For many community and religious centers, a website can be the most important tool to engage and inform the community. However, many of these organizations neglect their web presence – it’s not often that you’ll think of a synagogue website as an example of effective design and development. Media Components was excited to turn this thought around when we were approached to redesign the website for Ohev Shalom, a Bucks County synagogue with a congregation around 700 affiliated with the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.
Media Components re-designed the site from the ground up, starting with the secure solid foundation of the WordPress content management system (CMS,) which, in addition to being flexible, powerful, and search engine optimized, allows the client to easily edit pages themselves without having to know any code. In Ohev’s case, Rabbi Perlstein can add his D’var Torah Sermons to theblog without having to know any HTML code, or having to go through us to get his updates on the site. This enables more direct communication between the staff and the congregation at Ohev Shalom.
Design-wise, the new website is much more open and easy to navigate, with every page listed in the drop-down menus at the top of every page. Handy contact and social media links also line the top edge of the website, putting everything that the visitor would want to do just a few clicks away. Upcoming events (easily updated as well) are shown right on the front page as well, and link to a full calendar of events.
We think the new design will prove very helpful for the staff and visitors alike, and make the website an even more useful tool for the congregation in the years to come. Check it out today!
