Do we need websites anymore?

Are we past the point of needing websites for our children’s ministry? I remember year’s ago thinking that I had to have a personalized website for my children’s ministry. I spent hours and weeks programming and designing the perfect site. It always seemed like the sites were never quite right. There was always the option to pay for a site to be developed, but the cost was always out of reach. It was a dilemma that I can tell many other ministries have faced too. There are so many sites that sit on the Internet unfinished. My feeling is that it’s better to have no website at all rather than on that is full of broken links or outdated content. Is there a better way?

I think the answer can be found through social media and micro sites. To give an upfront disclaimer, I think it’s wise to utilize your church’s main site to publicize your ministry, but even those pages should be feeders to social media. For me, it comes to three different methods that can be utilized: Facebook, Twitter, and Blogs (Google+ could become an option if usage increases).

Every ministry should have a Facebook page. It’s important to differentiate that from a group. Groups are helpful for volunteers or established members, but a FB page should be the public face. We constantly post videos, announcements, pictures, and take home papers on our FB page. I love the immediate contact and discussions that can be formed between parents and the Kidmin staff. Make sure that the content is updated regularly. It makes the ministry look bad when the most recent update is from two months ago. You could even make a photo album of your staff with their bio for the photo’s description. Don’t forget to lock in your URL when you create the page. Also, it’s key to advertise the page. You have get your parents to like the page. We created tent cards to advertise that was placed at each registration kiosk. A couple of months ago we made t-shirts that advertised the page. It had the “like” button and the FB URL. Be creative and put the URL on everything. We have a QR code at the bottom of our handouts that will take the parents straight to the page when scanned.

Twitter is the other great portal. It can be updated separately or by linking FB to Twitter. These short bursts of information are great for keeping the parents up to date. You can tweet pics, announcements, and links to registration forms. The 140 character limit is great for making us stay succinct.

Lastly, I thing blogs can be a great way to communicate longer form discussions. WordPress, Tumblr, and Blogger are all great options. The standard layouts work great. I don’t think these should be your primary communications, but they are great additions.

The bottom line is that all of these options are great for a couple of reasons. First, they’re free. Enough said. Second, they can be setup in minutes. No more months of preparation for a web launch. Third, they’re easier to update than traditional websites, i.e. they will get updated more often. Next, FB and Twitter will automatically show up in the feeds of the parents. The info is there when the parent logs in to check personal stuff. With a traditional site the parent has to navigate purposefully to that site-which often doesn’t happen. Lastly, they are media rich and the designs stay fresh.

I think we’re past the point of needing a special site for our kidmin. Embrace social media and enjoy how much easier it makes things.

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