Church members, as well as non-church goers, can all be found on Social Media. Indeed many businesses invest a lot in social media because essentially that is where their customers are. In the same way, churches are finding congregations of people on Social Media, both members, and non-members; and therefore have the opportunity to share the gospel of Jesus Christ more widely.
As discussed in the free report you received, understanding the platform, language and audience attracted by each platform are all vital factors to knowing where to set up. One such platform which I have found to be wholly misunderstood is Twitter.
Many churches start on Twitter and give up, with many more churches not considering it at all…but the Bible says that “my people perish for lack of knowledge”, a well-known proverb also says that “when a purpose is unknown, abuse is inevitable”.
With that said, churches should consider Twitter before condemning it, especially if their target audience is there or they (seek to) serve a ‘younger generation’ church (like Millennials) who are more likely to be found there.
So aside from sharing bible scriptures and quotes, what are some of the other ways that Twitter can be used as part of your social media strategy?
One great way is to get church members and congregations to be more active in sharing posts and retweet church content before, during and after events and conferences, especially youth programmes. This is better managed and monitored when hashtags are employed and members are committed to supporting the campaign leading up to the programme as well as sharing highlights, pictures, testimonies and other relevant content after the event.
Tweets by church members can then be retweeted by the church, and equally church tweets retweeted by church members. Discussion and even Twitter Chats can take place to raise awareness and interest for these events. Churches can also leverage trending hashtags and subjects which are relevant or which they can provide valuable information or insight.
Finally, in this age of live broadcast, Twitter also has the option to go live. Why not showcase behind the scene clips like rehearsals, venue preparation, evangelism before the event, or a special message from the leaders or special guests?
With these simple steps, Twitter starts to come alive, appeal to the target audience and become more relevant. As with all things Social Media, effective management with a dedicated manager will enhance efforts on Twitter.
I’d love to hear from you, how are you using Twitter effectively in the church space?
Comment in the section below.
