Jim Walton
Whatever is next
Social Media Team At Church
We have a social media team at church and we are learning a lot. I’m not aware of many churches tapping into this form of communication, but one thing we have learned is that it is not so cut and dry. There are many elements and layers involved in this world.
We have created a Facebook group where we offer suggestions on things to post on Twitter and Facebook about an upcoming series. We are also using SMS shortcodes as another way to connect. Ultimately, this is all intended to draw people in so we, as a church body, can connect with them.
Initial results are not huge, but I am encouraged with what we have done so far. We went into this with nothing to gauge our results against, so in my opinion, any and all results are good. Each connection is a person who potentially does not know Jesus and we are reaching them in a way that we could not have otherwise.
Is there value in this?
Are people being connected with the church as a result of this effort?
What is your church’s experience?
Love the idea of technology helping people find Jesus. I’m all about it. I love how Craig once said something like: to reach people who haven’t been reached, we have to do things no one has done. I think that’s so true. I know FB and twitter are a wonderful tool for telling people about church.
The most valuable thing I see here is that your church is working on a strategy for social media. That is 100% further along than many other churches. I have taught several classes on churches and social media and the #1 point I make to these churches is this:
“As long as one member of your church has a social media presence, you are involved in social media whether you want to be or not.”
A simple FB or Twitter post by a member, positive or negative, about your church or ministry puts your group’s name in the social space. The mistake I see many churches and ministries making is that they try to control the discussion about them in the social space. Given the dynamic of social media, you cannot control what is being said. What you can do is participate and respond (appropriately) to what is being said and most importantly – be available for interaction.
The social space is not a place solely for your group to broadcast – it is a place for interaction. If you are going to be in the social space, then be there. Create dialog and useful information (FB Events, information, contact paths, etc). Using social media ineffectively – irregular posts, not responding to queries, not updating information regularly, etc – is more damaging than not being involved at all.
Thanks for the great topic Jim!