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Church Tips

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Why churches no longer need a programmer for a well-functioning website

A common problem: finding an in-house IT specialist is difficult, and outsourcing is expensive. The result is often a heavy reliance on a single person.

Simon Vreman

February 8, 2025

Web technology in churches

Web technology in churches

Fortunately, in today’s modern internet, it is entirely possible to use a combined package specifically designed for churches, so the wheel doesn’t have to be reinvented every time.

Technical dependence

Churches want a professional and well-functioning website but face several challenges:

  • Building and maintaining a website requires technical knowledge.
  • External programmers and web designers are expensive and not always available.
  • Updates and modifications often take too long, causing the website to become outdated.

Unfortunately, I can say from experience that these are not easy problems to solve. That’s why it’s crucial to create a sustainable, solid, and affordable long-term solution.

User-Friendly church software

With the advent of specially developed church software, churches can easily build and manage their own websites without technical knowledge. This type of software often offers:

  • Simple website builders with drag-and-drop functionality.
  • Automatic updates to keep the website secure and modern.
  • Integrated tools for member management and communication.

Unfortunately, this often comes with various drawbacks, such as low quality, high costs, or a lack of integration. But this is not inevitable—if done correctly.

A truly no-code solution

By combining modern web and app technologies, the right solution can be created. However, a few key factors are essential to ensure that it is sufficient now and in the future.

All-in-One

Managing separate systems can be a major challenge. Information quickly becomes unsynchronized, and keeping everything in order is a daunting task. Additionally, this setup often leads to high monthly costs. An all-in-one solution helps avoid these problems.

User-Focused design

User-friendliness is perhaps the most important factor. If someone needs to perform a task within the system, it’s frustrating if technical support is required just to understand how it works. This only shifts the problem from development to customer support.

Scalability

As a congregation grows—or as expectations increase—the system must grow with it. This is the only way to ensure long-term success. That means having sufficient management tools and the ability to delegate tasks to the right people.

How to choose the right solution?

When selecting a website solution for your church, keep these key points in mind:

  • Functionality: Does it offer the features you need?
  • Quality: Have someone review it with a critical eye. Does the software feel stable?
  • Cost: Be cautious of complex pricing models, especially those that can rise significantly based on specific needs.
  • Support: Make sure you won’t be stuck dealing with a chatbot when you need real help.
  • Trial: The most important thing is being able to test it. No long-term contracts or high startup costs—just a free trial with members of your congregation to see if it works for you.

Ultimately, you need confidence that the solution you choose meets these criteria.

Where to start?

Churches no longer have to rely on expensive programmers or complex software. With the right tools, any church can easily manage a professional and well-functioning website. Want to find out how your church can achieve this? Try Kerkcloud today for free, with no obligations!

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Church Tips

Which church app is the most suitable for my church?

