What if your church or school wanted to make some fairly major changes, like the ones mentioned in the title? For church, it might be about service times, or adding a contemporary service. Maybe you've even tried that, and then gave up after a year when nobody attended. Communication and promotion are both important when it comes to big changes. One of the best ways to run an effective organization is through transparent communication: "This is what we are doing and why we are doing it." The pastor or principal SAYING it to the 30% of church members or parents who regularly show up might work. Posting it as part of the newsletter that maybe half read also can help. A website is just another tool for this kind of communication, and while it might not reach a higher percentage, it's always there, and it could reach different people (like those who rarely attend or are contemplating attending). 

The Lutheran school where my wife works made many changes in one year, including the home visits, block schedules, and a summer reading assignment. Most of the changes were mentioned on the website, and some were explained more than others. Of course, it was still difficult for parents and students to accept all the changes, but the website at least helped with some of the transparency needed to smooth the transition. 

As an aside, if you want to see what my wife came up with for the home visits, check out this article. The LCMS districts (and other Lutheran schools) were not transparent when it comes to home visits, maybe since most schools have abandoned the practice, so Lisa had to create her own lesson plan of sorts. And that's an added layer to consider with big changes: explaining it to the staff. If you suddenly buy a new website from Luthernet and then don't let anyone else know how to use it or why it made sense, there might be ome grumbling, even if it's a good idea. 

Websites can even be used to test out good ideas. For example, our last church needed some kind of contemporary service, but it never was done quite right, and very few people fully bought into it. A simple survey of those most likely to attend would have made the top-down decisions made seem a bit more collaborative, and the changes that took months to figure out would have been suggested from the beginning. Of course, this also could have been accomplished with a simple suggestion box, but multiple tools can really help. Oh, in case your church does not have a suggestion box, here's my suggestion: try that out, and see if anyone suggests a new website.