Online membership for churches and faith communities

Faith communities were gathering members long before membership meant a login and a password. A congregation already has what most membership businesses spend years building: people who show up regularly, care about each other and share a sense of purpose. What it often lacks is a good way to stay connected between gatherings, to welcome newcomers who find it online first, and to keep the practical side of community life running without a few volunteers doing everything by phone.

A members area can help with all of that. It isn't a replacement for gathering in person, and it shouldn't try to be. Think of it as the community's shared noticeboard, meeting room and filing cabinet, open to members wherever they are. This article is about the practical running of that space, whatever your tradition; matters of teaching and practice belong with your own leaders.

Who your online members are

A faith community's online members aren't one group. Plan for several:

• Regular attenders who want schedules, sign-ups, group information and a way to keep in touch during the week.
• Newcomers who are curious but cautious, and want to know what to expect before they walk through the door.
• Homebound and distant members: people who are unwell, caring for someone, or who have moved away but still feel they belong.
• Volunteers and leaders who need rotas, contact lists, training materials and a place to coordinate.

Each group needs a different view of the site, and that is what access levels are for.

Access levels that match community life

Most membership software lets you create levels that control who sees what. For a faith community, levels usually follow relationship rather than payment. Here's an illustration of how a hypothetical congregation, Eastgate Fellowship, might set theirs up:

Public: gathering times, what to expect on a first visit, recordings of public talks or services, and a way to get in touch.

Friends: anyone who registers. Adds the events calendar, newsletters, the list of study groups and sign-ups for classes and meals.

Members: people confirmed by the office. Adds the member directory, small group discussion spaces and internal community news.

Leaders and volunteers: adds rotas, training materials, team contact lists and a private coordination space.

None of these levels involves a fee. Many faith communities never charge for membership, and yours may well do the same. The point of levels is to protect privacy and match people with what they need.

What to put in the members area

• A directory that members opt into, with control over what they show. Many people are happy to share a name and photo but not a home address.
• Small group spaces for study groups, interest groups and age-based groups, each with its own discussion, schedule and materials. Book clubs and study groups can give these a helpful structure.
• A recordings archive organized by series or theme, so a member who missed a few weeks can catch up.
• Sign-ups and rotas for hospitality, meals for families going through a hard time, lifts for members who can't drive, and volunteer teams.
• Classes such as a newcomers' course or leadership training, delivered as a short online course with a group discussion.
• Community news: new arrivals, milestones and thank-yous that make people feel part of something.

Keep giving and fees clearly separate

If your community receives donations online, keep giving entirely separate from membership. Members should never wonder whether a gift is a fee or whether access depends on it. Use plain language, give people control over recurring gifts, and make stopping or changing a gift as easy as starting one. If you charge for something, such as a retreat, a conference or a course, present it as a ticket or course fee, not as membership. Rules on donation receipts and tax treatment vary widely, so confirm your obligations with a qualified professional.

Privacy and pastoral care deserve special attention

Faith communities hold some of the most sensitive information any organization can: who is ill, who is grieving, who is struggling. Build your site with that in mind.

• Keep pastoral care matters out of open forums. Requests for personal support should reach a small, trusted team, and nothing should be shared more widely without the person's permission.
• Be very careful with children's information. Don't publish children's names or photos without clear permission from parents, and follow your community's safeguarding policies for anything involving young people online. Children and teens on your membership site covers the wider questions.
• Review who has leader access regularly, especially when volunteers step down.
• Make the directory opt-in, never opt-out.

Welcoming newcomers online

Many people visit a community's website several times before they visit in person. Make the first step easy with a simple registration that brings a warm welcome. Here's a sample message you could adapt:

Welcome, and thank you for getting in touch. We're glad you found us. Our gatherings are informal and you're welcome to come as you are. If you'd like, someone from our welcome team would be happy to meet you at the door and show you around. You'll find the calendar and a short guide to your first visit in the Friends area. If you have any questions at all, just reply to this email and a real person will answer.

Follow up a week or two later with a personal note from a named person, not an automated system.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Putting everything behind the login, so newcomers can't see what the community is like.
• Building a site that only one volunteer knows how to update.
• Opening discussion spaces with nobody to host them, then wondering why nobody posts.
• Forgetting members who aren't comfortable online. Keep a phone and paper route for everything important.

First steps

1. List the groups you serve and what each one needs from the site.
2. Draft your access levels and decide what stays public.
3. Write a short privacy policy in plain language and have your leadership approve it.
4. Start with the calendar, sign-ups and one or two small groups before adding a directory.
5. Recruit two or three volunteers to host discussion spaces and help members log in.
6. Write your newcomer welcome message and test it by registering yourself.