As a minister, church board member, churchgoer, etc., you may wonder why your church would need to market itself on social media or even if it should. Churches are often apprehensive about using social media for fear of becoming too worldly. But the reality is social media is an incredible tool your church should use to outreach with and find new visitors or members.
Do you recall the concept in the Book of James about faith without works being dead? Well, your church’s social media is somewhat similar! Creating a Facebook page for your church is not enough, you must utilize it!
Think about it, social media will be the FIRST place several people find your church for the first time, especially millennials! Your church’s social media is all about meeting people where they are and creating relationships; that is a huge part of what ministry is all about!
Five things your church can do to make its Facebook more effective:
- Post Consistently: The first and most important step to an effective Facebook marketing strategy is to make consistent posts throughout the week. Your job is to get your audience to start expecting your posts.
- Post Pictures: Social media is a visual medium, so post pictures and post them often! Post pictures ranging from things such as children’s ministry events, bible study or home groups, community outreach, to holiday services and more. The goal is to show your church’s culture. But do not stop at just posting pictures, you can also post memes, motivational images, images of scriptures, and other photos related to your ministry.
- Advertise Events: Let your congregation and visitors know about your churches upcoming events. When people visit your Facebook page and see the upcoming events your church is holding, it will create excitement and a sense that things are moving and shaking at your church. Let people know when your services are, classes, bible studies, home groups, outreach events, holiday parties, and other fun events!
- Post Sermon Replays: Posting videos or recordings of your church’s latest sermons or messages is a great way to connect with people. First, it gives people a chance to experience the sermon if they were unable to attend your service, and second, it gives potential visitors insight into what your church’s beliefs are. It also opens up the door for further conversation that is usually not able to take place during actual services. Invite your congregation to check out and comment on your Sermon Replays with their thoughts.
- Share Volunteer Opportunities: Ever complain that you can never find enough volunteers for your church’s events or services? Well, are you posting these opportunities on your social media? If not, then that is a major reason why! You will be surprised at how many people are willing to volunteer, so long as they actually know about your church’s volunteer needs!
Pro-tip: There are often many things to cover during church services; to keep announcements from taking too long, posting info such as volunteer opportunities (and more) on your social media is a great way to save time and bring traffic to your page!
Create a Facebook Calendar
Creating a calendar to pre-plan and keep track of your monthly Facebook posts will end up saving you a lot of time and hassle in the long run! Apps like Hootsuite will allow you to schedule and post updates for you, so you never have to worry about it throughout the month! Keeping a calendar, also keeps everyone who is helping with your social media stay on the same page.
Pro-tip: It is also beneficial to share other community events, parades, drives, clean up days, etc., to show your audience that you are involved in the community.
What is the heartbeat of your church?
Whatever the heartbeat of your church is, let it be known! If your ministry has a special heart for Homeless outreach, Adoption/Foster ministry, World Missions, or anything in between, you should make that clear on your social media!
When in Doubt: If you ever reach a point where you are not sure what to post on your church’s social media, simply post some scripture! Posting scriptures that are related to a recent service or something your church is doing can be extremely relevant and impacting.
TAKE ACTION:
If your church would like the Branning Group to help with its social media marketing, fill out the form below or call us at (661) 946-0888