Case Studies

Wharfedale Vineyard is a strong church attracting many visitors. They developed a system in collaboration with us that brings everything into one place, simplifying their administration and communication. This has had a decentralizing effect,  empowering their leaders and avoiding the bottlenecks that would have restricted growth.

Who are you?

I'm David Wallace, one of the General Leadership Team at Wharfedale Vineyard, with responsibility for communications.

Tell us about your church

The church has about 300 people. Our main activities are worship, teaching, equipping leaders, a place to know and be known in house groups, faith expression for all ages, and reach out activities.

Why did you choose Insight?

In 2006 I did a survey of possible Web Site solutions for our church. I did a 30-day trial of Insight and was very impressed with the speed to get something up and running. I did also have a long list of features I wanted that were not available, but after discussion with Endis, found workarounds for enough of them to go for it and make the transition. We now have over 900 active pages and all our admin records on the system.

How has Insight improved your communication?

A single system of records in one place simplifies and eases church administration and reduces the hassles around miscommunication. We have one list of people, so no one gets left out of emails - we used to have a separate email list management system that was always getting out of sync. We have one web diary, so diary clashes can be seen immediately.

We use the system to create a news email every week which almost entirely replaces the notices and notice sheets in conventional churches. We are now much clearer and up to date on who is part of the fellowship. All the effort now goes into the content of the communication not the technical mechanism.

This must have had a big impact on your organization?

It has allowed us to become more decentralized, empowering leaders to communicate and reducing any sense of central control by the office.

Has it made running a web site more efficient?

Distributing the authorship to the leaders of the many ministries has removed the previous bottleneck where one volunteer (me) was spending unreasonable amounts of time preparing web pages using Microsoft Frontpage and hand-coded php. Now lots of people write pages for the web site.

What are your favorite features?

Publisher - everything becomes a news item. Forums - very popular, with prayers being typed online for current needs, ‘offers and needs’ (with a record of 9 minutes for meeting a need!), and lots of chat that adds another dimension to our community. Mailing distribution - every week. Membership Management - including things like child protection admin.

Do visitors like your web site?

Almost every visitor (and we get lots every week) has delved into the web site already. They are intrigued, they feel that they know what they are coming to.

Hertford Community Church is a small community-based Pioneer church who do not have the time, training or money to waste on IT or complicated systems. Insight just works for them, providing a central point of information and administration for the whole church and helping them to be found by the wider community.

Who are you?

Jo Wood, Core Team Leader at Hertford Community Church.

Tell us about your church

We are Hertford Community Church, about 60 people in size, being a church that is relevant to the local community.

How did you come across Insight?

It was recommended to me by a friend who picked up literature at Pioneer Leader's Conference. My first impressions of the system were that it is very helpful and comprehensive.

What sold you on the Insight system?

Insight is simple to understand. So much of the hard, technical stuff is done for me.
The features that we use the most are the calendar, the address book, and the front page for news.

Has Insight made running your ministry easier?

Our web site is now a central point that everyone can access to find information, print off documents, keep up to date - as opposed to endless emailing of information round everyone. It’s improved our communication and administration by making it all simpler and providing a centralized focal point that everyone is familiar with.

Has it attracted visitors for you?

People have found us by googling the church name and finding the web site – which provides them with information and contact details.

St. Andrews is a large, established Anglican church who knew that they needed a web site that could help them to manage efficiently their staff and large congregation. Their Insight Web Site, built around a database, has become invaluable for organizing all that is going on, as well as drawing in new visitors.

Who are you?

William Pearson-Gee, Curate at St. Andrews in Oxford.

Tell us about your ministry

We are a large Anglican church with some 1,300 folk who attend.

What did you do for a web site before?

Our website was DIY and only one person could update it! Our database was very limited and could only be accessed on site from one PC. Insight is a quantum leap for us.

You’re a large ministry – yet you came across Insight through a tiny one?

A friend who went to the USA to plant a church emailed me a link to his web site that was very impressive for a tiny church that I knew only had a few folk attending. I compared his web site to ours and knew that we didn't have any excuses for falling so far behind!

What do you like about Insight?

It is incredibly well thought through and easy to use. The database is invaluable to our ability to work efficiently. Things are now more organized, information is easier to access and people are better informed.

What features do you use the most?

We use the mailing from Web Office, we use rotas for every activity and of course the Web Site to advertise activities.

Has Insight transformed your communication?

Vastly! Our communications are much improved and rotas have saved us time chasing folk up. We try and send e-letters out every month and no one has opted out from receiving these so we know people like being kept informed by email.

And staff and visitors are happy?

Staff make use of the database and mailing facilities. Visitors have been attracted to us by what almost everyone comments is an 'amazing' web site.

Fitzroy Presbyterian Church in Northern Ireland is a strong church who wanted a web site that could be evangelistic at the same time as supporting their members. Our ‘Audiences’ feature allows just that, and they have been impressed by the impact that Insight has had on their community.

Who are you?

