Get free Sunday bulletin shells

To get you to try their Sunday worship bulletin shells , Outreach offers you a free week's worth of 1 of 10 designs.

These designs look good enough to use for church pamphlets or special events too.

Review: Picasa Web Albums

Google's free photo organizing and editing tool Picasa, also integrates well with Picasa Web Albums. Both Google (Picasa) and Flickr offer free and subscription photo storage. Here's my fast take on the two:

Picasa Web Albums vs. Flickr (free version)

• Picasa Web Albums offers 250MB storage space vs. only 20MB at Flickr
• Uploader: Picasa is more "fun" and attractive vs. Flickr Uploader. But Flick has tag-oriented input fields at upload time.
• Photo editing: Decent, free photo editing using Picasa. Flickr doesn't offer a photo editor.
• Slideshow: Picasa Web Albums gives a significantly larger photo view than Flickr's slideshow.
• Flickr lets you add rectangular hotspot "Notes" to any photos. I don't use this feature, but it is a difference between the two services.

Overall: I am using a paid Flickr account for my church, but will definitely give Picasa a try soon. Picasa Web Albums may become my preferred site for church galleries and slideshows.

But ... you knew there was a "but", didn't you! Picasa Web Albums is in beta testing (like a lot of the current Google projects). You must request an invitation and wait until Google gives you the "OK".

If you are just starting Web photo albums, want a free photo album site, and don't feel the need for blogging-related tags and such, Picasa may be perfect for your needs.

Keep personal info off your site

In Microsoft's article, "9 Things Not to Have on Your Web Site", one often overlooked by churches is not including personal information about staff and members.

Everyone likes to see their name or photo on the web. In these days of increasing data theft, though, churches need to do more to protect identity-type information about their members and staff.

Do not show the following on your web site:

• Full names (the most common exception is the pastor)
• Home street addresses (even for the pastor)
• Home or cell phone numbers (even the pastor's cell)
• Members' personal email addresses
• Personal names as staff email addresses
• Staff or member photos (again, the common exception is the pastor)

Coping

• Use email attachments, rather than the web, to give members electronic access church newsletters, advance copies of the Sunday bulletin, and even the church directory.
• If you put your newsletter or similar articles on the web, identify people by position (no name) or by first name only. You may find, like I did, that you'd need to "scrub" the newsletter so much that the effort isn't worth it.
• When you show photos, either avoid using names, or use first names only. Be general. Consider what a thief might do with the information you provide.
• For staff email addresses, use the generic position, not their name. Use pastor@mychurch.org or music@mychurch.org, for example. An added advantage to this is that the staff email address is valid even if (when) the person changes.
• Be very careful when adding names to email lists for bulletins, newsletters, and directories. If someone in your church doesn't personally know them, require them to appear in person and fill out a request form. Don't "assume" that a request by email is an honest one.
• Advertise your personal information policy -- your members will appreciate your concern.

Web myths lead to church decline?

The World Wide Web is changing the world and the way we live in it, including our religious lives. "... those companies and organizations not ready for it are dying as predicted," says a CNN article today.

Many studies show an ever-increasing use of the Web both by religious organizations and individuals and by those seeking spiritual information, direction, or advice. Yet, some churches today disdain the web. Why? Some misconceptions may be at work:

• Myth: It's only for geeks and kids.
  Fact: With millions of people using the web and many more each day, it's no longer the nerdville that it used to be. Soccer Moms are using the web. Seniors communicate with email and get online news and information. Clubs and organizations have their own web sites and email groups.
• Myth: A web site costs too much to host.
  Fact: Any United Methodist church can get a small (5MB) web site free from the General Board of Global Ministries. Microsoft offers a free 30MB web site and your own domain name. Google offers a free 100MB web site. Blogger offers a free Blog. Flickr offers free online photo storage. Cost is no excuse.
• Myth: A church web site is a low priority because it doesn't help "the bottom line".
  Fact: First, a church should not get preoccupied with money, the root of all evil. Secondly, A church needs to minister to all its members, their local community, and "to the ends of the earth". A site on the World Wide Web fills that broad mission need.
• Myth: We don't have any web developers at my church.
  Fact: With free Microsoft and Google type web sites, setting up and maintaining a web site is very simple. You can have a good look and great content without any knowledge of web design. Next excuse?
• Myth: It takes too much time.
  Fact: Your church web site can be simple or complex. Use the time available to set how complex you get. Start simple, then add more pages. The web is too important to ignore. As more people use the web to locate churches and even "preview" a prospective one to visit, church web sites will become even more critical. A visitor to our church this past year said he checked out our entire web site before deciding to visit.

