Do you have a website for your church? If not, Written For Christ will do their part to make that option a possibility. We will provide the software to create your website. You will still need to find a web server provider to install your software on. Since the software Written For Christ creates does not have a database for Contact Management System (CMS), there are less expensive options for the web server provider.
Written For Christ uses the name Our Little Church, to show what you can do. Our Little Church is just a sample of what you could build here. Our Little Church does not exist, except in our imagination church.
To ensure with the next upgrade download does not over write your changes, Written For Christ will set code modification rules we can all play by.
To ensure our instructions are easy to follow, so that only a few people (preferable nobody) have issues following the instructions, Written For Christ will listen to your feedback and provide advice.
Step-By-Step:
Here are guidelines to get your website up and going, along with related functions.
- TechSoup: If you are not already a member of TechSoup, then I strongly suggest you check them out. TechSoup is a nonprofit, which finds discounts for nonprofits.
- Select Editing Tools: There are a few hardware and software tools you should have to create and modify HTML, PHP and JavaScript. Written For Christ will attempt to write all the PHP and JavaScript coding you will need.
- Acquire HTML programming skills: If you already feel comfortable with your HTML programming skills, feel free to skip this section. Written For Christ will start you off with the basic Hello World program in HTML. Once you are comfortable with HTML code, please feel free to move on to coding your website.
- Selecting a Host Provider: The host provider is the person/company providing the server for the code of your website. I found Regional Internet (one host provider) who offers a shared server for less than $10/month at their standard price. There are some who have a conversion low price, then after time the real price is between $20-$30/month.
- Download HTML/PHP code: After you obtained the tools to create/modify the code for your website, learned the basics of HTML, and found a host provider and domain name; it is time to download the zip file with the website template.
- Google Workspace: Google Suite has been replaced with Google Workspace. This will give you tools like Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet, Gmail, and much more. All this is free through TechSoup.
- Google Business Profile: If you want to be noticed by Google then add or claim your business on Google My Business.
- Google Ads: TechSoup offers Google Ads for nonprofits
- Canva-Pro: As a nonprofit you can obtain Canva Pro for free. This gives you the ability to create and modify images.