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Social Media Ministry 101

Presented by Greg Swan

July 16, 2012

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With You Today

(that’s him!)

@gregswan@webershandwick

@smshepherds@perfectporridge

@smshepherds

#smshep

www.socialmediashepherds.org

Social Revolution is Old News

Social impacts every organization, whether secular or religious

Social is woven into our daily habits

Embrace change.

"This world of ours is a new world, in which the unity of knowledge, the nature of human communities, the order of society, the order of ideas, the very notions of society and culture have changed and will not return to what they have been in the past.” - Robert Oppenheimer

(1963)  

Communication revolutions are NOTnew to the church

15221450 20121382

CC @SF Brit

CC @FUMCPC

CC @ambientphoto

CC @sjmaxson

Who cares? I’m interested in ministry, not

gadgets. Real ministries don’t use social

media.

42%of churches actively

use Facebook

20%use social tools in church

management software packages

LifeWay Research, 1/2011

2%use a church-specific

package like Cobblestone, Unifyer, or The City

40%of churches do not use any social networking

tools.LifeWay Research, 1/2011

More than 17 million non-churchgoers visited the website of a local church or place of worship in the past 12 months.

Grey Matter Research, May 30, 2012

What if that was your church or ministry organization?What did they find?

Did they come visit?

Did you ask them if they visited your website?

CC @ Frank Gruber

How frequently do regular churchgoers (who are online) visit their own congregation's website?

• 28% In the last 30 days. (21.5 million adults)

• 44% In the past six months. (34 million adults)

• 57% In the past year. (44.8 million adults)

• 32% Never. (Or no website.)

Grey Matter Research, May 30, 2012

How frequently do non-churchgoers (who are online) visit the websites of places of worship?

• 2% In the last 30 days. (1.6 million adults)

• 10% In the past six months. (10.6 million adults)

• 16% In the past year. (17.4 million adults)

Grey Matter Research, May 30, 2012

What people do on websites of places of worship:

• Check to see the times of services: 43%• Check what activities are offered: 29%• Look for a map or directions to the church’s location:

28%• Watch streaming video: 26%• Listen to streaming audio: 26%• Check to see what the church’s religious beliefs are:

22%• Request prayer: 18%• Downloading a podcast: 15%• Checking what denomination or group the church

belongs to: 15%• Send a message to the pastor or leader: 12%• Post on a bulletin board or forum: 5%

Grey Matter Research, May 30, 2012

Changing Nature of Church Communications:

1. Same Gospel

2. Parables =

storytelling

3. Marketing is

necessary

4. Technology shifts

happen

5. IRL still critical

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Social media is about ENGAGEMENT, not selling

Goal: strengthen relationships with your

audiences and build your reputation

Tone: friendly, not too formal

Add value: provide news, ideas, drive

conversation

ROI: establish measurable goals

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Be RELEVANTAUTHENTIC TRANSPARENT

CC @ J. Strife

We have limited resources…

How can we be all things to all people?

You can’t.

Be what your ministry needs you to be. Prioritize.

For example, ask:

How are people finding your church or ministry organization?

CC @I am I.A.M.

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

How are people finding your church?

For example, ask:

What is the online experience like for our visitors before they even walk in the door?

1. Website easy to find, relevant information

2. Online maps, directions3. Social sites welcoming,

populated4. Engaged membership socially

CC @ Loren Sztajer

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5W’S TO SOCIAL MEDIA MINISTRY…

WHY: Build your brand and forge stronger connections with audienceWHO you want to reach with social media

– Congregation, Youth, Unreached

WHERE you want to reach them– Your website, social media

channels, theirs or bothHOW you want to be represented

– Tone of communications– Voice: ministry rep,

spokesperson, volunteer

WHAT you want to share…

CC @ amanky

Whose job is social media in ministry?

1. Leadership: establish vision

2. Church/Org: set policies

3. Communications team/lead: set tone, manage channels, recruit volunteers

4. Everyone else: check-in, tweet, take photos, blog, share

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Think YOU Don’t Have Enough To

Share? Think Again!

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• Church/Ministry news and facts• Financial information• Details on upcoming events, live stream links• Photos and recaps from events• Details on community, campaigns and

contests• Positive news from members• News on missions, outreach and partnerships• Links to media stories• Prayer requests• Responses to questions or comments• And, of course, the gospel (sorry that’s last)

Lastly, a plea to start thinking about mobile…

• 50%+ - US mobile users will have a smartphone by the end of next year; highest 25-55, then 18-24 (eMarketer, April 2012)

• 63% -- U.S. adults now access the Internet through a mobile device like a cell phone, laptop, e-reader, or tablet (Pew, April 2012)

• 58% -- Smartphone owners use geosocial and location-based services, like maps, Yelp, Foursquare(Pew, Sept. 2011).

• 88% -- Of those who look for local information on their smartphones take action within a day (Google, April 2011)

Responsive Design?When you visit a webpage on a computer, phone or tablet, its design should adapt – be responsive -- to match the size and shape of the screen. This is called "responsive design.”

http://www.vanseodesign.com/web-design/why-responsive-design/

5 Steps to Mobilizing Your Ministry

1. Research your target audience’s mobile behavior.

2. Design responsive and mobile brand experiences that add value.

3. Don’t just put a QR code on traditional marketing (see #2).

4. Challenge your organization to think about mobile first.

5. Measure. Evaluate. Adjust. 

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In summary…

1. Social happened

2. Stakeholders use it

3. Mobile is now

4. The More You Put

In,

The More You Get

Out

Do be:RelevantHonest

TransparentInformativeRespectful

Call for actionPrepared

PoliteSharing

Don’t be:DishonestRepetitiveToo salesy

Too corporateIgnorant

LateAbsent

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Thanks!

@gregswanwww.socialmediashepherds.com

@smshepherdsfacebook.com/

socialmediashepherds

This presentation: http://bit.ly/smshepbc