Tag Archive for: CMS

536 – Training Techies: Church Management Software

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February, designated as “training techies” month on WELSTech, continues as Martin and Sallie are joined by Peter Frank of Concordia Technology Solutions to discuss church management software. Their picks of the week have a Google theme including timers and calendars, and there’s some great community feedback.

The discussion:

Working with the church database – An important function of the church (and school) office is maintaining information on members and prospects. This is typically done using a database with a special name … Church Management Software (CMS). Most CSM solutions allow for multiple users to enter data, which is both a blessing and a responsibility for those who oversee the CSM. Martin and Sallie share tips for maximizing the effectiveness of the volunteer’s work in the CMS.

The interview:

Peter Frank from Concordia Technology Solutions shares insights on working with volunteers and Church Management Software. Peter heads the team behind two popular CMS tools – Shepherd’s Staff and Church360º Members & Ledger.

News in tech:

WELS now:

Upcoming Men of His Word Conferences

Picks of the week:

Ministry resources:

Concordia Technology Solutions Resource Center

Community feedback:

Featured video:

New this week from the Concordia Technology Solutions YouTube channel is The Value of Tracking Church Attendance (and How to Do It!).

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 537 – Tune in for tips on equipping members to be church social media ambassadors. Release date: Wednesday, February 21.

Get involved:

362 – Pastor Tech Part 1

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This week on WELSTech the results of the Pastor’s Tech survey are revealed. What new tools will you find intriguing? Sallie shared resources from her upcoming “Going Google” Teachers’ Conference presentations and Martin shares the power of the weekly review.

The discussion:

pastorsTechSurvey145x125The survey says – Martin and Sallie share the first of the results from the recent Pastor’s Tech survey including favorites from the Bible Study, Productivity/Planning, Member and Prospect Management and Presentation resources categories.

News in tech:

Ministry resources:

Tips & picks of the week:

WELS insider:

Need to know:

  • WELSTech Conference 2015
  • iPhone 4 donations needed for Malawi

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 363 – Making God supreme in your productivity is the topic of part 1 of What’s Best Next by Matt Perman. Read along and tune in next week for the discussion.  (Broadcast date – 10/14/14)

Featured videos:

This week’s featured video is part of the WELSTech Music YouTube playlist, Praise You (Obi’s Song).

 

Get involved:

354 – A Smarter Office

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Join WELSTech this week for a conversation about data management software for the church and school office. Martin shares his experience with remote control software, and listeners share comments and questions.

The discussion:

box 145x125Managing Church and School Data – In the dog days of Summer 2014, the WELSTech Wiki Migration series continues as Martin and Sallie discuss church, school and childcare management software.

Tech tips:

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

Did you know … Presenters at WELSTech Conference 2015 (wels.net/welstechconf), July 9-11, 2015 at Country Springs Hotel and Conference Center in Pewaukee, WI attend for FREE?!! We’re currently looking for presenters and tech topics of interest for our breakout sessions. Give it some thought and submit your ideas!

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 355 – We continue our tour of the church and school office with a look at hardware and software, productivity techniques and electronic giving on our next summer wiki migration special episode. (Broadcast date – 08/19/14)

Featured video:

This week we introduce the new WELSTech Product Demos YouTube playlist, and we’re seeding it with not one, but two, useful demo videos:

 

 

Get involved:

348 – What’s Up With Social?

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On this week’s WELSTech episode we share ideas to enhance your church or school social media presence as well as platforms for programming church and school web sites. Sallie has a behind the scenes tour of Google’s new Classroom tool and Martin shares a “how to” guide for Google Hangouts.

The discussion:

socialCMS145x125Web platforms – Martin and Sallie continue the migration of WELSTech Wiki content to the new WELSTech Wiki with a focus on social media tools and content management systems.

Tech tips:

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

Episode 349 – Martin will be flying solo as he highlights the great webmaster tools and tips for web content available on the all new WELSTech Wiki. (Broadcast date – 07/08/14)

Featured video:

From the new Instructional Playlist, watch Rule of Thirds from Adorama Photography TV

 

Get involved:

243 – 7 Best Webmaster Resources

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This week on the WELSTech Podcast we countdown the 7 best webmaster resources.

The discussion:

A patriotic salute to webmasters  – Martin and Sallie celebrate the 4th of July with a countdown of the best-of-the-best tools for creating great web sites.

