EXPANDING OUR ONLINE PRESENCE
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
- We launched our website beginning in July 2011.
- It started out as a tiny seed and has grown and blossomed into a mature and beautiful tree.
- We started small with humble beginnings.
- In July 2011 we had only 4,234 visits.
- In July 2022 we boasted 309,294 visits.
- This is by reason of the Holy Spirit!
-
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts,” (Zec. 4: 6)
Yearly Growth of Our Church Website
Yearly Growth of Our Church Website
0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 July 2011 July 2012 July 2013 July 2014 July 2015 July 2016 July 2017 July 2018 July 2019 July 2020 July 2021 July 2022 Number of Visits Unique Visitors Table 1 July 2011 July 2012 July 2013 July 2014 July 2015 July 2016 July 2017 July Number of Visits 4,234 17,691 35,202 65,954 60,969 72,100 126,965 Unique Visitors 786 3,134 5,320 8,607 7,097 7,823 22,162
0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 July 2011 July 2012 July 2013 July 2014 July 2015 July 2016 July 2017 July 2018 July 2019 July 2020 July 2021 July 2022 Number of Visits Unique Visitors Table 1 July 2011 July 2012 July 2013 July 2014 July 2015 July 2016 July 2017 July 2018 July 2019 July 2020 July 2021 July 2022 Number of Visits 4,234 17,691 35,202 65,954 60,969 72,100 126,965 144,569 261,225 284,870 271,467 309,294 Unique Visitors 786 3,134 5,320 8,607 7,097 7,823 22,162 18,757 68,252 67,542 62,235 96,346
4,234 786 17,691 3,134 35,202 5,320 65,954 8,607 60,969 7,097 72,100 7,823 126,965 22,162 144,569 18,757 261,225 68,252 284,870 67542 271,467 62,235 309,294 96,346
rate at which we grow has decreased!
The
WHAT DO THE NUMBERS SAY
- The number of visits is the total visits we received for the year. This may include multiple visits from the same person.
- Unique visitors pertains to the # of people that came to our website regardless of how many times they visited.
- Between years 2019 to 2022, our rate of growth has declined.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ONLINE PRESENCE
- Why would this decline in numbers be a concern to us?
- We are not a business or a “mega church.”
- We don’t need to enlist marketing strategies to help our website grow. We are not recruiting members. We depend on the will of God.
- However, our website is 12 years old and has become out of date.
- Technology is constantly changing and progressing at a rapid rate.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ONLINE PRESENCE
- We have established an expansive library of content for our website.
- So much so, that we have been recycling content on a month to month basis for a multiple years now.
- But in doing so, we have lost some of our impact online. That is why the numbers are a concern.
- We need new content and material to continue to engage our current audience and be more effective in spreading the word of God. This initiative begins in August.
THE IMPORTANCE OF ONLINE PRESENCE
- However, new content on the website is not enough because it is the same layout that we have used for 12 years.
- We need to give people more variety of ways to hear and see the word of God through other mediums.
- By doing so we will enhance and strengthen our online presence and the Spirit will take it from there.
- How do we do this?
- I propose 2 phases.
YOUTUBE & FACEBOOK PHASE 1
1) YOUTUBE
- Youtube is a free online platform where you can share videos.
- Youtube is a very powerful medium with ~ 122 million users per day.
- The church can utilize YouTube to share videos of sermons, bible classes, children/adult testimonies and the praises of God.
- This medium will first benefit current members and serve as a tool of spiritual edification throughout the week as they access a variety of video content to be comforted, strengthened and educated on the truth.
-
“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled,” (Matthew 5: 6).
-
“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth,” (2 Timothy 2: 15)
1) YOUTUBE
- Members would have the opportunity to share this YouTube page with others.
- The YouTube page would link directly to our website and vice versa.
- Current website visitors can access our YouTube page to view a larger library of videos.
- Users on our YouTube page can be directed to our website for the first time.
https://www.youtube.com/@householdofisrael2266/playlists
TIME FOR A DEMONSTRATION!
2) FACEBOOK
- Facebook is a social media network that connects people online. This is also a free platform.
- People share their thoughts, pictures, videos and links to other websites for example.
- We as a church can use Facebook to first create an online community amongst ourselves.
- We can post the word of the month, pictures of various celebrations or events, church videos, scriptures, classes and links to pertinent news articles.
-
"Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another,”
(Mal. 3: 16)
-As led by the Spirit, we may choose to invite family members and friends to our church page.