Kerry Nicholson, Fitzroy Presbyterian Church

Tell us about your church

Fitzroy Presbyterian Church is a church of about 100 families based in South Belfast, Northern Ireland. We are an evangelical and reformed denomination.

How did you come to be using Insight?

One of our elders heard about Insight and commissioned Endis to create our web site. I was brought in when the initial web site was about to go live to be the administrator. I subsequently came to Cambridge to do the 2-day training course on how to manage the web site.

What were you looking for in a web site?

Our church were keen to have an up-to-date presence as an evangelistic tool and as a way of supporting our membership. We used to have a one-page website that we forgot to update all the time!

What were your first impressions of Insight?

I was VERY impressed. It is SO much MORE than a website with the database of contact details, groups, queries, audio and video, etc. I don't think we are using a tenth of what is possible on our web site!

Which feature is the most valuable to you?

Being able to upload our weekly sermon is great, for starters. This seems to be the most popular part of the site at the moment.

What impact is Insight having on your ministry?

We now have a presence on the web which we didn't have before enabling us to make contact with others. It is bringing our members closer together in that it is offering a vehicle/forum for discussion that we didn't have before.

Has it improved the way that you run things?

Communication has improved in that we can check what is happening over the coming weeks through the calendar. Before we relied on our announcement sheet. Now we have a greener alternative! Members of groups now get email reminders when they are about to be required for a duty. Previously some forgot! The web site is also a support for the church secretary in that people can check the website rather than ringing her all the time!

Living Waters is a medium-sized Assemblies of God church. They claim that their church has grown since using Insight, due to better access to information for both members and newcomers. The leadership have been helped by the control that they have had over their web site, and how easy it is to run.

Who are you?

Peter Cavanna. I am the Pastor of Living Waters, a church in Cambridge.

What sold you on Insight in the end?

I heard about Insight about four years ago. A friend who also has an Endis site recommended it to me and encouraged me to join up. Initially, I did not like the style - many of the Insight Web Sites are too ‘newsy’ - too much information on them and perhaps too much marketed for a Cambridge student reader. But I realised that I could do my own thing with it.

So you like it now?

There is so much scope. Pages can be added all the time, changes or corrections made instantly and we can add audio files, which we couldn't do before with our old system. We update the homepage all the time with the latest news. We also use the email rota system every week and being able to upload the church services is invaluable.

Has it had an impact on your ministry?

Our church is bigger. People are able to access information so much easier, and because of the audio files, people can get a good taste of our church before they arrive or think about joining.

Has Insight improved your communication and administration?

It allows us to email all the church members usually on a weekly basis with news. Special events can be highlighted and we are able to get our message across better and to a wider audience. The church stewards and worship team are able to receive a reminder email that they are rota-ed for that particular Sunday or event and that is excellent. Once I have put the rotas into the system there is no further need to telephone people about duties or personally remind them. The system does it for us. Very useful. It also contains a cyber address/phone book of members, allowing us to obtain that information wherever we are (home or office or even away) which was not possible before.

Do your members like it?

We have ‘hidden’ pages for members, allowing them to access more sensitive information (like financial records), etc.

Would you change to another system?

I would keep using Insight because, frankly, I am in control of it and able to make changes or additions as I please. In that sense, it is user friendly to people like me who don't know anything about websites or html, etc.

St Augustine’s is a tiny Anglican church with a large mailing list for the popular international events that they run. Using a sophisticated and reliable mailing system has been essential for keeping their communication both simple and effective.

Who are you?

Nicholas Vesey, the Vicar of a small Anglican church.

Tell us about your ministry

We are a small church of twenty-five people with eight hundred people on our mailing list for events and courses.

How did you find MinistryInsight?

I first heard about MinistryInsight through Keith Morris at Network Norwich, and my first impressions of the system were that it is great.

What features do you use the most?

Posting articles about events (publisher) and mailing groups about events.

Where does MinistryInsight do it for you?

We have developed our mailing list from two hundred to eight hundred and run three events with international speakers. We need the ability to communicate to others directly (mailing etc). With MinistryInsight, the emails go individually, therefore not into spam boxes. It has changed the way our organization works and improved our administration by simplifying communication.

St Paul’s is a Medium sized Anglican church in East London who found the switch to Insight easy, and using the new system to be just as straightforward. It has taken pressure off their central office, empowering others in the church, and simplified their administration.

Who are you?

I am Julie Castledine, an administrator and Events Coordinator at St. Paul’s Shadwell.

Tell us about your ministry

St Paul's Shadwell has approximately 200-300 users. We are a medium-sized local church in East London.

How did you first hear about Insight?

I was given details by my Vicar who had heard about Insight through another church plant.

Was it easy to start using it?

I was very impressed with the ease with which we were able to get up and running and incorporating Insight into our working life in the office. It's better than what we used before in that it is so easy to pick up and learn to use effectively.

What do you use Insight for?

It's our main base of database information on the life of our church members and imparts information to the wider community. The feature we use the most is the publisher – you don't need to be a web designer or engineer to give out information.

Has it impacted your communication or administration?