7 Best Webmaster ResourcesWebmaster Resources

  1. Kuler by Adobe
  2. Stock Photography
  3. PicMonkey
  4. Embed content
  5. RSS
  6. Code
  7. Content Management System (CMS)

Coming up in August … 7 Best Ministry Gadgets

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(39:11) Episode 244 – The WELSTech Summer Software Showcase returns, and we look at 5 ministry uses of the popular video hosting site Vimeo. (Release date – 07/11/12)

The featured artist:

(39:46) We close the podcast with the music of Stephen Bautista (www.stephenbautistamusic.com or stephenbautista on Twitter) – Grace Beyond My Need

Get involved:

242 – Summer Software Showcase: Schoology

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This week on the WELSTech Podcast the discussion covers the education management platform Schoology.

The discussion:

Learning Management – Martin and Sallie shine the Summer Software Showcase spotlight on the online learning management system Schoology.

Visit the WELSTech demo course by logging into Schoology

Ministry Uses

  1. Classroom course management
  2. Catechism class
  3. Online Bible study
  4. Study and faculty groups
  5. School communication

Picks of the week:

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(26:47) Episode 243 – Celebrate Independence Day with Martin and Sallie as we count down our latest 7 Best list.  This month we focus on the best webmaster resources. (Release date – 07/04/12)

The featured artist:

(27:58)  This week we close the podcast with the music of Kevin Loersch – When Love Is Found 

Get involved:

212 – Schoology

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It’s education technology week on the WELSTech Podcast as Martin and Sallie welcome back Gail Potratz and discussion Schoology.

The discussion:

Classroom Meets Facebook – Gail Potratz, Technology Director at Emanuel in New London, WI, joins Martin and Sallie for a discussion of Schoology, the web-based course management system that looks and feels a lot like Facebook but has classroom specific privacy with student, teacher and parent access.

The interview:

(14:53) The Voice of Experience – Gail talks with Beth Sanders (MsSandersTHS on Twitter) from Birmingham, AL about her use of Schoology in her 1:1 Social Studies high school classrooms.

News in tech:

(42:10) Black Friday & Cyber Monday

Picks of the week:

WELS.net feature:

(51:33) Streams Seasonal Radio

Of interest:

(52:50) Mark your calendars for streaming Christmas concerts

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(57:04) Episode 213 – Jason Jaspersen shares his web site dedicated to liturgical art resources, and Martin and Sallie revisit the weekly blogging challenge. (Release date – 12/07/11)

The featured artist:

(58:14) We close the podcast with the music of Revelation, a music ministry of Wisconsin Lutheran College (www.revelationwlc.com) – A Voice Cries Out from the CD titled “Led By The Light”

Get involved:

178 – April Showers: Webmaster Resources

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This week on the WELSTech Podcast the “April Showers” series kick-off focuses on all aspects of web site creation.

WELSTech Webmaster Shower

The discussion:

Raining Resources for your Web Site – Across the 3.5 years of WELSTech archives you will find discussion of a plethora of webmaster tools.  Today Martin and Sallie share all you need to set up and maintain your church or school web site in one (long) list!  Enjoy the rain!!

Ministry resources:

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(48:22) FinalWeb Training in New Ulm, MN and Milwaukee, WI

  • FinalWeb for Teachers in New Ulm on June 27 and Milwaukee on August 1 – bit.ly/fw4teachers
  • FinalWeb for Dummies in New Ulm June 28-30 and Milwaukee August 2-4 – bit.ly/fw4dummies

Community feedback:

  • (49:10) On the LinkedIn In the WELS group discussion boards, the topic of video production was raised.   WELS video designers include
  • The WELSTech listserve had lots of chatter related to the legalities of using member and student photos on congregation and school web sites.  Check out the archived conversation on the WELSTech Wiki.  Thanks to Mike Plocher, Director of Technology, from St. Paul’s Lutheran School in New Ulm, MN for sharing their Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act document.
  • Following up on our Office 2010 podcast, Martin is researching further Microsoft pricing for the Office Suite.  Watch for updates at ShopWELS.net.

Coming up on WELSTech:

(55:30) Episode 179 – Get ready for an “April Shower” of Bible teaching resources.  (Release date – 04/13/11)

The featured artist:

(56:50) We close the podcast with the music of Dawn Michelle Williams (www.dawnmichellewilliams.com | Twitter | Facebook | My Space) – Beautiful Savior from her CD titled ”Inspirations”

Get involved:

131 – How’s Your Website Looking?

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This week on the WELSTech podcast we talk web design and hear from long-time listener Perry Lund about his Joomla church web site.

