Planning Your Parish Web Site
Part I: Why, and For Whom?
by Brandon Jubar
Once you have chosen a Parish Webmaster, it is time to begin
the process of actually planning your Parish Web site. And at
this point, it should truly be limited to "planning"!
Long before you actually sit down and begin building your Web
site, there is a great deal of preparation that should take
place. Just as a master gardener would not simply begin planting
flowers at random, a Webmaster should not simply begin
cranking-out HTML code. The more thinking and planning that
occurs early in the project, the less frustration and rework
there will be later on. One way to begin is by answering a few
basic questions.
Why Does the Parish Want a Web Site?
Many Parishes are quick to build a web site for no other
reason than they want to be able to say, "Yes, we have a
web site." But is that a good enough reason? And if that is
the only reason, than your Parish Web site will probably end up
being nothing more than an online brochure -- once someone has
looked at it, it is doubtful that they will return.
The Parish that will create and maintain a successful Web
site is the Parish that sees the internet as yet another tool
for accomplishing the goals of the Parish. Does the Parish focus
on outreach? Evangelization? Community service? Ministering to
young people? Any of these areas can be greatly enhanced through
the utilization of the internet.
Who Is the Target Audience?
Will your Web site mainly be accessed by your
parishioners? Or are you hoping for a wider audience? If you
hope to reach people around the globe, than the type of content
you offer will need to be more universal.
Do you want to reach Christians in remote locations,
or will you focus on bringing home the fallen-away Christians?
Maybe you'd like to focus on educating those who have little or
no knowledge of Christianity. Should you focus efforts on
teenagers – the parishioners of the future - or perhaps
families?
At least initially, it works best to offer local
content for your parishioners and choose one major demographic
group for which to provide more global content. Although it is
possible to reach out to a number of different audiences, it may
not be prudent to attempt this until your Parish Web site is
better established. The obvious risk of overreaching is that
everyone will be left wanting. It is more desirable to deliver
quality content to a smaller group than to deliver inadequate
content to a large audience. The idea is to start with quality
and the quantity will come in time.
We will address the importance of demographic
groupings in our discussion around Designing Site Usability.
Basically, by grouping your content around visitor demographics
rather than functional areas within the Parish (young adults vs.
Music Ministry), your Parish Web site stands a much better
chance of being useful and memorable.
Thus, when deciding upon your target audience, try to
describe them in terms of who they are, and do not worry
too much about fitting them into the functional areas of your
Parish.
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