eCatholic Year in Review 2023

Reflecting on 2023 to endow inspiration and new beginnings.

Another year has come and gone, and sometimes, it seems like the impact from updates and improvements made throughout the year are only fully realized when taking a look through the rearview mirror. As I reflect on 2023 and all that our team has accomplished, I’m proud to say that you and your mission remain at the core of what we do and is the purpose that propels us into a new calendar year!

So, let’s begin 2024 by first reflecting on where we’ve been and what was accomplished in 2023. With new and improved services and abounding updates to our products, it’s clear that last year featured a lot of “launching” - all with the intention of helping you engage and evangelize more effectively.

Stellar updates for eCatholic Products

It’s always a joy to realize that incremental progress leads to monumental feats once the end of the year arrives. As we aimed to fulfill your needs and requests throughout 2023, we’re proud to share just a few of the client-focused solutions to our products.

1

Websites

We believe your website is the bread and butter for connection with your flock. This year, we introduced the intuitive Preview button, which saves precious time during the day as you ensure links and other customer-facing web pages work as expected before you publish a page. Plus, one-click calendar subscribing allows your members to “sync” your website calendar to their own personal calendar app. These updates are sure to keep your flock well-informed, even if the details change after your first publish.

Learn More: Explore eCatholic’s website tools

2

Online Giving and Payments + Forms

The most significant addition to eCatholic Online Giving in 2023 was the ability to take a test drive of the Donations module! If you’re curious about our online giving tools, simply drag and drop the Demo Donations module onto any interior page of your website. From there, you can explore its basic and advanced features and even make test donations.

And, if you’re already using eCatholic for online giving and payments, don’t forget about Recurring Donation Recovery, which notifies admins and donors immediately when a recurring gift has failed. Eliminating the need to chase down failed donations provides smooth sailing for bookkeepers in 2024.

Learn More: Explore eCatholic’s online giving and payment tools

3

Church Management Software

We’re constantly exploring how you utilize our Church Management Software (ChMS) for better internal administration. Updates to our ChMS abounded for improved personalization and filtering to ensure your whole staff is on the same page.

Two new features added to the ChMS in 2023 were the much anticipated Funerals Tab (within member records) to input and track Funeral details and the Member Explorer screen, which gave way to easier maintenance of information of individuals.

We were also delighted to introduce new functionality to the My Layouts and Actions items menu within the Families, Committees, Fund Raising, and Religious Ed modules. Improvements were also made across the board to your Mail Labels functionality so you can access it from more locations in the ChMS.

 

Launching New Tools and Services that Inspire

Our team is your team, and at the heart of every new service or offering, our goal is to make sure you have phenomenal support and services on every step of the journey to improve your day-to-day operations. We added a few new offerings in 2023, and here’s a short recap of each one.

1

Giving Success

With the addition of an eCatholic Success Manager to our growing team, it was finally time to launch the Giving Success program in 2023. This program was a totally reinvented service available to any eCatholic Online Giving clients for no additional cost. The end goal of this completely complimentary service is simply to help your Catholic organization transform regular members into more intentional financial contributors to your mission.

Learn More: Explore Giving Success and Sign Up Today

2

eCatholic Resource Center

2023 saw the dawn of a new and centralized location for education and updates about your eCatholic products! We introduced the eCatholic Resource Center to your Website and Payments Center, and it includes shortcuts to eCatholic Help Articles and step-by-step teaching guides to help you learn quickly and unlock your potential!  

Learn More: How to Use the eCatholic Resource Center

3

National Eucharistic Revival Collaboration

One of my favorite moments of the year was announcing our collaboration with the National Eucharistic Revival team to bring custom-made NER modules that integrate directly into your eCatholic website. Revival doesn’t happen overnight, so anything that we can do to help bring resources and information out to your members is a win for everyone! 

Learn More: Watch our webinar announcing the collaboration and our Revival resources

Free resources that help you build a better website

One thing that will never change at eCatholic is our commitment to free resources that teach, motivate, and inspire you during your digital journey. We had a few highlights from 2023 that will continue to provide a boost to your tools in 2024.   
 

1

Google Analytics 4 (and other GA updates!)

Google Analytics is one of the most popular technologies among our clients that is integrated into eCatholic websites. When Google announced that 2023 would be the year for upgrades to their Analytics tools, we knew just how to help with the changes at hand. 

Our team provided an excellent webinar resource that outlined the upcoming changes and updates to the inner workings of a (sometimes) overwhelming tool. Plus, we made sure to update and add some additional blog posts to ensure your transition was smooth, all for the benefit of understanding your website visitors better.

Read More: 

• Blog Post: Updates to Your google analytics Account
• Blog Post: 3 Common GA4 Problems and How to Fix Them

2

Online Giving & Payments-focused Resources

This year, our Payments team built numerous resources on how to use eCatholic online giving tools to encourage generosity among your Catholic community. A handful of amazing webinars and blog posts offered simple insights and creative solutions to round out any fundraiser, campaign, or season of giving in which you find yourself. 

discover More:

• Webinar: Tips for a Successful #GivingTuesday
• Webinar: End-of-Year Giving Strategies
• Blog Post: Use eCatholic Payment Tools for Your Ministries

3

Website Design Inspirations and “How-To” Blog Posts

The design of each eCatholic website reflects the parish, school, or ministry it represents - but that doesn’t mean you need to do the designing alone. We loved utilizing our blog in 2023 to showcase elite sites to help inspire ideas for you to take your site’s design to the next level! Plus, in an exciting webinar this past year, we aspired to show you how to complete a DIY Homepage Makeover for an eCatholic website in 30 minutes or less! Did we pull it off? You’ll have to watch the webinar to find out!

Discover More: 

• Webinar: Refresh Your Homepage in 30 Minutes (or Less!) 
• Blog Post: Examples of Creative Website Navigation Through Custom Designs
• Blog Post: Fresh Website Examples to Inspire Your Own Team
• Blog Post: Best Catholic websites of 2023 

Do not be afraid!

Every year, I am humbled and amazed at how much further our products, services, and technology reach in helping you connect and engage your own communities. As we listen to your stories and prepare for the upcoming year, I’m reminded of some inspiring words from one of my favorite saints (and eCatholic’s patron!), Pope St. John Paul II: 

As you continue on your journey in 2024, know that we will be there to support you as you utilize your website and other tools to share Jesus Christ in the digital space of the “modern metropolis.” Cheers!