Isn’t it fascinating how technology has evolved in the past decade? Advancement in technology has given us more accessible ways to communicate with one another; with just one click, your message has been sent, and in a matter of seconds, your message has been received.
As easy as it may seem, church communications is far more complicated than a click on your phone. It is best to have a Communication Plan to have better communication in the church.
A communication plan is an outline of ways and methods on how a church can effectively communicate with the people. Communication should not be limited to the sermon alone. Here are some guidelines for starting a Communication Plan.
Identify your purpose.
What do you want to happen after you communicate this message? More website traffic? More views on a video? Becoming known in the community? Raising funds for a mission trip? More attendees at an event? Identifying your purpose is a great first step in creating your communication plan.
Identify your audience.
Back to Marketing 101. Here’s where you research Demographics, Geography, Psychographics, etc.
The message.
Now that you’ve got your purpose and your people, now you have to formulate a message that is effective toward those people. When building this message, focus on the content of the message, along with the mood and language that you plan to use. Also, keep in mind the type of communication channels that you plan to use, remembering the different limits of every channel.
Take action.
After getting your resources together, it’s time to take action. You know what your purpose is. You know who your audience is. You’ve got your message ready to go. It’s time now to send the message. Be sure to prepare for any roadblocks that you might come across.
Time to evaluate.
This is one of the most important steps in the whole process. After you’ve communicated that message to the people you chose, it’s vitally important to take a step back and look at the results. How many people show up? How many visitors did you have? How many website visits did you have? How many video views did you have? When evaluating, be sure to compare your results to similar projects that your church has done, along with projects that similar-sized churches have done.
Summary
Communication plans would work more effectively if you have put and effort into getting to know more about the people you are trying to gather. Before doing any activities or sending any message, make sure that you know your people. Get to know your crowd better. Make each event or message personal. Something that shows that you went the extra mile just to communicate and build a relationship with them.