Writing for the web

Here are some fast writing tips that will make your web pages easier and faster to read:

• Write for "scanners".
  People don't read on the Web – they "scan". Let readers easily and quickly find and read the information they seek. Printed documents and directives of all types can benefit from web writing techniques. Even people with PhDs like easy reading.
• Simplify the language.
  Delete words that are not essential. Blast folksy or bureaucratic language. Be direct and clear. Aim for a 50% reduction in words.
• Reduce polysyllabic words to familiar one or two-syllable ones.
  For example, favor "use" over "utilize", "make" over "fabricate".
• Use strong, present tense, active voice action verbs.
  "Someone does something", not "something is done by someone."
• "Chunk" content.
• Use short simple sentences (25 words or less) of varied length.
• Put key information first. Answer the "who, what, where, when, why, and how." Good news journalists use this " inverted pyramid" style too.
• Use "white space".
• Use short paragraphs of just a few sentences, each with one idea.
• Add structure
  Use subheads and bullets to help readers scan the page.
• Use "Styles"
  Just make sure the styles follow the document structure. Heading 1 appears before you use a Heading 2, for example. Subheads would become Heading 3 styles in this structure.
• Limit use of images and apply alt text.
  Use only images essential to the document. Blast the clip art and cute stuff. Look professional. Remember that Section 508 and WCAG require images to include alternative text. (In MS Word, select "Format", "Picture", and then the "Web" tab).
• Never use red or green text.
  Why? Red or green text violates Section 508 accessibility for the handicapped.
• Never underline words.
  Why? Underlines in a web page or doc imply a hyperlink.

Tips for accessibile web pages

Below are some ways to make your web pages more accessible to the handicapped. Read more at the W3C's "Quick Tips to Make Accessible Web sites".

• Page organization. Use headings, lists, and a logical, consistent structure. Use CSS for layout and style where possible.
• Hypertext links. Use text that makes sense when read by itself. For example, avoid "click here."
• Images. Use the alt attribute to describe the function of each image. Avoid animated images.
• Tables. Use tables for data,not layout. Ensure that line-by-line reading ("linearization") of data tables makes sense.
• Graphs and charts. Summarize or use the longdesc attribute. Offer a data table.
• Scripts, applets, & plug-ins. Provide alternative content in case the user's browser or settings does not support these features.
• Frames. If you must use frames, at least use the noframes element and meaningful titles.
• Proofing. Check your work, validate pages, and use the tools, checklist, and guidelines at http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG.

Free online survey tool

SurveyMonkey offers online surveys. The basic version is free and lets you ask up to 10 questions and collect up to 100 responses. This is perfect for a small to medium organization, including a church. Their professional version is relatively inexpensive and allows unlimited questions and up to 1,000 responses. More responses incur a slight per person charge.

So what could you use it for? Did you ever wish you could poll your members about an issue or even how they like your web site? SurveyMonkey may be the answer to your prayers.

Editorial tips

The "Learn One Thing" blog has an article with several great editing tips . This article includes use of English (insure vs. ensure, for example). The article also links to the ESA Training site's " Editorial Tips" page.

I recommend you bookmark the "Learn One Thing" -- it's a site you should return to often.

Use Google Sitemaps for better SEO

Google Sitemaps can help raise your ranking in Google search results. Google says, "By using Sitemaps to inform and direct our crawlers, we hope to expand our coverage of the web and speed up the discovery and addition of pages to our index."

Mary Gillen, author at Learn One Thing, has tips on using the site maps:

• Google Sitemap Tips - Part 1
• Google Sitemap Tips - Part 2

Also check out "About Google Sitemaps" and " Inside Google Sitemaps" at the Google site.

Using images for bullets

Would you like to have bulleted lists with fancier bullets? Have you tried using an image as a bullet and hated the result? Buddy, have I got a deal for you.

The MaxDesign site has a LisTutorial specifically for this. The step-by-step details are easy to understand and the code is short. Try it; you'll like it.

Writing: Writely coming soon

The free Writely online application will start issuing "invitations" in July. People have described Writely as an "web word processor" or a "wiki with permissions". Some features include:

• Edit, save, and share files online
• Add tables, images, links, colors
• Limit view and edit access to specific docs
• Collaborate with others and see who made changes when
• Easily compare versions and revert a doc to a prior version
• Make a web page from a doc
• Edit in HTML if you want
• Create a blog post and post it from Writely
• Use blog categories. This may also imply that Blogger, also owned by Google, will allowing use of categories starting in July.

Not on the list to get an email notice when you can sign up? Request an invite.

Presentation Tips

Do you want to create more effective PowerPoint presentations? Check out Guy Kawasaki's pages:

• Presentation Zen
• Presentation Tips
• What is good PowerPoint design?

Methods of PowerPoint presentation design:

• Lessig Method
• Godin Method
• Kawasaki Method
• Takahashi Method
• Wabi-Sabi and Presentation Visuals

Learn one thing ...

The Learn One Thing blog, run by Mary Gillen, has a bazillion tips on subjects including writing, marketing and sales, web technology, SEO, RSS feeds, podcasting, and blogging for business.

Mary says the name came from a class she taught, where the student said he was there to "learn just one thing".

The blog doesn't have categories yet but Mary says she'll be adding them soon.