View source for Establishing Web Presence

This page is meant as a beginning resource for followers of Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac interested in '''establishing a web presence.'''

==Why have a web presence==

'''That's where the people are!''' 

:''More than ONE BILLION people are on-line!''
*[http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm Internet usage world-wide]

::''ALMOST 70% OF THE US POPULATION''
*[http://www.internetworldstats.com/stats7.htm Internet users by language]

:From the above statistics it is clear that the Internet is no longer predominantly an English speaking medium.
*[http://www.internetworldstats.com/am/us.htm US Internet Statistics] 

'''"Faith Online: 64% of wired Americans have used the Internet for spiritual or religious purposes"'''

:[http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/126/report_display.asp [http://www.pewinternet.org/about_mission.asp Pew Internet Internet in American Life Study]
::"The 64% of Internet users who perform spiritual and religious activities online represent nearly 82 million Americans. Among the most popular and important spiritually-related online activities measured in a (2004) national survey: 38% of the nation’s 128 million Internet users have sent and received email with spiritual content; 35% have sent or received online greeting cards related to religious holidays; 32% have gone online to read news accounts of religious events and affairs; 21% have sought information about how to celebrate religious holidays; 17% have looked for information about where they could attend religious services; 7% have made or responded to online prayer requests; and 7% have made donations to religious organizations or charities. 

*[http://www.theclaretians.org/site/News2?abbr=usc_&page=NewsArticle&id=5854 Surfing for Salvation] Pat McCormick

==What to expect==


'''If You Build a Web Site, Will They Come?''' 

:The chances of finding your website among the billions of websites are very small even with search engines

::A Google search shows some 23,500,000 for parish

'''What should you expect in building a site?'''

:Three things to be remembered...
::It’s not as hard as you think (up to a point!)
::It's not as easy as you think (but the difficulties can be minimized)
::Just because you build it does not mean that they will come (but at least you have a chance)

==Before you start==

Get the sequence right!

It is not "Ready, aim, fire!" but " '''Aim''', ready, fire!"



*'''Why should they come?''' YOUR INTENTIONS
*'''What do you really want/expect to happen?''' YOUR HOPES
*'''Why will they come?''' THEIR MOTIVATION
*'''Let the “Beginners Mind” be in you.''' TAKE NOTHING FOR GRANTED
*'''Who does it well and why?''' DON’T RE-INVENT
:Learn from others.
*'''What to expect building a site?''' PLAN, PLAN, PLAN



==Steps in establishing a web presence==

*[http://www.ericstoltz.com/not-for-profit/discussion.html Ten Discussion Questions In Establishing Your Website]

*[http://www.pastors.com/article.asp?ArtID=8992 Ten Internet ‘best practices’ for e-ministry] by Terrell Sanders

:The "Heal Your Church Website" is a wonderful resource targeting church webmasters. However the following links do not seem to be functioning at the moment.

*[http://healyourchurchwebsite.com Seven Deadly Sins of Web Writing] "Heal Your Church Website" (search for the word deadly)

*[http://www.gdusa.com/feature/4_03/trends.php 2003 Trends in Logo Design] "Heal Your Church Website"

*[http://www.healyourchurchwebsite.com/archives/001072.php 2003 Ten Most Violated Rules in Web Design] "Heal Your Church Website"

*[http://www.healyourchurchwebsite.com/archives/cat_theology.php#001342 Blogging: Web Publishing on the Cheap] "Heal Your Church Website"

*[http://www.pastors.com/article.asp?ArtID=8958 Eight Things A Pastor Needs to Know About eMinistry]


*[http://www.learnthenet.com/english/section/webpubl.html Web Publishing]

*[http://www.ericstoltz.com/not-for-profit/best.html Best Practices for Non-profits]

==Ways to establish a Website==

'''Outsource'''
:*Professionals
:*Volunteers
'''Do it yourself'''
:*Use a website design program
:*Use "[[blog]]" creation site
:*Use a "[[wiki]]" creation site

==Helpful resources==

*[http://www.coyotecommunications.com/webdevo/index.html Website Development and maintainance]
*[http://www.pastors.com/ Pastor's.com]
*[http://www.coyotecommunications.com/ Coyote Communications]
*[http://www.learnthenet.com/english/toolbar/sitemap.htm Learn the Net] 
::Wonderful set of clearly written explanations of various dimensions of the Internet
*[http://www.efuse.com/plainmap.html eFuse] 
::"eFuse.com offers information, inspiration, and assistance written in plain English by professional writers and designers so it's easy to understand and use. eFuse.com is for everyone who wants to build a more attractive and effective web site. Learn what you need, painlessly. No experience necessary. You'll be web-savvy in no time."
::Available in Spanish and French
*[http://www.techsoup.org/tools/sitemap.cfm?cg=footer&sg=sitemap TechSoup]
:The Technology Place for Non-Profits
:[http://www.techsoup.org/tools/firsttime.cfm First Time Visitors]
*[http://blog.slaven.net.au/ Development on a Shoestring]
*[http://freesitetemplates.com/ Free website templates]

==Helping people find you==

*[http://edgechurch.blogspot.com/2005/12/search-engine-marketing-for-pastors.html Search Engine Marketing for Pastors]

==External links==

*[http://www.ericstoltz.com/process/index.html Perspectives of Archdiocese of L.A. Webmaster]

[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/website.shtml DIOCESE OF GUILDFORD]

:[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/guide1.shtml Planning]

:[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/guide2.shtml Creating]

:[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/guide3.shtml  Promotion and Search Engines]

:[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/guide4.shtml Updating ideas]

:[http://www.cofeguildford.org.uk/html/resources/web-creation/graphics.shtml Graphics]

[[Category: Vincentian Use of Media]]
[[Category: Famvin]]