In today’s technology-driven age, digital marketing is an essential method of growing a client base for just about any business. But, it’s not just businesses that can be helped by digital marketing.
Churches can reap the benefits of online marketing to grow their congregation and keeping people coming back. Here are 5 simple ways that digital marketing can be used by churches to keep in regular contact with their congregation and broaden their outreach.
1. Start a Blog
If your church has a website, then a blog offers the perfect opportunity to create engaging content that can be shared and read widely online. Create blog posts on all the great things happening in your church, or post interviews and guest posts from interesting figures in the ministry. If you’re wondering who might be able to create all this content, blogs are a great way to give young parishioners a practical role within the ministry.
The more high-quality content shared by your church online, the more likely you are to appear in search engine results. Further, it will help more people in the local area find your church and understand more about it.
2. Create Social Media Pages
Social media offers a relatively easy and totally free way to market your church online. Create a page on Facebook that your congregation can follow to find out about services, celebrations, and events. Members can then spread the word about your church by sharing your posts on their own social media pages.
Social media offers you a convenient and engaging way to showcase your church’s events, mission trips, and celebrations. Ultimately, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with following the crowd, and the crowd is most definitely online!
3. Email Newsletters
If you’re aiming to grow your church, you should be including email marketing in your plan. Send an email newsletter on a weekly basis to everyone in your congregation, as well as anyone else who has signed up for them to keep your church present in their mind.
A newsletter is a perfect opportunity to highlight any aspect of your church that you think people would like to hear about. This may be practical information such as service timings or information on special services, to excerpts from recent sermons or Biblical passages.
4. Manage Contacts Wisely
Marketing is just as much about keeping in contact with current members as it is about engaging new ones. And, while e-mail newsletters are a great way of keeping in regular contact with your congregation, they only reach as many people as you have the correct contact details for.
That’s why you should consider turning your contact management system digital. Use a Church Contact Management system to keep track of your congregation’s details. Collect essential information about people who visit your church in an easy, digital way. You can also find virtual visitor card systems that offer text donations and smartphone tithing!
5. Create a Podcast or Video Sermons
There are several reasons to record sermons or even whole services and post them online. Firstly, it enables those who aren’t able to attend on a particular day to stay in the loop and remain connected with the church. This will keep members of your church coming back.
Secondly, the reach of your podcasts and/or videos may be surprisingly large, particularly when shared and re-shared online. Increase your online presence and share your sermons with the wider world for a truly engaging and dynamic digital presence.
Grow Your Congregation Through Digital Marketing
These are just a few simple ways that you can use digital marketing for your church. Ultimately, bolstering your presence online and using digital communications to inform and engage with your congregation will see local worshippers keep coming back. Further, through digital marketing, word will spread and your reach will extend as information about your church is shared online.
