Written by Hirsch Fishman
Over 5 years ago – and it’s hard to believe it’s been that long – I published a blog post on this website entitled “22 of Best Conservative Synagogue Websites“. I get new synagogue clients telling me all the time that they found that blog post on Google, or that they were looking through the post and liked some of the websites in it.
Needless to say, in that time, web design has changed considerably, particularly with the rise of responsive (mobile-friendly) design, which allows websites to be viewed across a variety of devices (tablets and smart phones in particular) and platforms. And the emphasis within synagogue website designs has also changed from narrow widths and more text to full-widths, large & dynamic photos, flat colors, clear calls-to-action, etc.
In writing this, I looked at over 600 Conservative synagogue websites, and was able to distill them down to the list below of truly modern and outstanding synagogue website designs. All of these, as you’ll see as you scroll through the list, are very modern and designed exactly in the manner I described above.
(As an aside, it’s somewhat disappointing still that 5 years after my original post, where I had noted that a significant portion of the Conservative synagogue websites obviously required a lot of work, that not much has changed and so many are still very outdated. So many of them are missing many of the 18 successful elements of synagogue websites, let alone using a content management system such as WordPress, or giving people the ability to make online donations, or are still using event flyers when they shouldn’t be. On the bright side, this means more potential clients for me.)
So without further ado, here is my updated list of 22 of the best Conservative synagogue websites that I came across, listed alphabetically by state. Websites I’ve designed (and there are 5 of them in this list) are indicated by an asterisk (*).
Valley Beth Shalom – Encino, CA
Sinai Temple – Los Angeles, CA
Ohr Shalom Synagogue – San Diego, CA
Congregation Bonai Shalom – Boulder, CO
Beth El Temple – West Hartford, CT
B’nai Torah Congregation – Boca Raton, FL
Congregation Beth Shalom – Clearwater, FL
Beth Torah – Miami, FL
Southwest Orlando Jewish Congregation – Orlando, FL
Temple Emanu-El – Palm Beach, FL*
B’nai Aviv – Westin, FL
Congregation Gesher L’Torah – Alpharetta, GA
Bnai Tikvah – Deerfield, IL*
Hebrew Congregation of Wichita – Wichita, KS
Beth El Congregation – Baltimore, MD
Chizuk Amuno Congregation – Baltimore, MD*
Congregation Sons of Israel – Briarcliff Manor, NY*
East Meadow Jewish Center – East Meadow, NY*
Congregation Brith Shalom – Bethlehem, PA
Beth El Congregation of the South Hills – Pittsburgh, PA
Beth Tikvah Synagogue – Richmond, British Columbia (Canada)
Kehillat Beth Israel – Ottawa, Ontario (Canada)
Are you from a Conservative synagogue that would like a new website? Contact us today to get started working with us on one!
Hirsch Fishman is a professional web designer who has worked with synagogues and organizations in the Jewish community since 2006. Originally from Albany, NY, he has previously lived in New York City and Chicago, and currently resides in Raleigh, NC.
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