-“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God:” (I John 4: 1)
-There would be a link to our website and YouTube page, driving people back and forth through these three mediums (i.e. Church website, Facebook and YouTube)
https://www.facebook.com/householdofisrael/
TIME FOR A DEMONSTRATION!
WHAT IS NEEDED?
-Digital Camcorder ($50 or more)allows us to take pictures as well as record videos.
-Although we have a camcorder. It is outdated and videos are not (HD) high definition quality.
-A new camcorder can take high quality photos that can be posted to Facebook.
-Record high quality digital videos that can be uploaded to YouTube and or Facebook.
-The church needs its own camcorder so that members don’t have to use their cell phone memory when taking pictures or videos for the Facebook and/or YouTube page.
-Tripod to hold camera ($15 to $30) while recording videos. Our current tripod is being used for Skyping.
PHASE 2 LIVE STREAMING
LIVESTREAM
- Live streaming is when a video is sent over the Internet in real time, without first being recorded and stored.
- The church could livestream all or part of worship service during Sabbaths and any other holy convocations.
LIVESTREAM
- We would live stream directly on our website.
- WHY? To better engage visitors on our website and more effectively teach the word of God by allowing people to see our worship in real time.
- Offsite members not able to utilize Skype can view our worship service in real time from the comfort of their homes.
- We can Skype and livestream at the same time but would need separate webcams for each software platform as well as enough internet speed.
LIVESTREAM
- We should consider and pray about Live streaming because…..
- Live streaming continues to grow increasingly popular, especially since the Covid 19 Pandemic.
- Live videos manage to capture attention between 10 and 20 times longer than prerecorded and ondemand content.
- About 1/3rd of internet users have identified live video streams as the type of video content that they watch the most each week.
WHAT IS NEEDED?
-Live streaming platform
-Software or application that we would purchase through a company that allows us to broadcast live videos.
-Encoder
- Converts video into a format that can be streamed online so viewers can see it. We could purchase hardware to do this or software.
-A separate web cam (our current webcam is being used for Skype.
-A separate tripod to carry webcam.
-A USB splitter (so that more than one camera can connect to the computer).
WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE -Computer -High
Speed
Internet
Streaming resolution determines how clear and sharp the video will be
Streaming Resolutions Required Bandwidth
HD - high definition
FHD- full high definition
UHD - ultra high definition
4K (4000 pixels)
UPLOAD SPEED DETERMINES THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION THAT CAN BE TRANSFERRED FROM YOUR COMPUTER TO THE INTERNET. SO
UPLOAD SPEED IS IMPORTANT FOR LIVE STREAMING (I.E. TRANSFERRING OUR VIDEO OF WORSHIP TO INDIVIDUAL’S DEVICES ONLINE)
THE CHURCH’S INTERNET
20MBPS FOR UPLOAD SPEED
1280x720 (HD) 3Mbps of upload speed
1920x1080 (FHD) 6Mbps of Upload speed
3480x2160 (UHD) 25Mbps of Upload speed
4096x2160 (4K) 32Mbps of Upload speed
PRAY & CONSIDER
-The 2nd phase (live streaming) requires more careful thought and prayer.
- “Pray without ceasing,”
(I Thessalonians 5: 17)
-Once we live stream we are really putting ourselves out there.
-Youtube and Facebook are free but live streaming will incur a monthly or yearly fee.
PRAY & CONSIDER
-There are 2 major costs involved
-Purchasing the live streaming platform. This ranges from $50 to $200/month depending on the package we purchase.
-Purchasing the encoder. The software license could cost $400 or more for the year. Each year we would have to renew but at a lower price of $150 or more.
-Minor Costs
-Web cam $50 or more
-Tripod $15 to $30
-USB splitter $10 or more
-Live streaming would be a major investment.
PRAY & CONSIDER
-It should be said by utilizing Facebook, YouTube and or live streaming we are increasing our visibility.
-This will subject us to comments that may not be flattering.
-Employers do have access to our social media who may view some of our beliefs as hate propaganda (i.e. anti sodomy).
-This is not to say that we should censor ourselves. We must always stand for the truth and do so with courage.
-“Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD,” (Psalms 31: 24)
PRAY & CONSIDER
-Our content is not copyrighted.
-I have witnessed some of our content already being used on other websites.
-There is concern regarding our music, a lot of which is originally made by us.
RECOMMENDATIONS
-I recommend a conservative and cautious approach.
-We launch the Facebook and YouTube pages for our church and observe the response we get for 6 months.
-After 6 months and with diligent prayer and the Spirit’s guidance, we determine whether we should live stream.