The discussion:

  • Graduation and Call Day season has arrived – If you can’t be there in person, plan to tune in to the special services via live video stream.  All events except the MLC Graduation Concert will be broadcast on WELS Streams – wels.net/streams/live.
    • Martin Luther College
      • Graduation Concert – Friday, May 14 at 4:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. via the Chapel of the Christ uStream Channel – ustream.tv/channel/mlc-chapel
      • Graduation – Saturday, May 15 at 10:00 a.m.
      • Call Service – Saturday, May 15 at 2:30 p.m.
    • Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary
      • Vicar Assignments – Tuesday, May 18 at 7:00 p.m.
      • Graduate Assignments – Thursday, May 20 at 10:00 a.m.
      • Graduation Concert – Thursday, May 20 at 7:00 p.m.
      • Graduation – Friday, May 21 at 10:00 a.m.
  • Web Design – What message does the look of your church or school web site convey to those who visit for the first time?  Listen as Martin and Sallie share ideas to improve your site design including color choices and CSS tweaks. WELSTech listeners can even take a sneak peek at two new FinalWeb templates!

The interview:

Perry Lund(20:30) Joomla at Grace – Perry Lund, lay member and web developer from Grace in Oskaloosa, IA, chats with Martin and Sallie about the development of their church web site, Grace-WELS.org, on the Joomla Content Management System (CMS) platform.

News in tech:

(41:00) Skype Video Conferencing

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

  • (50:25) WELSTech is going on a virtual summer Road Trip to all 12 synod districts, and we want to visit your church or school to learn about the tech-in-ministry solutions you are using to further your gospel ministry! Contact Us to schedule your stop on our travel itinerary.
  • FinalWeb Training in Milwaukee, WI and New Ulm, MN

Community feedback:

Coming up on WELSTech:

(1:04:03) Episode 132 – Pastor Steve Bauer joins Martin and Sallie for “Macs in Ministry” week on WELSTech. (Release date 05/19/10)

The featured artist:

(1:05:03) We close the podcast with the music of Wisconsin Lutheran College’s Revelation music ministry (www.revelationwlc.com) – Three Men on a Mountain from their CD titled “Once For All”

Get involved:

  • Add a comment below
  • Send us an e-mail [email protected]
  • Leave us a voice mail 405-FOR-WELS (405-367-9357)
  • Add to the WELSTech wiki welstechwiki.wels.net
  • Contribute to the #WELSTech Twitter conversation
  • Follow us on Twitter – mspriggs and welstechtrainer
  • Use the del.icio.us tag welstech
  • Use the diigo tag welstech
  • Join the WELSTech community:

122 – Social Networking Show and Tell

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This week the WELSTech podcast discussion centers on the use of social networks to further the spread of the gospel.

The discussion:

Ministry Is Social – Martin’s recent Social Networking and Ministry presentation at a Minnesota pastor’s conference is the topic of the day.  Use the link above to follow along “Prezi-style” as he and Sallie discuss the appeal and flavors of social networks and some interesting examples of the use of Facebook and Twitter in ministry.

The interview:

Jason Tesch(21:50) Team Effort – Jason Tesch from Eastside in Madison, WI joins Martin and Sallie to share the story behind their polished church web site.

Ministry resources:

(37:45) How to Build a Facebook Page from Mashable

  • More on FBML (Facebook Markup Language)
  • Check out the new FBML-enabled WELSTech tab – set to be the landing page for “non-fans”

Picks of the week:

Of interest:

(44:46) Join Martin in Saginaw, MI for FinalWeb for Dummies. The three day face-to-face training will be held April 6-8 on the campus of Michigan Lutheran Seminary.  Check out details and register at bit.ly/fw4dummies.

Community feedback:

  • (46:39) Jason Schmidt from Gethsemane in Omaha, NE shared links to …
  • Ryan Rosenthal from Faith in Fond du Lac, WI shared a link to The Periodic Table of Videos
  • Coming soon to WELSTech in response to a request from Pastor David Ernest, MLC’s Prof. Jim Grunwald will join us to share info on the new Certificate of Educational Technology program that kicks off this summer.
  • John Shoosmith from Redeemer in Yakima, WA continues to refine the awesome Closed Caption Video resources on the WELSTech Wiki.
  • Steve Mathwig from St. John’s in Oak Creek, WI asks about minimum upload bandwidth for streaming live events.  Martin suggests 384 kbps or greater.

Coming up on WELSTech:

(52:57) Episode 123 – Join us on St. Patrick’s Day as WELSTech “goes green” with ideas for eco-friendly churches and schools including tips from Office Depot representatives. (Release date 03/17/10)

The featured artist:

(53:58) We close the podcast with the music of The Branches Band (www.branchesband.com) – Nothing But The Blood from their CD “Sing, My Tongue”

Get involved:

  • Add a comment below
  • Send us an e-mail [email protected]
  • Leave us a voice mail 405-FOR-WELS (405-367-9357)
  • Add to the WELSTech wiki welstechwiki.wels.net
  • Contribute to the #WELSTech Twitter conversation
  • Follow us on Twitter – mspriggs and welstechtrainer
  • Use the del.icio.us tag welstech
  • Use the diigo tag welstech
  • Join the WELSTech community: