The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Text Messaging

Text Messaging for Your Groups

Modern life is dominated by the internet, social media, and smartphones. At times this fact can be overwhelming and may even feel discouraging for church leaders. Ministry has a long tradition of face to face and spoken-word commu-

nication that can seem at odds with today’s emphasis on digital communication.

In spite of this idea, many churches have found ways to capitalize on and thrive in the face of our society’s increasing focus on “virtual” communication. Churches are able to effectively communicate a great deal of information-driven mate-rial through channels such as websites, tweets, and email. However, churches are much more than just information-driven organizations. Congregations also serve as fellowships of faith and community, and sources of support. When viewed through this relationship-driven lens, the most fitting and also most under utilized form of communication that church-es could be using is text messaging. In contrast to other forms of web and social media, text messaging is experienced as personal, immediate, and convenient.

Communication is a challenging responsibility for churches. Going beyond the oral messages delivered on Sunday, there is still a lot of information to communicate to different segments of a diverse body of members. There is a need to balance

information-driven material with relationship-building messages intended to enhance the church community. Think about all the ways you reach out to your church community, and consider the following five communication challenges.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

One key challenge is the assurance of information being received by all individuals. In addition to tradi-tional channels of communication, today’s churches are distributing information in digital newsletters and bulletins, email, and social media. But this only gets information halfway there. These mediums still re-quire the recipients to come to the information. Peo-ple have to actually check their email, visit the church website, or by chance see the message posted on social media. Surprisingly, these mediums still leave some people uninformed and saying, “I didn’t know about that”.

A second key challenge is information overload. To-day, people are bombarded with an excess of informa-tion, and their attention is divided. When your mes-sages are delivered amongst the noise of email, tweets, and posts, you risk that an intended recipient will miss the information that they should see. When a broad communication channel is used, will those who tru-ly need to take in the information be able to do so? What a difference it would make to be able to get the right content in front of the right people? For exam-ple, what if only those on the annual picnic committee could be reminded directly of the planning meeting, or what if only those who volunteered to serve in the nursery received a personal reminder about the monthly schedule?

A third key challenge is that there are certain types of information that simply must be sent and received quickly. Urgent information such as weather emergen-cies and cancellations can be posted on Facebook and/or emailed, and you can get a few people to start con-tacting people directly to spread the timely news. But

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

there is little assurance that all persons are reached. If the youth group’s van was delayed on the way back from their weekend retreat, how would you go about notifying the parents/guardians? How time-consum-ing and stressful it is when you are contacting each parent/guardian individually.

A fourth key challenge (and also an opportunity) in churches is the diversity of its members and the need to communicate the same information to all members at the same time. Churches are composed of young and old, those varying in income, etc. It is possible that some members may not have regular access to a computer and/or may not be familiar with Facebook or Twitter. When messages need to go out to all mem-bers, it is important to have a mode of communication that is accessible to as many members as possible. Some people would still prefer a phone call.

A final challenge in communication technology is the “barrier to adoption”. If you are going to employ a new communication tool, how much of a burden will you put upon your members in order to use the new tool? Must they use a computer? Must they install an app? Do they need to create an account of some sort? Do they need to join a website or social media site? Will people need instructions or training? If you are going to ask everyone to do something, the barriers and ob-ligations should be very low for them. If it is easy for them to “get on board”, you will have high success in people adopting your new tools.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Among all the modern communication channels available, the most overlooked, underrated, and underutilized of all is the simple text message. Text messaging can be used to augment existing communication channels, and can address the

challenges of delivery assurance, information overload, timeliness, access, and adoption.

But why text? Is it even relevant? Yes, it is! It turns out that mobile texting is one of the most common forms of digital communication today, thanks to the widespread nature of mobile phone ownership. A staggering 90% of individuals in the US have a cell phone. (Note that texting works on plain cell phones too, not just smartphones!) And the demo-graphics of who owns those phones is quite inclusive. For example, 74% of persons 65 or older have one, or 84% of those with less than $30,000 income do too.* Furthermore, texts have a 95% read rate. These stats speak volumes regarding the reach and power of texting as a form communication.

