Do not create church digital experiences without consulting others in your church. This sounds simple enough, but it happens all too often. The web team changes the website and the address on printed material is no longer valid. You also need to ensure the opposite does not happen. Your youth ministry leader may start a social media account without anyone else knowing. Here are a few tools for keeping lines of communication open and flowing.
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Tag: Social Media
Breaking Down Silos: Digital Experiences
Visitors rarely visit just one of your digital platforms. They might start on social media, then move to your website. A member might get an email newsletter, and proceed to a landing page to sign up for an event. They should move between spaces with ease and without interruptions. Breaks in that process will confuse and possibly turn away potential members. Here are several ways to remove those silos for your church’s various digital experiences.
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Navigating Dangerous Digital Spaces
Mission workers often find themselves in dangerous situations and places. In fact we find that responses to the Gospel are quite plentiful in the midst of adversity. This is true in the digital world as well. Some digital spaces have a reputation for helping us sin. The Internet has many pits waiting for us. From pornography to dating sites specifically made for having an affair. Yet the opportunity to reach people is too great to ignore it. Here are a few places your church could shine a light into.
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Six Social Media Content Types for your Church
The biggest pitfall churches fall into with social media is posting only event announcements. Of course you want to let your followers know about your upcoming spaghetti dinner. But those kinds of updates is not what it is all about. I discuss six types of content you can post to your website, social media, and email newsletters. Done well, they should drive traffic and increase engagement.
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Church Social Media like a Cyborg
Cyborgs are science fiction characters that are primarily human, but have robot parts. They usually have the emotions of a human, but the physical strength and speed of a machine. This is how you need to run your church’s social media campaigns. Some aspects need to show the human emotions of the people in your church. Other aspects are automated by a computer to allow for better productivity. This balance is what your church should strive to achieve.
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Integrating Digital Platforms
Take a moment to consider all your church’s digital assets. They most likely include your website, social media, search engine ranking, mobile apps, and church operations. They are not entities to keep separate. Digital platforms are everywhere in your church. The better news is that they can often share and exchange information. Here I will encourage you to better integrate your digital platforms to grow your church and reduce resources.
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Text and Images: Combining Artforms
Your website and social media campaigns can learn from architects. Their craft is a mix of engineering and art that mirrors web professionals. There is a reason the most effective social media posts follow this principle; photos with overlayed text. You should see an example of this above this very post! Telling churches to just add text to a photo is easy advice. This article will explore the many combinations of these two art forms that can yield great results. Yet, I wanted to take the time to dive deeper into this tool and see where there is room to expand.
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What Numbers Matter
Numbers and statistics matter for your digital ministries. Numbers can mean dollars spent, people reached, conversions made, and attendance increased. Yet some numbers matter more than others. Some numbers tie directly to the goals of your church while others just make us feel good. This article will help you make sense of the many statistics your digital spaces provide.
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Curating Empathy on Social Media
Show empathy when publishing content to your digital platforms. Failing to do so can result in problems that range from humorous to downright offensive. It is easy to schedule posts for your website and social media channels. Yet I caution you to review your posts before they go live. Add a personal touch that will prevent mistakes and add authenticity.
Online Telephones Vs. Megaphones
Do your website and social media posts sound more like a megaphone or a telephone? Megaphones are devices to communicate with the masses. Yet they lack that personal touch. What can your church do to have more interactions that resemble a telephone? Read on and find out how to make your content connect on a personal level.
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How Your Church Can Use Social Media Marketing
Many social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter started out with no solid business model. They were homegrown startups dreamed up by people who wanted to enable something amazing. Soon millions of people engaged with each other via these outlets. To create a sustainable business model, it became a “pay to play” world for businesses. In this article I will discuss what this new realm of social media marketing is. I will explore what types exists, and what your church can do to get the most out of them.
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A Social Media Sabbath
Churches want their congregation to use social media to promote their sermons and events. Some even post special hashtags to encourage you to share without hesitation. While “live tweeting” during a message can be beneficial, some think we need to take a break. This article will outline situations where a break from social media may be quite beneficial.
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