Featured Member of the Week: Bradford Singleton

What’s your name?

Bradford Singleton

Where do you serve, what is your title and how long have you served there?

I’m the Executive Pastor at Northwood Church in Summerville, SC.

I grew up at Northwood, but worked at a mega church for four years after college. Then I helped plant a church for a year and a half before coming back to NW.

TL;DR. I’ve been there 7 years

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t go to church?

(Sometimes it’s hard to describe to the people who do go to our church!)

I help our Pastor’s vision to flow out to all the departments.

What were some of the things that you experienced that shaped the way you approach your work?

Two things:

First, when I worked at Seacoast I was given an amazing platform right out of college. I was never beaten up or called out for a mistake, but I was encouraged consistently. I try to encourage our team to try new things and follow through on ideas. We cant be afraid to test things and see what happens.

Second, When working for the church plant I realized that people in smaller churches are the real ministry heroes. You can’t be a specialist in a church of 150-200 you have to be a generalist/student/hustler. I try to always be learning new things about areas that might be outside me usual responsibilities. This has also helped me save the church money sometimes when I can handle something like setting up our upgraded WiFi network instead of bringing in an outside company, or when our photographer and worship leader teamed up to learn how to master Squarespace so we could bring out website in house.

What’s the one thing you wish people knew about your job?

That everything we do as a church communicates something. It isn’t just the design of the worship guide or the website. It is also the joy of the parking team, and the concern shown by family ministry worker for a nervous guest that communicates what we are really about. I think someone said we will be “known by our love for each other”, right?

What is the one tool for your job that you can’t live without and why?

Easily my iPhone because I have real problem with inattentiveness, so I use it to stay on track with what’s most important instead of being a whirlwind of random activity.

What is the biggest mistake that you see churches making when it comes to communications and marketing?

Putting the WHAT before the WHY.

This happens in a lot of different ways, but one example is when churches copy a method from another church without understanding why that church does that thing.

Who is someone that you look to up in the church communications world?

Mostly I’m looking to the next group of people coming up. I’m 34, so I want to know what a 24yo or even 14yo are up to. How do they view church today? I think I have a ton to learn from the next generation.


Thanks Bradford for hanging out with us and being a FANTASTIC member of the Church Communications Community! We appreciate and see all the hard work you’re doing for the Church.

Check out some previous featured members

Who Wrote this?

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Get updates and learn from the best

More To Explore

Leadership

‘Tis the Season of Gifting

‘Tis the season of gifting and gathering, where visitors, volunteers, and ministry efforts surge, often dividing our attention between our families at home and our

Pssstttttt—Want to know our secrets?

Here’s how to learn more from church leaders across the world: 

  1. Stay up-to-date on the people, technologies, trends, and best practices shaping the future of communication strategies for your church, delivered directly to your inbox. >> Join the List
  2. Join 20,000+ peer communicators worldwide who are part of the Church Communications® community, supporting each other each and every day >> Join the Facebook Group
  3. Explore related topics in more depth on the Church Communications® Podcast >> Subscribe to the Podcast
  4. Connect with us on social >> Instagram, Facebook Page, Twitter
 

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, we only recommend products or services we use personally and believe will add value to my readers. We are disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”