Frequently Asked Questions
You can find answers to our most commonly asked questions below by clicking on a question. Should you not find the answer to your question here, don't hesitate to contact us.
General
- Do your sites have adverts on them?
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No, unlike other low-cost website services, our sites carry no obligatory third party advertisements in any shape or form.
- Is there much work for me to do once my website is loaded up?
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Not nearly as much as you would have to do with other similar packages. We have tried to make the whole process of getting your site ready as trouble-free and painless as possible.
Once you've ordered your 40 day free website trial, within three working days we aim to get your site up on the internet for you to start loading your content.
What you will receive is a website exactly the same as you see on the live-demos. Over and above this, your site will be personalised with:
- Your church name in the header
- A google map showing your church location
- A contact page with your details
- Your church details in the footer
- Set up of either a blog or static welcome message on the home page
- The donation module set up ready to receive payments (if you have a PayPal account)
So all you have to do is edit the pages you want to use or simply disable the pages and features that you don't want to use.
It really is that straightforward!
- Can I add any other features to my church website myself?
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Yes. You should have more than enough to choose from, but if there is a specific feature that you want on your site, then you can find out where and how to install extra features on our client support pages (only viewable once you place your order and become a 'registered user').
If you have something in mind that we currently do not offer and would like us to quote on installing it for you, then you can contact us for a quote.
- What happens if I need some help altering my church website?
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When you order your free church website 40-day trial we will create you a 'registered user' account so that you can log-in to our site. This will give you access to our dedicated client support pages. These page contain all the basic instructions you will need to keep your site up to date including:
- How to easily edit content on pages
- How to add images to you pages
- How to create new pages and menu items
- How to enable and disable 'features' with one single click
- How to use special features like the calendar, gallery and blog
You should find all the information you need within these pages.
If you can't find what you need or a have a specific question, then we have a forum set up where you can submit a post. Our moderators aim to get back within one working day - but often its within minutes!
Hosting & E-mails
- What type of hosting package will I get with my site?
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With your new website design you will get a reliable hosting package from one of Europe's leading Christian web hosts. Your package includes:
- Unlimited webspace
- 20GB of monthly data transfer
- Control Panel
- Unlimited e-mails
- Web mail service
- Do I get e-mails with my hosting package?
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Yes. You can generate an unlimited amount of e-mails as part of your hosting package. You simply log-in to your control panel and set up an e-mail address with a chosen username and password.
You can also set up autoresponders and e-mail forwarding as well.
Not only that, but you can also use the web-mail service, which means you can access your e-mails from anywhere in the world where you can get internet access. Great for when you are on holiday or working away!
- Can I stay with my existing hosting provider?
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When your church website is hosted by YourChurchOnTheWeb all the features are guaranteed to work correctly as you see on the live demos. We have in the past, experienced problems when using other people's hosting packages because they haven't been set up or configured very well. So for this reason, we only use our hosting services.
Pricing
- Am I 'locked in' with your service?
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After you have paid for your first year plan, you can cancel any further subscriptions or payment plans you may have with us at any time you wish.
This doesn't mean that you lose your site either. If you wanted to use an alternative hosting company, then you can simply back-up your files and load them on to a different hosting package. (You would then lose access to the online client support pages - we don't see the point, but the option is there if you want it.)
- Can I purchase using my own currency?
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More than likely. Your Church On The Web is an international site which means we need to cater for several English speaking countries.
When you click on the 'Prices' link you will see a grey box to the right hand side of the screen. You can adjust the currency there to show the following:
- British Pounds
- US Dollars
- Australian Dollars
- Euros
- South African Rands
- How come your prices are cheaper than a lot of other sites using a CMS?
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Although the use of content management systems (CMSs) are becoming more and more common these days, you will still normally have to pay a premium for the privilege of having one installed and integrated into your site.
But with the popularity of free 'open source' software you certainly don't need to pay the kind of prices that you used to in order to have the privilege of updating and managing your own site.
That's one of the reasons why we can keep the costs of our sites down. What you pay for is our expertise in using the CMS and in setting the sites up with all the content and features.
Templates
- Can I create my own church website header?
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Yes, if you don't want to go with the standard banner that appears on the demo site, then you can supply your own.
All you will need to do is replace the file stored in your 'images' folder which is located in your templates folder. The file is normally called 'banner.jpg'. You will need ftp software to execute this.
If you want to supply this at the time of your order we will gladly install it for you at no extra cost. Simply check the size of the existing image (or contact us and we'll let you know what it is), then save your image as a jpg image at 72dpi resolution.
Alternitavely you can contact us requesting a quote for us to create a bespoke banner for you.
- What if a church near me uses the same template as me?
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First of all, using a bespoke banner or set of rotating images can set your site apart from others using the same template.
But there is a bigger question here that we would do well to answer: Does it matter if another local church nearby has a similar site design to yours? We have to remember that churches don't (or at least, shouldn't) compete with one another. We are part of a kingdom, not a competition.
Here's a similar example of what we're talking about. Football teams don't go competing to lure fans to switch teams because the supporters are normally loyal to their local team. That's why you can look at the English Football Championship League where all the teams in the league use the same template design and just put in their own branding and content. So whereas Nottingham Forest and Derby County are only a few miles away from each other, it doesn't matter that they use the same template for their website! Churches, too, don't have to compete to get people into their churches, so why should it matter that two nearby churches share the same template?
- Can I change my template once its on?
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Absolutely. With surprisingly little difficulty! One of the great things about the content management system you will be using is its ability to seamlessly swap between templates without disrupting any of your content.
This means when you want to freshen up your site, or do a complete re-branding exercise, you don't have to start all over again and pay to have a new site designed and created. By purchasing a new template from us all your content, pages, menus, modules - in fact everything - remains intact.
On-Going Support
- Can you guarantee my site won't get hacked?
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No. No one can guarantee that. But you can do a number of things to greatly reduce the risk of this happening. Sites are normally hacked because programs become out of date leaving your site vulnerable to attack. The best way to counter this is to simply keep the programs on your site up to date. There are instructions within the support forum that show you how to do this.
Another approach is to get us to do all the updates for you. We do offer a 'Website MOT' service which some churches ask us to carry out on their site periodically. It saves them time and gives them peace of mind.
- Do you offer support?
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Once your site is created, you are responsible for its upkeep. This is largely dictated by the fact that it is based on a 'Content Management System' which puts you in control of your site. Having said that, we do offer comprehensive support using a forum which can be accessed by logging into this site. If you do come across a problem, then the solution will most likely be found there. In the case where it is not, you can post questions on the forum which will normally be answered within a few hours.