How to choose the right church website design company.
A church website serves as a vital online hub connecting congregants, telling your story, and welcoming new visitors. With more than 35 million non-churchgoers visiting church websites each year, it’s clear your site acts as a front door to your ministry in the digital age. But how do you choose the right partner to bring your church’s website vision to life?
As experts in church website design here at Epic Life Creative, we always guide churches to evaluate these key factors when selecting a church website design company:
Website Design Experience and Portfolio
The most critical consideration is choosing a company with extensive expertise building church websites. Look for a web designer who understands the unique needs and goals of a faith-based organization. A generic web firm without church website experience will likely miss the mark for creating a site that connects with your congregation and supports your ministry.
Always ask potential partners for examples of previous church website projects in their portfolio. Studying their past work will reveal if they have successfully executed sites that align with different church styles from modern to traditional. A strong portfolio reflects their technical skills at developing sites optimized for church needs.
Custom Design and Development
Cookie-cutter website templates may seem like a budget-friendly option, but a one-size-fits-all site won’t represent the heart of your church. Work with a web developer who will build your church website completely from scratch based on your vision. The ideal partner will provide expert guidance while creating a fully custom-designed and developed site tailored to your congregation.
For the technical build, you want an experienced developer who can construct your website using modern best practices. Your site should be fast, mobile-friendly, easy to update, and seamlessly integrated with church management software. Expert development skills result in a site designed for your church’s unique needs.
Responsive Web Design
In today’s mobile world, it’s essential that your church website be optimized for viewing on any device. Responsive design ensures your site dynamically adapts to look great whether visited on a desktop, phone, or tablet. This provides a seamless experience for visitors no matter how they access your site.
When evaluating web designers, ask them to demonstrate their responsive design capabilities. They should be able to explain techniques like flexible layouts, responsive images, and media queries. Test their sites on multiple devices yourself as well. Choosing a designer with responsive design expertise is the only way to guarantee your church website will be accessible across all platforms.
Ongoing Support and Maintenance
The work doesn’t stop once your new church website launches. Ask potential website partners about the ongoing support and maintenance packages they offer. Your website will require regular updates to content, security monitoring to prevent hacking, and fixes to any bugs or issues that arise.
Working with a church website design company that provides full-service website maintenance ensures your site will run smoothly for years to come. They can also update design elements and enhance functionality as needed. Trying to handle a website yourself often leads to lapses in support that cause the site to become outdated or insecure.
Website Security
As a church, ensuring your website is secure is crucial – you are trusted with sensitive information from your members and want to maintain their privacy. When evaluating web design firms, be sure to ask about their expertise in website security.
Look for vendors well-versed in techniques to prevent hacking, block malicious bots, and stop DDoS attacks. They should scan for vulnerabilities regularly and have protection against threats like cross-site scripting. Frequent website backups in case of issues is also a must.
SSL encryption for data transmission and user login areas should be standard. You want to safeguard all private information entered on your site. Prioritize companies with robust security protocols to avoid any compromises of sensitive data.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
For your church website to connect with people online, they must be able to find it through search engines like Google. SEO helps maximize your discoverability by optimizing your website for relevant keywords and ranking higher in search results.
When vetting church website designers, inquire about their SEO expertise. Can they perform keyword research to determine the terms people use when searching for churches in your locality? Will they optimize page content, titles, headings, URLs and more for targeted keywords?
Knowledge of both on-page and off-page optimization techniques is key. This includes helping improve local SEO ranking factors such as business schema markup. An advanced understanding of how to make your church website visible both locally and globally is crucial.
Branding Consistency
Your church’s website should clearly reflect your brand identity through cohesive visuals aligned with your style guide. All design elements from color schemes to logo usage should match your existing brand.
Look for a designer who will study your current brand standards and seamlessly incorporate those into the website design. Both visual appeal and brand consistency are essential for an effective church site.
Budget and Value
Cost will invariably be a consideration when selecting your church website designer. Be wary of companies that undercut their competitors at rock-bottom prices—that often indicates inexperience and subpar quality. The ideal partner will work with your budget limitations while still delivering a return on investment through superb design and development.
Analyze the full scope of services offered at a given price point to ensure it covers everything your church website requires. Also consider potential cost savings from website maintenance plans versus ad hoc work. Choose the company that provides the best overall value balanced with your budget needs.
Choosing the Right Church Website Design Company: In Summary
Creating a new church website is a major undertaking that will have an immense impact on your ministry’s online presence. Choosing the church website design company to partner with deserves careful consideration of the factors above—from their expertise to ongoing support.
Here at Epic Life Creative, we check all those boxes with over 15 years specializing in church website design. Our expert team will collaborate with you to build a stunning, user-friendly church website tailored to your vision. From SEO optimization to consistent branding, we handle it all while working within your budget.
Partnering with the right church website design company is an investment in your church’s future. Reach out to the team at Epic Life Creative today to start a free consultation. We’re excited to work together to create a church website that achieves your online ministry goals.
