With all the changes that are sure to come with Christmas this year, it’s likely your community will have lots of questions. Are you hosting an in-person service? How can I join online? What other events and outreach activities will be offered? It’s always a good idea to give your website a touch up for Christmas. Still, in times of social-distancing and the increased likelihood that Christmas services this year will be impacted by COVID-19, you’ll want to be certain this information is easily accessible to your congregation. Not sure where to start? No problem! We’re here to break it all down for you so you can get started right away and have everything ready in advance of the Christmas season.
About a month before Christmas, you should begin adding Christmas elements to your website. If you’re planning for a large Christmas service or pageant, you’ll want to dedicate a good amount of space to it on your site to ensure that it gets maximum exposure. There are a few key components to consider when preparing your website so that you can effectively reach your audience and promote your event!
Utilize Christmas-Themed Images and Graphics
If you have the resources, it’s a good idea to have a consistent “look” to the images you’re going to be using on your website, so everything looks neat and cohesive. Using a bunch of randomly collected images off the internet will definitely be noticeable while having an aesthetic to your designs will demonstrate professionalism and encourage visitors to look around and see what else your website has to offer.
Just like you’d use pictures of baby Jesus during Christmas, you should use Christmas graphics for your website. The right visuals help get your point across and give a more polished appearance. If you don’t have a designer to design Christmas-themed graphics, Sharefaith has tons of Christmas templates and graphics for you to choose from.
Create a Christmas Landing Page on Your Website
Having a dedicated digital landing page is essential if you plan on promoting your event. It’s a direct URL you can easily send your audience to so they don’t have to go searching for the information they need on your website, risking that they struggle and give up altogether. You can link this page in any Social Media posts, digital ads on your mobile app if you have one – or wherever else your community might find it!
Here are our Top 10 Tips for building a Christmas Event Landing Page:
- Create a unique URL for your landing page. Example: yourURL.com/christmas
- Ensure the headline & graphic of your Christmas landing page are consistent with any ads visitors clicked to land on the page.
- Your Christmas landing page should be designed with a single Call to Action (CTA) in mind. For example, “Join Us Online!”
- Keep the most important content at the top of the page. Service times, your church address with a link to directions, and even a campus map graphic should all be easily visible without too much scrolling.
- Use a video from your pastor or ministry leaders to invite prospective visitors to Christmas services. It’s proven to increase conversion by 80%.
- Tell people what to expect by placing FAQs describing the atmosphere, flow of service, dress code, online components, and kids and students activities.
- Highlight other events happening before and after Christmas as a soft call to action.
- Don’t forget about members! Place a signup form for members to volunteer to serve during the Christmas activities. For more information about volunteers, check out our Easter Volunteer Guide.
- Get your members involved in outreach by creating social media graphics that they can use to invite friends and family.
- Set up a redirect during the week of Christmas so that if a user goes to your website, they are automatically directed to your Christmas landing page.
Make It Mobile
With over 50% of internet users viewing the web on their mobile phones and tablets, it’s vitally important for a church to have the ability to tailor their site to these visitors, especially when new visitors are arriving for Christmas! If your church doesn’t have a responsive website (a site that automatically responds and adapts to the device the visitor is using), you’ll definitely want to consider an upgrade. The last thing you want is new visitors struggling to view your site on their mobile phones. If they cannot easily get the information they need, the likelihood of them attending is slim.
Website Resources
Hopefully, you found all of this helpful! Follow these tips, and you should be well on your way to a successful Christmas Event this year. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by how much prep goes into your pre-Christmas web strategy, we’re here to help.
It can be overwhelming trying to put all of this together without an in-house graphic designer or any design knowledge of your own, and Christmas will be here before you know it. That’s why we at Sharefaith have put together the ultimate Christmas Kit jam-packed with FREE resources to help you navigate a Socially Distanced Christmas at Church. Download your kit today to receive:
🎁 Getting Your Website Ready for Christmas eBook
🎁 Kids Christmas eBook
🎁 Live Streaming Your Christmas Service Guide
🎁 Christmas ChMS Guide
🎁 Christmas Mini Movie
🎁 Christmas Offering Scripts
🎁 Christmas Congregation Care eBook
Looking for even more great content? With Sharefaith, you can get a website, church graphics and media, kids Sunday School lessons, family Devos, presentation software, and more, all in one convenient package. Get started today with a Free Trial!
Whatever you decide, don’t hesitate to get started! Christmas will be here before we know it.
