If your church could make free public announcements to thousands of your own members’ friends, would you do it? If there was a simple way to help members and guests feel more connected to your church, would you use it?
DavisSmall and large churches across our nation successfully use a Facebook organization page. I interviewed several of them to collect tips to help your church get started:
Begin well. Study other churches’ pages for ideas. Use simple tips from Facebook’s help section to create your church organization page. Then ask church members and guests to “like” (join) so posts display on their newsfeed.
Keep it short. Want posts to be read? Keep them very brief. Give basic info to ignite interest and provide a link to the church website for more details.
Add a graphic. Attract more readers by attaching your church logo, event logo, a photo or graphic to posts.
Post regularly. Consider allowing several leaders or members to post. Two or three posts per week would be desirable.
Keep it positive. This is no place for whining. Positive posts convey the emotion and reality of true fellowship and confidence in God.
Connect. Announcements help readers feel connected with the church. Tell about the upcoming events, classes and ministries. Communicate weather cancellations or disaster relief.
Develop a relationship with the reader. Be authentic and encouraging. Tell the story of God at work. Encourage readers to comment or add photos to create interest.
Use video clips. Professional video isn’t necessary; a flip camera will do. Video one- or two-minute clips of members sharing life stories about God’s power. Introduce an upcoming sermon series, peek into a youth event or show senior adults quilting.
Different groups, such as a Bible class, worship team or youth group, could have another Facebook page for communication.
Wait just a minute. Before submitting a post, re-read carefully to check tone, grammar and spelling. It represents your God and His church, so do it very well. Pray for God to use it to touch lives, then hit “post.”
Why not give it a try? A Facebook organization page may help your church share the story of Jesus!
– Davis is a columnist, speaker, and author of “Deacon Wives” and “Fresh Ideas for Women’s Ministry” (B&H Publishing). Read more at www.keeponshining.com.