When choosing a church app, there are several things to consider, and ultimately it is a choice that may differ for each church. You can look at:Functionality: some apps will have more features, such as creating events and groups, or receiving donationsCosts: the price difference can be significant between apps, so it is important to consider this in your choice (prices I mention are excluding VAT)Integration: is it a separate system, or can you combine it with, for example, your member administration and websiteTesting possibilities: can you quickly view it online, or does someone have to be involved first Within these examples there is also relatively much variation between different churches. So take a good look at what is important for your church, and weigh that more heavily. The most suitable app is the one that suits the church and brings the most value to the members. I will mention a number of options, and their advantages and disadvantages.Scipio The Scipio Kerk App is a mature and widely used app to connect the church. The most important things such as a member list and groups are available. Furthermore, there is also the possibility to adjust the look and feel of the app to the wishes of your church. The costs are relatively high, given the fact that the app does not offer a complete solution for a church, but must be further combined. There is an option to start for €10 per month, but to use most of the functionality, the €70 subscription is recommended. There is also an option to have the app published, but that is for an additional cost of €130 per month. This is simply strongly discouraged, unless branding is really important. Own store accounts must also be provided for this, which further increases the price. Some integrations are possible, but the only one that really fits is the Scipio Online system, which also entails extra costs and makes the overall picture even more expensive. But in return you get an extensive system, so if that is what your church needs, this can certainly be a strong choice. If you want to test this app, you can do so for free, just like with the other options, but you have to make an appointment for this. Then you immediately have the opportunity to ask questions.Donkey Mobile The team at Donkey Mobile has created a great and very complete app that I personally like. It includes a complete community platform, with a timeline, groups and gifts. An agenda is also built in. The app is technically well put together, and there is a possibility to publish it under your own name in the app stores. The costs are also accordingly, with a monthly amount of €80-275, depending on the number of users. There is also a substantial commitment required: start-up costs of €440 are charged, so you really have to be sure about your choice. But I think this is fair, compared to, for example, the Scipio or Kerkcloud apps, this is a good product for a church that needs all these features. The app can integrate with a number of systems to offer a total package to your church. However, these other systems also involve costs, of course. A website, for example, is not included with this app. Live demos are given, these are at fixed times. If you want to test the app yourself, for example with people from your church, you will have to make arrangements for this. This is not possible directly online.Kerkcloud The Kerkcloud platform also has a mobile app, which can be installed from the user's browser. It contains a member list, messaging system and groups. Each user also has their own timeline with the information that is relevant to them. Because this app is installed from the browser, and because the focus of Kerkcloud is to offer an affordable package, you can start with this system for €25 per month. However, this price is only suitable for churches with up to 100 members, for larger numbers customization is required. This immediately includes a website and an administration panel! This saves you costs in these areas. Furthermore, it is a young product, which means that it improves quickly and there is a lot of room for input. The different parts of the platform are seamlessly integrated, making it easy to keep the information up-to-date. The product was built as a whole from the ground up. To test this app, you can start a free trial via the website. You will then immediately receive your own environment, so you can get started right away. Here you can see with members of your church whether Kerkcloud is suitable. A live demo is also available without an account.Conclusion There are several options if you are looking for an app for your church. We have reviewed a few good choices here, but there may be other church apps that are even better for your church. Be sure to include the factors from this article in your comparison, these are often important, but also make sure you don't forget any points that are indispensable for your church.

February 27, 2025

Reading time: 5 minutes

Update

Live demo launched for Kerkcloud

Far too often, you need to enter all your sensitive data to find out what you are subscribing to. We understand this is inconvenient, you want to know what you are getting into quickly. This is why we have released a public demo, which is as close as we can get you to getting a full picture of our product without having to know who you are.What can it do? It is a full Kerkcloud website, app and management system. With only features related to system settings and files disabled to prevent abuse. You can do almost everything you would do with Kerkcloud as a subscriber, giving you a close look at what we have to offer. And when you feel confident and want to experience all features, you can sign up for our free trial to have all restrictions removed and get your own private website.Won't it turn into a mess? Likely it will. Which is why we chose to automatically reset it every hour. This way, you can play around, and when others come after you, they will also get to experience Kerkcloud. This also makes sure that if you do accidentally leave behind any sensitive data, it won't stick around. You can try it today at demo.kerk.cloud, and see what Kerkcloud is all about!

February 26, 2025

Reading time: 2 minutes

Church Tips

How to create an affordable website for a church?

