analogy… When you plan for the future growth of your church, you draft the construction plans with your long term goals in mind. You decide which walls are permanent and which walls are temporary. You consider what rooms will be offices today and possibly classrooms in the future. So as you start thinking about your website, you should maintain the same type of long term planning. Will the system that powers your website be able to grow with your church? Will search engines be able to find you? Will you have a sortable sermon archive, or a big messy media page? Our custom-built, Content Management System was designed to serve your long term needs far better than a quick fix.

Good Support

There are a number of website solutions that are free to download and maintain at a very low cost, if you have some tech understanding. Often times there may even be a “local guy” in the church that wants to “help” and build the website on a shoestring budget. But in the long run, will that low cost help last? Sure, the website might initially get built like a billboard, but what happens when you want to change it? Will they be there to help or are they just a flash in the pan? When you partner with a company like Church Plant Media, you get a long-term partner. Someone who can answer your questions when everyone else is just gone with the wind. Avoid future frustration and choose your partners wisely.

So when you are considering who to partner with, be sure to look for these 5 goods.

  1. Good News – be sure the gospel is paramount and not just a nice name tag.
  2. Good Design – be sure the design is very easy to use and easy on the eyes.
  3. Good Code – be sure the code is clean and compliant with W3C standards.
  4. Good System – be sure the system is able to grow with your growing needs.
  5. Good Support – be sure the support is something that will last long term.

Feel free to give us a shout at (800) 409-6631 ext. 1 and we’ll help give you the goods!