Insight has definitely made it easier to communicate via the web. Mailings to our congregation ensure that they are up to date with all that is happening in the life of the church. Administratively it has helped to have one central database rather than hundreds of spreadsheets and documents.

So it has made life easier for both administrators and ministry members?

It's enabled easier access to information for both staff and members. Rather than having to contact the church office and rely on the admin staff to constantly give out information, it has taken the pressure off in that we are able to enable different parts of the church, and the groups within the church, to manage their own information. For example, each Pastorate/Home Group manages their own page and keeps their membership up to date thus cutting down on the work for the admin staff.

Hinde Street is a medium-sized Methodist Church running a large social organisation in the centre of London. They needed a web system that could cope with their complicated membership structure. They are impressed by the features and continual development of ChurchInsight, and how it has helped them to send out a consistent message across the Internet.

Who are you?

Giles Wilson – working for a Methodist Church in central London. I’m the publicity officer, which has become officer for the web site now that we use Insight.

Tell us about your ministry

As a big church in central London we have an extremely complicated membership structure, which operates a social work outreach unique in Methodism. Hundreds of people are allied to the organisation, but it's about 100 people who are the active members.

What drew you to MinistryInsight?

I came across MinistryInsight through looking at other churches' web sites. My first thoughts were that I was massively impressed, and have been more impressed the more I’ve used it.

You seem really impressed!

There's no reason to stop using MinistryInsight. It would be impossible to find anyone offering a comparable service, but it's not just inertia. I'm most impressed that you are thinking all the time about how to improve things - this is real service and I feel you are constantly trying to make it better and easier.

What features do you enjoy using?

Email newsletters are one of the main areas of activity for us, and they are much easier to send now. It used to take a bit of nerve, particularly without the “test email” function. Other features that we use the most are podcasts and rotas. Podcasts have enabled us to reach out to people who don't come near the church except once a year perhaps.

It sounds like you now have more control over your communication?

We are now sending a consistent message through the web - before it was a question of crossing your fingers. And we have much more of a focus on stray information requests - they are treated much more attentively than before.

London City Mission is a busy ministry working with churches in the capital. With IT experience they wanted a system that would be fast, efficient, secure, easy to change and compliant with Web standards. MinistryInsight has ticked their boxes, and moved the focus of their administration from paper to the Internet.

Who are you?

Derek Camfield, I’m the IT Manager for London City Mission (LCM).

Tell us about LCM

London City Mission exists to share with the people of London, patiently, sensitively and individually the transforming love of God in Jesus Christ, and to enable them to join his Church. We do this in many ways e.g. church-directed outreach, community outreach centres and cafes, workplace chaplaincies, schools work, ministry to the marginalized (e.g. to homeless people) compassion ministries (e.g. to care homes), ministry to ethnic and social minority groups.

What were your first impressions of Insight?

I came across Insight a few years ago in a circular letter from the Managing Director of STL. I was surprised that a Christian organisation had such a leading-edge product which seemed to be ideally suited to our requirements.

What do you need to do your job well?

I am responsible for all the IT and also the web site. The only way I can do this is with a stable, easy to use content management system. Where possible I can also delegate some of the updating to others in the organisation. The features that we use the most are creating new groups, creating and updating web pages, and uploading media.

What do you like about Insight?

Insight is very easily configurable, with many tools to speed up work, excellent security, the search facility is amazing, and triple A compliance with disability requirements is a great feature.

How has Insight improved the way you work?

The focus has shifted from paper based documents and publicity to web based materials. And it has made our communication with our supporters more immediate and up-to-date. By also using the site as an extranet we are relying on it to greatly assist our emergency plan.

Who has benefited from using Insight?

Our staff use the web site as a central resource of information. Members have access to a range of facilities which contribute to a much greater sense of community. Visitors have vastly more information at their finger tips before they contact LCM.

St Matthew’s and St. Oswald’s are two Anglican churches working together and sharing a web site. ChurchInsight has not just transformed their administration, but brought their churches closer together. They are finding that new people now find them on the Web first.

Who are you?

Martin Saxby, the vicar of St. Matthew’s and St. Oswald’s in Rugby.

Tell us about your ministries

We use the MinistryInsight Web System for two churches: St. Matthew’s and St. Oswald’s in Rugby. We have around 200 active members on the web site with a database including many more. We have around 10 staff using the system.

What do you make of MinistryInsight?

When I first saw it I was very impressed with the power and flexibility of both the web site and the Web Office. MinistryInsight is a good platform for our web site and an essential tool in our administration. We couldn’t live without it!

Is it better than what you used before?

Yes, in a number of ways. It has a more professional look. It is great for integration, for example the database can be used by everyone. And many people can use it in different ways. 

What features do you use the most?

The features that we use the most are the web site, mailing, rotas, calendar, adverts, media files for people to download … but I’m sure we are still missing much that we could do.

How has it impacted your ministry?

We now have greater efficiency and coordination - Insight has become a unifying factor through our shared use of the system. It is much easier to communicate now. Staff, members, visitors have all benefited.

How have visitors benefited?

This week 25% of the people attending a Welcome Evening came through first visiting our web site!