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Christian webmaster resources, help and tools for webmasters and web designers
There are now so many online webmaster resources, that usually the easiest way to find what you need is with a Google search. There are countless bulletin board systems, some covering general topics, others specializing in one type of coding (eg PHP) or one CMS system (eg WordPress). Look at GeeksandGod [www.geeksandgod.com] | Webmaster Talk [www.webmaster-talk.com] and many others. For equipment purchasing decisions, always check out online reviews at CNET [www.cnet.com] and elsewhere.
http://internetevangelismday.com/webmaster.php
Christian website promotion tips - how to get more site visitors: SEO and more.
How can you get more visitors to your website? What can you do to stimulate traffic? Here's a checklist of 32 items you need to consider. Many of these you're probably doing already; others you meant to do and forgot about; still others you've never heard of.
http://internetevangelismday.com/promote.php
Use contact cards as church invitation cards and as mini tracts to promote evangelistic websites
ontact cards (ie. invitation cards in business card format) are a good way to share your faith, and have some advantages over tracts:
* Small – so you can easily carry a supply at all times (small metal containers for purse, wallet or pocket are widely available).
* Culturally acceptable almost anywhere, whereas tracts can be seen as threatening and religious in some circumstances.
* Can be personalized with your name, email address and your website URL.
* If you don’t have a site of your own, you can use cards which feature any evangelistic site that you feel is appropriate.
* Ideal as invitations to local churches.
http://internetevangelismday.com/contact-card.php
Usability - the key to helping and keeping site visitors
It is sad but true, that very many websites fall down in the area of usability. Because the site designers knows their sites backwards, they fail to appreciate that a first-time visitor will see things very differently. It’s like visiting a new city as a tourist, rather than being a native dweller!
http://internetevangelismday.com/usability.php
Accessibility - making sites easy to read and navigate. Accessible navigation for visitors
One hundred years, even thirty years ago, public buildings and churches were built with no thought for people with any disability. Sweeping flights of steps up to an imposing main entrance, more steps inside, no amplification. A lack of easy access excluded many people. Easy accessibility to public buildings is now mandated by legislation in most countries.
“Content is what you say, design is how you say it,” says Warren, a web evangelist. Both aspects are a key to the overall accessibility of a website. There are several interlocking aspects which contribute to accessibility.
http://internetevangelismday.com/accessibility.php
Christian website design: plan a Christian web site and assess your target audience
People sometimes ask me, “I’m a novice. How do I start to design a website for our church or Internet ministry.” I think most are expecting a crash course in HTML or web-page design. And those can be important considerations. But the most important are nothing to do with technology. I tell people, “The first thing to do is answer two questions:
1. Who’s your target audience?
2. And what’s your purpose?
http://internetevangelismday.com/starting.php
Book review: Web-Empower Your Church, by Mark Stephenson
Stephenson tell us the story of his own church’s journey, lessons and challenges, as it started on creating and developing a website. If you are a non-techie, you can skip the the technical explanations and concentrate on Mark’s clear explanations for the huge potential for church website ministry, based on the lessons that Ginghamsburg Church have learned.
http://internetevangelismday.com/bookreviews/web-empower-your-church.php
Free downloa: Seeker Sensitive Church Web Sites. How to reach outsiders using church sites
This significant 10-page booklet explains the principles of using church websites to reach outsiders. Johnson’s strategy is that a church website ‘intrigue the lost’ and start a relationship-building process to draw people into the fellowship where they will begin to understand the full implications of the gospel.
http://internetevangelismday.com/bookreviews/seeker-sensitive-church-web-sites.php
Book review: Homepage Usability: 55 Websites Deconstructed, Nielsen and Tahir
Jakob Nielsen is a leading world expert on how to make websites truly usable, and his Alertbox email newsletter has helped many web designers to understand these issues. This book looks at the mistakes – and good points – of some leading websites. It shows us examples to follow, and faults to avoid.
http://internetevangelismday.com/bookreviews/homepage-usability-50-websites-deconstruct...
Book review: Don't Make Me Think! A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, Steve Krug, New Riders
This is probably the best book available on how to build usability into a website. ‘Usability’ means: enabling visitors to find what they are looking for, and present it to them in an intuitive way they can easily understand. Few websites implement all Steve’s common-sense recommendations, and lose out as a result. He also provides a vital section on how to use other people to test a website.
http://internetevangelismday.com/bookreviews/dont-make-me-think-usability.php