Get Your Church Noticed Blackburn diocese

MYTH: Media aren't interested in the Church

FACT: They are, but their definition of 'news' might not be the same

MYTH: Media is anti-Christian/anti-Church

FACT: Media is pro-little guy, anti-big guy

DIALOGUE: two-way communication, not one-way broadcasting

IMMEDIACY: happening in real time, no time lag

NETWORKS: depends on our network of friends, who we trust more

• FACEBOOK PAGE: public face of your church. Can share photos & information, invite people to events. Appears in people's 'news feeds' when they 'like' your page
• FACEBOOK GROUP: members-only, closed group by invitation only. Discussion among congregation, prayer requests
• TWITTER FEED: Share photos & information, 140-character limit. Everything is public
• YOUTUBE CHANNEL: upload short videos of church events/activities

STRATEGY

Decide priorities

Do market research

Ensure consistency

LOGOS

Communications team

Sometimes the medium is the message. How you say it can be more important than what you say

GENERAL PRINCIPLES

• images, not words
• stories, not events
• symbols, not abstract concepts

BUILDINGS

What does your building say about you?

Closed or open?

Intimidating or welcoming?

Rooted in ritual or informality?

Old-fashioned or modern?

Cold or warm?

Full of junk or untidy?

Providing spiritual resources or not?

PRINCIPLES

NOTICEBOARDS

Book published by

Church House Publishing,

November 2014

Get Your Church Noticed

Neil Pugmire, communications adviser

Church of England Diocese of Portsmouth

PARISH MAGAZINES

POSTERS/LEAFLETS

100 Ways To Get Your Church Noticed

• People like to read news
• People like to read about other people: use faith stories; people stories to publicise events
• People like to see photos of other people
• People like to read about local things
• Need to be more proactive
• Encourage your editor to edit

JESUS

HOW ARE WE VIEWED?

1. Set up a communications team to decide on priorities

6. Decide the kind of identity your church wants to have and create a suitable logo

10. Keep your building open during the day

14. Redesign your church's entrance or foyer to make it look more attractive

26. Revamp your noticeboards to suggest a more vibrant congregation

20. Create a prayer guide to help people engage spiritually

36. Produce a welcome pack with essential information about church activities

50. Produce well-designed posters with attention-grabbing images, fewer words and more colour

54. Ask your congregation to subsidise the magazine as a form of outreach

57. Encourage your editors to edit

58. Include stories of faith from your congregation

60. Revamp the design of your parish magazine

61. Improve the production of your magazine

62. Create a more effective distribution system

67. Recruit someone to report on good news in your church

68. Learn to write press releases that will be used

74. Create a church website or update your existing one.

77. Put spiritual resources on your website so web users can engage with their spirituality at home.

78. Offer to pray for people's individual needs.

79. Look at web streaming of digital video images showing church activities or services on your website.

82. Learn to use social media to promote your church

83. Create a Facebook page or group for your church

85. Create a Twitter feed for your church

86. Create a Youtube channel for your church

Image is most important thing: keep words to a minimum

Use colour where you can

Print professionally for big events: 500-1,000

Use posters in people's homes, workplaces, cars, plus libraries, shops & community centres

MEDIA LIAISON

How did Jesus communicate?

What is our

He knew his message

The gospel?

'Church is fun, not dull?'

'We care about our community'

Healthy Church, Transforming Community

OR....'Please join us - but only on our terms'

'We want your money'

• Traditional
• Establishment
• Old-fashioned
• Safe
• About buildings
• For the literate
• Middle-class
• Declining

What is our

He knew his audience

What is news?

Press releases

Why bother with the media?

The congregation

People living in our parishes

Tourists

Visitors

Those who use your church/church hall

Specific group over-represented in your parish (students/over 50s)

People not like us!

To keep the rumour of God alive

Restore a balanced perspective

To correct misconceptions

To have our say about issues

• Something local
• Something new
• Something out of the ordinary
• Something capable of being visual
• About people, not events

• Do it in advance
• Think about who, when, what, where, why & how
• Avoid jargon (or explain it)
• Keep it short
• Include quotes
• Photo opportunity
• Include contact numbers
• Send by email
• Follow it up

He used different methods

for different groups

Being interviewed

Media crisis

Bible studies by podcast,

Church of the Good Shepherd,

Crookhorn

Find out about media outlet

Live or pre-recorded

Prepare three things to say

Have a conversation/smile!

Avoid jargon

Call to action

Ask them to read back quotes

Manage the crisis, not the media

Phone diocesan communicator before the media call you!

Agree a statement:

Compassion: for victims

Control: what safeguards in place

Commitment: what will change

All media directed to one point

Stick to what you've prepared

He used stories, metaphors

and images

WEBSITES

OUR AUDIENCE?

Non-churchgoers:

basic information about location, style of worship, children's groups, heritage, weddings/baptisms/funerals

Churchgoers:

private area/bulletin board for discussion

& prayer requests

DESIGN

EXTRAS

Responsive website: suitable for mobiles/tablets

Use a template: Church Edit/Wordpress/Django Church

Software: who will update it and how?

Image-based: large photos on each page

Simple text: Minimum number of words on each page

Easy navigation system: fewest clicks to get to where we need to be, only add pages if vital

Share-ability: share pages via social media

Podcasts/audio: sermons

Videos: edited two-minute snapshots of church life

Email updates: keep in touch with us

A Church Near You: you are already online!

SOCIAL MEDIA

CONTENT

Basic information: what services are like, activities for different age groups, events

'Seeker' material: what we believe, why do we worship this way, stories of faith from congregation

Ask questions that outsiders are asking: toilets, parking, postcode, creche, noisy children, what to wear

Interactivity: prayer requests, ask questions, book church hall/session with vicar, sync Google calendar, tour of church

Photos: address misconceptions

Keep updated: don't just add PDFs of weekly leaflet...

Why use social media?

But...

Not magic way of solving publicity problems/reaching young people

Requires constant attention: instant medium means people expect instant replies

Another way for people to complain. Dealing with complaints graciously in public says something about you

PEOPLE RESPOND TO...

WHAT SHOULD I SHARE?

1. Announcements about events/activities

2. Links to your own web pages (including

'vicar's blog', faith stories from congregation)

3. Links to other people's web pages (retweet/

share items of interest)

4. Photos/videos from your events/activities

5. 'Backstage' photos/preparations

6. Ask for people's opinions about faith &

respond to them

7. 'Live-tweet' an event/activity

8. Use Periscope or Facebook Live to share video

9. Suggested prayers

Being first with great content: stories about people, images, video

Emotional engagement: humour, injustice and empathy. Vocabulary of social media is emotional, not rational

Discussion: your thoughts are important. We aren't preaching at you

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