The prevalence of cell phone ownership also speaks to ease of adoption as a communica-tion medium. All you need to directly reach a person is their phone number. They don’t need a smartphone. They don’t need to install any apps. They don’t need to create any accounts. They don’t have to use Facebook or Twitter, or sign in, or remember any pass-words. According to a Pew survey, texting is the function most commonly used by people on their phones.** The infrastructure for texting is already deployed -- it is already in their pocket or purse, just waiting for you to utilize it.

* http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/mobile-technology-fact-sheet/** http://www.pewinternet.org/2013/09/19/cell-phone-activities-2013/

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Communicating by text has qualities that are dis-tinct from other digital communications. First, it is sent directly to the individual -- all the way to their

person, not just halfway to an account somewhere. The person doesn’t have to sign in anywhere, or go check their messages. When a text arrives, a notification appears on their phone, above any apps, and the person is alerted to its arrival.

Phones give text messages priority only because texts are short. The entire message can be presented all at once to the person, immediately, and directly. This is why texts have such a high read rate -- they are so short it’s hard not to read them! This is also why text trumps any other com-munication noise that surrounds us. All of this makes a text message the perfect vehicle for alerts with urgency, or any other timely information. People get texts immediately, and they actually read them.

A text is personal. People use text to communicate with those close to them. When people hear the sound of a text, they want to know who the message is from; there is an-ticipation and a positive expectation. There is a sense of personal attention and connection with texting because there is not an account to visit or a message to open--the words just appear and they are meant for you. We generally receive texts from people who care about us. What better mode of communication then for a caring church commu-nity? Texts can be used not only to send out information, but also for reaching out to members with inspirational bible verses, encouraging quotes, and prayer requests. Texting is a way of staying connected, growing your rela-tionships, and making your members a stronger part of a community.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Our mission at SendTree is to help organizations send texts to groups, and we strive to have the best texting tool available online. We have taken the complexity out of text messaging technology, making it simple and approachable for any organi-

zation. We have also structured our pricing so that churches on a budget will get the best value possible. (Our basic plan is $9/month, and texts are 3 cents each.)

How does SendTree help you send texts? We start by giving your church a local phone number, for your exclusive use. You simply tell your members to text the word JOIN to this phone number, and they are added to your list. To send out a message to your mem-bers, you visit sendtree.com/send, type your short message, and click send.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Of course SendTree is full of other features too. If you already have phone numbers of all your members, you can simply upload your list.

You can also organize your contacts into groups -- as many as you wish. This allows you to send messages only to the youth group, or the choir, or everyone, as appro-priate.

Have a calendar of events? You can sched-ule them in advance to go out at just the right moment. Simple reminders can make a huge difference in attendance -- we’re all busy people and a little nudge helps us show up! And it reminds us that you care that we show up!

SendTree also integrates with Twitter and Facebook. There’s no reason to waste time copy and pasting the same messages to social media channels. Simply check the box so that your message will be posted on Twitter or Facebook too.

And what about those folks who might like a voice message rather than text? Yep, we can do that too. You can record your own voice over the phone, or let our “robot” voice turn your text into speech.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

By using text messaging, SendTree can help you actually reach people directly, and where they already are -- on their mobile devices. A simple text message can make all the difference in getting more people engaged and attending. It can take your

relationship with members to a new place, giving them direct, personal messages from someone they trust.

Do not ignore the facts. The research conducted by Pew reveals what we already suspect: people are on their mobile devices and text is the most commonly used function on their phones. These mobile devices are already in their pocket, willing and waiting for your message to arrive.

Give yourself this challenge: Ask your church members, “Would you like to be getting texts from your church?” We think they’ll welcome you to this communication medium with open arms.

Have more questions? Contact us here: http://sendtree.com/contact-us

Want to see more pricing information? http://sendtree.com/pricing

Want to experiment with some real messages? http://sendtree.com/create-accountWe’ll even give you $20 to test with.

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Text Messaging: The Unsung Hero of Church Communications

Text Messaging for Your Groups