If I had to set up a website for a church right now, with no specific requirements (which I’ll get back to later), I would set it up for free in no time. Look at quick, simple solutions like a Facebook page. It may not seem the most professional, but it saves a lot of money and effort! People often underestimate how much work goes into a website. Want to do it yourself? Here’s how I would approach it.No custom server and development Don’t do it. It almost always ends up in one of these three scenarios, from most to least common:Quickly put together – Some issues get fixed, and voilà, a website! But it’s usually insecure, hard to maintain (especially when the volunteer who built it leaves), and more expensive in the long run.Never finished – Starts with enthusiasm but remains an unfinished project for years, sharing many issues with the first scenario.Professionals involved – Experts set it up and maintain it properly, resulting in a custom solution for a bargain! Unfortunately, this is rare. Then what is the solution? A managed hosting solution prevents heavy reliance on volunteers with technical skills, as that’s never guaranteed. This can be incredibly cheap, even free for most churches. Services like Vercel or Netlify are great examples.Who should be able to manage it? My rule of thumb: at least half of the congregation should be able to run the website. Only then can you ensure a sustainable system. However, this is nearly impossible if you build a website yourself. So, there’s a choice:Take the risk and develop it yourself (not recommended).Pay a monthly fee for a package—but be careful! Many churches buy packages that don’t meet their needs, wasting money. User-friendly website builders like Squarespace and builder.io require almost no technical knowledge and work well for these cases.What’s the real goal? A website alone is often not the solution. Most churches also need member administration and an app. A combined package can be very beneficial:Data syncs between different tools—super practical!Only one system to manage, controlling everything else.Lower costs—providing more services to the same customer is cheaper. That’s why this would be my choice. Even though I could build a custom system for a very low monthly price, I simply can’t guarantee long-term maintenance. Platforms like planning center or Kerkcloud offer solid alternatives.What fits your church? The best choice depends on your church’s character and needs. The right answer can range from a simple Facebook page to a fully custom solution by a professional company. Kerkcloud aims to balance both—offering churches a solution close to custom development but at a much lower price.

February 11, 2025

Reading time: 3 minutes

Church Tips

Common IT problems in churches and how to solve them

As occurs in many places, there are quite a few IT-related problems in churches. I've picked out some important ones along with tips to resolve them.Slow and outdated website You may have noticed it: there's unfortunately no shortage of slow or outdated church websites. Besides not looking very attractive, this is also harmful to your communication goals. A slow website ranks lower in search results, and users are more likely to click away. Often the site isn't properly optimized for mobile devices, even though this is how most people use the internet. This can be solved by creating (or having someone create) a new website. But that's usually not done in a snap. It involves many aspects, including the other points in this article. My advice here is simple:Make sure that as a church you do what only you can do: the website contentAvoid high recurring costsOnly go for a special house style if it's really important (because it's not free!)Join forces with other churches: together you stand strong Various services online fulfill several items from this list, including Kerkcloud, so you can certainly compare and choose. We always try to work from this list to best serve the core tasks of a church.Expensive or complex software It usually doesn't start this way, but over time, quite complex solutions are set up and combined to fulfill various IT needs within the church. These are usually solutions that don't align well, which can make things complicated, but above all very expensive. Think of an administration program, a member app, website, and email service. Calculate some standard prices, and you're quickly thinking of €100 to €300 per month, not because the actual usage is so expensive, but because the software doesn't align properly. To address this, it's advisable for most churches to arrange a package that meets as many of the church's basic needs as possible and is focused on continued development with the church in mind. Consider requirements such as:A modern websiteMember portal / member appMember administration For some churches, there are additional requirements that should certainly be considered when choosing a package, namely:Sending newslettersCreating schedulesMultilingual web pages / interfaces Therefore, don't just choose any random package, but carefully consider which software and services can be replaced, and whether all requirements are met. At Kerkcloud, the focus is on basic requirements, but development is aimed at offering more advanced functionality in the near future. Note: don't choose a subscription with too much functionality either, as this will cost significantly more (in the long run).Volunteers and management This one is very familiar to me. With my background as a web developer, I see both in my professional life and volunteer work how badly people need you. But the reality is: it takes a lot of effort to implement a solution and then maintain and innovate it. The result includes the previously mentioned problems, and try finding a professional who will improve it. I made the choice to tackle this more broadly: a solution for all churches, requiring much less effort from volunteers to manage systems. This then ensures that quality remains guaranteed. There are other choices to make here, for example more general services that don't specialize in churches. Look carefully at what aligns with the church's needs. For this, I have several rules of thumb:(Almost) never have software developed by a volunteer: this won't be maintainable in the long termChoose a service that best matches your needs: only then will you succeed in saving effortEnsure no specialist skills are needed to manage the system for your church: roughly half the church should be able to do itConclusion In this article, we've discussed a series of common problems when setting up IT systems in churches, and suggestions for dealing with them. Kerkcloud's goal is to automate this as much as possible and place specialist knowledge with people who work on it full-time. So definitely check if we can mean something for your church, and absolutely contact us if you're missing something specific!

February 11, 2025

Reading time: 4 minutes