Did you know that since the pandemic started, church attendance has grown? According to a poll taken by ChurchPulse Weekly, 49% of churches have experienced an increase in attendance over the past several months.

How is this possible? It's simple: people have started to attend church online.

Isn't it just like God to take a difficult time and work it together for our good? Many lives are being impacted for the kingdom of heaven as a result of the global crisis. This is excellent news!

For pastors and ministry leaders, having a website is absolutely essential in this day and age. People are spending more time on the internet now than ever before. Not only that, but many are also struggling through the effects of the pandemic and are now desperately looking to the church for answers.

How can your church take part in this massive shift toward online church?

To do this, you'll need to have an effective online presence.

The Digital Age Is Now a Part of Everyday Life

With so many changes taking place in 2020, online church is the new normal.

With quarantine, shutdowns and social distancing underway, people have turned to the internet for support and community in droves.

Many are searching for spiritual answers and comfort right now, and the church can lead the way to Jesus Christ. By establishing an online presence, you position your church to become an incredible influence during this time. Your current members and future visitors can access your online services and engage with your video sermons, Bible studies and more.

We encourage pastors and ministry leaders to take the leap! Lean into the opportunity to establish an online presence right now. Let's talk about how to get started.

The Two Best Ways to Establish an Online Presence

Imagine having 24/7 access to your church in your back pocket.

Need to know when services start? Can't remember the time for Wednesday night Bible study? Did you miss last Sunday's message?

You can provide all of this information and more on your church's website or social media.

Social Media

Social media is a great starting point. If managing a website is too much too soon, consider establishing your social media accounts like Facebook and Instagram. These platforms not only give your church access to your congregation 24/7, but they also provide a way for you to interact with your community personally.

Social media helps inform people of your mission and vision as a ministry while providing a space for discussions of faith and spiritual encouragement. With millions of active users online every day, the potential for impact is unlike any other time in history. If churches learn to utilize these platforms effectively, they will expand their reach to a whole new level.

Some of the most popular social media platforms are:

—Facebook.

—Twitter.

—Instagram.

—YouTube.

There are many online resources for best practices for using social media. You can easily find tutorials for setting up your platforms and several sites to help you create, post and schedule content.

Website

The best option for establishing an active online presence is by creating your own church or ministry website.

Along with social media, a website is an excellent resource for offering information about your church. Your site designates a professional space on the internet to provide services and make yourself available to those in need.

Pastors and ministry leaders shouldn't be overwhelmed by the process of establishing their ministries online. A website opens new doors to reach your current congregation and spread the gospel—the sky's the limit for impact. Don't worry; we are here to help you through any questions or technical challenges you may face. Give us a call at 855-337-4557.

Your website works in tandem with social media. Your social media will link back to your website, so it's essential to have a central location online for your community to engage with your church.

Main Components of a Website

Your website is your personal space, so you can customize it to share what matters most to your church.

Here are a few key components to keep in mind for your site:

—Your church's story, mission and vision.

—Service times and locations.

—Contact information.

—Online giving page.

—Upcoming events and ways to get involved.

—Sermon content or sermon archive.

—Various ministry opportunities.

—Social media links.

Including these core elements on your website is just the beginning! You can get as creative as you like when it comes to designing your site.

Here are some additional components you may want to include:

—Prayer request form.

—Volunteer information and sign-up form.

—Small group information.

—Events calendar.

—Blog.

—Podcast links.

—Online store.

—Resources section.

Hire a Personal Web Designer with StartSITES Creative

When we created StartSITES, our goal was to empower pastors and ministry leaders to create their own beautiful website. As time went on, we realized a couple of things.

First, we noticed that pastors were getting overwhelmed with the creative aspect of building a website. Next, we realized many ministry leaders have time constraints. Quite frankly, pastors have a million other responsibilities to take care of outside of creating a website.

We wanted to develop a full-service website creation program to support pastors and ministry leaders. That's why we developed StartSITES Creative!

Our heart is to tackle the entire process of creating a website from start to finish so you can focus on what God has called you to do: impacting lives and caring for people.

We love partnering with ministry leaders to translate their mission and vision into a stunning website. There is nothing like the joy we see when pastors get their website back for the first time—and it exceeds their expectations!

That's what we're here for: to partner alongside you and help make your ministry dreams a reality.

If you are interested in our StartSITES Creative service, give us a call at 855-337-4557.

Reverend Christine Bove works on StartCHURCH's Digital Products Team. Every day, Christine serves to create products to better the lives of pastors and ministry leaders. She also serves as a StartSITES creative specialist and serves on the tech support team. She is passionate about curating experiences to help pastors and ministry leaders, equipping them to serve their best and make their dreams come true.

For the original article, visit startchurch.com.

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Dr. Mark Rutland's

National Institute of Christian Leadership (NICL)

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