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3 church social media tips to encourage engagement
Mark MacDonald Religious CommunitySocial media is a required communication channel for churches. It's free to set up, which is great — and almost your entire church membership is already on it! You only have two things to do: get your congregation to "like" your account on each of your platforms and then keep them engaged so that your posts enter their feeds, which are all controlled by the platform's algorithm. Easy? Not really. Once you have followers, here are three tips that will encourage engagement to affect the algorithm and allow your audience to see more of your content.
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New year, new initiatives: How to set up for success
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityWith a new year comes the sense of a fresh start. We’ve wrapped up the holiday season, got some rest, and are getting back to the office this week. As we begin the year, your church may have several projects in the queue. Facility maintenance, software changes, new equipment installation, or perhaps a new building are all possible projects. As you prepare to launch these initiatives, consider these tips for setting the team up for success from the start.
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5 tips for Christmas volunteer success
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityChristmas services and outreaches require more volunteers than the typical Sunday service. From more people serving in the parking lot to handing out hot chocolate and candy canes, you’re going to need a few more helpers to pull off an amazing Christmas event. Here are a few tips for making this year’s volunteer experience incredible for everyone involved.
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5 things your end-of-year letter must communicate
Mark MacDonald Religious CommunityI get it. You're trying to remind your congregation that it's the end of the year and you would love to be the recipient of their end-of-year donations above and beyond regular tithes. So, you put together a letter or an email and send it. Here are five things you must effectively communicate if you want the right response.
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8 tools to be thankful for this year
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityThis week, those of us in the United States will gather around the table for a Thanksgiving meal. As we prepare the turkeys, mashed potatoes, and way too many desserts, here are several resources I'm thankful for this year. We can use these tools to share the Gospel, save time, and be more effective as we minister in our communities.
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5 ways to avoid the TL;DR curse
Mark MacDonald Religious CommunityOn social media, we love to use fun acronyms or abbreviations to state the obvious for the masses. If something is humorous, we use LOL. I could list dozens of these. It's faster to post a few letters and have everyone quickly know the longer meaning. Social media even has one that sums up this thought: TL;DR (too long; didn't read). We often overspeak or overwrite, and people think "sorry, TL;DR." Once that feeling hits them, it’s too late. This isn’t just social media content, either — it’s content during a sermon, in a handout, on a webpage, announcements, and even in emails.
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How to plan for your Christmas guests’ next visit
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityWith Christmas coming soon, your church leadership team is probably working on plans for special services. As you focus on trying to attract first-time guests, it's easy to overlook how to get them to come back after the holidays. In order to follow-up with them, you'll need to figure out a system on how to gather their contact information. Here are a few suggestions on how to do that.
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5 ways an event planner makes events more successful
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityHosting events involves a great deal of details and coordination. You'll need to decide on the date, time, theme, location, and whether to charge a registration fee. You'll also want to make sure people know about the event. Then, there's the task of getting volunteers signed up to help with the event. I could go on, but you get the point…there's a lot to do to pull off a successful event. An orchestra without a conductor doesn't make for great music. The same principle applies for a church staff trying to pull off an event without an event planner.
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5 social content ideas for every sermon
Mark MacDonald Religious CommunityChurch communication is not all about the tools. It’s more about content. Your church needs to regularly build content that engages your congregation and attracts your community when they are considering a local church. How does someone in a church communication role do that? That’s the issue. A sermon is a piece of important content that should be extended as part of your church's social strategy. Here are five ways to repurpose a sermon on your social channels to encourage engagement and attraction.
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A vital component to hosting impactful church events
Deborah Ike Religious CommunityHosting events can be a great way to minister to and serve people through your church. However, events can take a significant toll on your budget, staff, and volunteers. Fortunately, it is possible to reap the benefits of hosting events without the extra stress or expense. How do you do it? Plan in advance. In fact, I recommend a year out. No, I’m not saying you need to create a detailed to-do list a year ahead, but at least decide which events your church will host for the year.
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