This isn't a Top 10 list, or about comparing your site to another church website, or even to any kind of website. It's about applying some basic principles to your web presence to best represent your ministry online and connect with people. Point-and-click and drag-and-drop web publishing systems make make things seem easier, but that doesn't always (in fact, almost never) make those websites better. In this article, I survey the sites listed in our site showcase and share the results with you.

People long for meaningful connections and will pursue them in a multitude of ways. This is at the core of all the social networks - Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, Instagram, LinkedIn, eHarmony, Match.com, et al. Who do I know? And, just as importantly, who knows me?

People are communal beings - we need each other. We also look for meaning in our lives. As these 2 things merge, local churches play a significant role - if they are prepared for it.

Applications and search results are becoming very localized - providing different results for the searcher, depending on their place and time. All organizations need to center their online (searchable) content around their location and their website.

Has your church prepared itself to be a place of community for people seeking meaning in your area? We'll give you an overview of the local search landscape and how you can become a better online neighbor.

Millions of people are on the Internet every day - how do you get just some of them to visit your site? Here are some easy to follow guidelines for building your site to draw people to it. Start by looking at the URL, the title and the description of each page.

Search engines and users rely on you to provide information about your site's content - leverage your XOOPS meta tags and begin to improve your position on search engine results page (SERPs)

How much of an impact does the look of your site have on the messages you convey with it? Do you think it matters?

It certainly does! Here's a little example of how the media shapes the message. Write a note and hand it to someone - you have just delivered your message to the person it was intended for. Now, take the same note, wrap it around a rock and throw it through the same person's window. The message hasn't changed, the sender hasn't changed, the recipient hasn't changed, but the method of delivery (or, the 'media') has changed. Do you think the recipient would regard the content the same in both instances?

Now - let's talk about your church website design and learn the right questions to ask before you use, buy, or hire a designer to design a custom theme for your church web site.

There are numerous web sites devoted to the technical, design aesthetics and usability aspects of web sites, but few help you with the editorial aspect (content) of your site. We start a discussion about what (and what not) to put on your church's web site.

FAQs - Frequently Asked Questions - we've become accustomed to looking for them on web sites we visit. But, should we? If everyone is asking, why didn't we anticipate the questions? Here's a look at answering and anticipating the questions your visitors are probably asking.

FAQ sections are good signs your original content is bad.