A practical look at your website from a visitor's point of view
When we look at a parish website, we are trying to understand a simple question: how well does it serve the people who come looking for your parish?
For many people, your website is their first introduction. They may be looking for service times, trying to find your address, wondering what to expect, or simply asking whether this might be a place where they can begin.
Our evaluation is meant to help you see what is already helping people and where a few improvements could make the biggest difference. It is not an award, a ranking of parishes, or a judgment about your worship, parish life, or faithfulness. It is simply a practical look at what a visitor can find, understand, and use on the public website on the day we review it.
What we look at
Works
First, does the website work for the person who needs it?
We look for the basics that help someone use the site without frustration: readable pages, clear navigation, a site that works well on a phone, reasonable speed, and basic accessibility. We also look for service times, contact information, an address and directions, a clear Orthodox identity, secure access, and current public information. We want to know whether someone can find your parish by name and quickly get the practical information they need.
Works has up to 15 core points.
Welcomes
Next, does the website welcome someone who is new?
We look at whether the opening of the site gives a clear sense of who you are and speaks warmly to someone unfamiliar with the parish or Orthodox Christianity. That includes a clear first impression, authentic parish photographs, an easy-to-find invitation to visit, useful first-visit information, and a clear place to learn about Orthodoxy. We also pay attention to what the main navigation communicates: its most prominent invitations should help a visitor worship, visit, learn, and connect.
Welcomes has up to 10 core points.
Connects
Then, does the website help someone take a real next step?
We look for clear, low-pressure ways to ask about Orthodox Christianity, request prayer, arrange a face-to-face meeting with someone from the parish, plan a first visit, and encounter trustworthy Orthodox teaching on the homepage. A general contact form alone is not an invitation to meet. A good next step does not pressure someone. It simply makes the path clearer.
Connects has up to 5 core points.
Shares
Finally, does the website point people toward the parish's wider public presence?
Shares is a bonus category. We look for direct, working links from the parish website to official parish Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok accounts. These channels can extend a parish's public witness, but they do not replace a clear and dependable parish website. We are not judging how often a parish posts, how many followers it has, or the quality of every post.
Shares has up to 4 bonus points.
Looking at the whole visitor experience
Can the visitor discover, understand, trust, visit, and connect?
Not every person follows that exact path, and not every improvement carries the same weight. This question helps us notice where a visitor may be getting stuck and where an improvement could make a real difference.
What this evaluation does not tell you
A website review cannot measure the spiritual health of a parish, the quality of worship, pastoral care, community life, attendance, or evangelistic fruit. It also cannot guarantee search ranking or replace a full accessibility review. It reflects only what an ordinary visitor could see and use on the public website at a particular time.
A dated snapshot, not a permanent judgment
Websites change. Links break, service schedules move, new content is added, and helpful improvements are made. That is why each evaluation is a dated snapshot. If your website improves later, a new review can show that progress without erasing the earlier record.
Our hope is simple: that the evaluation gives you a clearer picture of what is already serving people well and helps you focus on the next improvements that will make your website more useful, welcoming, and connected.