Ever wonder why using Facebook and/or Twitter for your church would be a good idea? Or what in the world would you write about if you set up a Facebook page? Or what if I start using Twitter and someone posts something negative about our church? There’s a webinar on The Network that will help you with these and many other questions.
This week I want to recommend an excellent webinar to you, called “Why Give a Tweet?” presented by Jerod Clark of Church Juice. Jerod gives you a very practical, thoughtful approach to best practices with Facebook and Twitter.
Some of the things Jerod talked about that stood out for me are:
- 65% of online adults participate in Facebook. This goes along with another thing Jerod noted: Many of your members are already on Facebook. With so many people already “living” there, it sure seems like it makes sense for churches to meet them there.
- When you participate or decide not to participate in social media, it says something about the church. It says you either are a part of that online world, or you aren’t.
- It’s about relationships. Kind of ironic, isn’t it, that the main point is that social media is about relationships, when usually we hear how social media takes people away from their relationships with others. But with social media you can immediately start a conversation, and build a relationship from there.
- Figure out your overall communication strategy. Decide where you’ll communicate what - bulletins on Facebook? Prayer requests? Group communication? You might find it useful to decide on a schedule, e.g. bulletins posted on Friday, prayer requests on Wednesday, and so on.
There are many other useful tips and best practices in the webinar. Take a few minutes to listen (and view the slides) and you’ll see!
Comments
I like it Mavis. I've been a social media geek for some time now and have not only deepend my relationships with some of my parishioners -- especially the youth, but we've connected into our community with our church Facebook page. There aren't many on Twitter here where I live, but I follow many of the movers and shakers in the area of small groups and ministry. I've taken the time to repost them on Facebook for others to see. It is a very valuable tool for connecting people too.
Thanks for this excellent resource. One of the better things I've read recently about the value of Twitter in ministry comes from Pastor Keith Anderson, Praying the Manhunt on Twitter. Far from simply a tool for pushing out information or recruiting members, Anderson uses the incident of a manhunt in his community to explain how he was able to practice the craft of ministry during a highly stressful time for all using Twitter.
Martin Davis
Thank you, Allen and Martin, for your comments. It's great to hear actual experiences from those of you active in Twitter. What a powerful story, Martin, of your use of prayer during the manhunt in your community. Isn't it amazing God can be present in the virtual world, too?
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