20 Types of Content to Engage Your Congregation using Social Media

Ok so you’ve been posting on social media for a while.  Maybe you’re like me and you’ve used Facebook since 2005 and Twitter since 2008. Or perhaps you’re just getting started on social media.  Here is a quick, actionable list of some content types you can use to engage your congregation using social media.  For most of these types, I’ll be referring to Facebook pages.  However, Google+ and Twitter would work as well.

20. congregational spotlight

Spotlight a certain ministry or group within your church.  You can do this with text and even pictures or video (if you have a liability waiver form complete).  For example, say that your youth ministry has just finished this study called “In Pursuit of Jesus” (excellent study I used in my time in youth ministry).  You might have a picture post of the youth discussing the study, a video of a few of the youth discussing the study, or maybe a few written thoughts of how the study changed and challenged some of the teen’s perspectives.  This creates connection and familiarity within the congregation.  You’ll be surprised how much feedback you’ll get from something so open and authentic.  Another example may be how the men’s ministry came together to serve a Saturday breakfast for people in the community.  Take some pictures and spotlight the relationships created.

19. calendar subscriptions

Go to Google Calendar or some other calendar application you can create an iCal feed (this happens by default in Google Calendar).  Create a calendar that is public called “church calendar” and publish all upcoming events on this calendar.  In the settings for this calendar.  Find the iCal feed (will be a link, usually ending with .ics).  Copy the link and post as an update on your Facebook page or your Twitter feed and ask people to click to subscribe to your real-time updated calendar.  As you publish updates to the calendar on Google, whatever people used to subscribe to your calendar will automatically update!  People clicking on the link from a smartphone like the iPhone or an Android device will be asked automatically to subscribe using the calendar on their phone!  An updated church calendar everywhere your members are.

Bonus: use the ical link to create a “QR” code (instructions from my blog post here) and use that QR code to publish on your paper newsletter or bulletin.  Once again if someone scans with a smartphone it will automatically ask them to subscribe to your calendar!

18. publish your sermons

This can be done several different ways.  Regardless, make sure you only publish material that is not copyrighted.  For example if you are using audio, make sure to clip out any songs before or after the sermon as you may not have rights to publish that content.  I recommend a few different ways to do this.  For example, you can upload a document to your website or using Dropbox in .pdf format.  You could also use audio if you record sermons at your church.  Edit the audio files using Audacity or the pro audio editing program of your choice.  Also if you use video that is of decent quality of your worship service, edit to include your sermon and upload to YouTube or Vimeo.  Share the video on your Facebook page and Twitter feed.

17. checking in

At the beginning of worship or an event, ask those present that if they have a smartphone if they would open their Facebook app and click “check in.”  By doing this, they share where they are at to their friends online.  Ask them to then follow up after the event by posting something they felt was great about worship or the even that day.  The idea is to tap into your congregations current friend network and share your unique culture of your church.  Chances are, someone may see that one of their friends attended worship last Sunday and really thought is was cool that you had a youth drama.  Even better, couple this concept with the “20. congregational spotlight” feature.

16. tithing

Ok some people really don’t want to be asked to tithe but give them the option.  Don’t be pushy about it however.  Use PayPal to create a non-profit account and link to your bank account.  Then maybe once or twice a month post on Facebook something unique to what your church and ministry is doing to be effective in the lives of people in the community.  Let them know that by tithing they help change people’s lives and make ministry possible.  Then, post a direct link to your “donation” page with PayPal.  You could also setup a donation page on your website with the donation form.

15. testimonial

A person’s personal testimony can sometimes be a very inspiring and connecting post.  Ask a few people in your congregation who would like to share part of their faith story to people who may be looking at your church or just looking to potentially commit to building their faith journey.  Ask them for a video interview if possible.  You don’t need a whole production studio either.  Usually a webcam or a smartphone camera will do the trick…Caution though, don’t make it look shoddy.  You can then edit with your favorite video editor and post to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, and Twitter.  Also make sure you have the person sign a liability waiver form.

14. photo scavenger hunt

Give a mission to families, children’s ministry, youth ministry, well really any group or ministry to go take a picture at a different location that meets different criteria.  Give them an email address to send the completed list and the images to and then review and post the best images to your Facebook page.  Once again, make sure anyone in the photos has signed a liability waiver form.

13. image posts

Ok, these are really starting to wear thin but if you have some photo editing skills, create a photo post with a bible verse overlay, joke, or quote overlay.  You can even use this to promote events.  But please I BEG you….do not use the “Keep Calm and Carry On” idea.  It’s really been well overused.  Think of ways to share image posts in unique ways instead.  Images that will stand out.  Make sure you are using photos that are not copyrighted and if they are Creative Commons photos, give the proper attribution.  Also, be strategic with these.  If you post more than 2 or 3 a week, people will start regarding you as spam.  If you want some resources for some free images, check out my resources page.  Also you can use GIMP as a free photo editor or if you want to really hit it out of the park and go pro, try Adobe Photoshop CS6.

12. invite a friend or friend(s) campaign

It is really easy to invite friends on Facebook to like and checkout your church’s page.  Simply tell your congregation to go to your church’s page and on the menu right beside the “Like” button click the dropdown and click “share.”  There are several options here for your members to share on their Facebook Newsfeed or to send to their friends privately.  I recommend both but the most effective way would be to challenge them to find one or two friends that they can send the personal message to checkout your church’s page.  Tell them to open by simply following up with how their friend is doing and then letting them know that you want them to checkout your church.  Tell them to not be too pushy and to always take genuine interest in that friend.  If they need help drafting the message, let them know to ask you for help.

11. event tickets and RSVP

While you can always setup events for RSVP on your Facebook page did you know about Eventbrite? With Eventbrite, you can create events and sell tickets through a PayPal account.  People can RSVP, buy tickets or reserve free tickets.  Attendees will receive an email receipt by default automatically they can bring to the door.  It also allows you to integrate your event with your Facebook page as an application and has easy buttons which encourages visitors and attendees to share the event via other social networks like Twitter and LinkedIn as well as send email invites!

10. pictures using Instagram to create a personal, intimate touch

Encourage your congregation to use Instagram to photo journal and share moments in ministry with other believers.  Maybe you have a team filling up the food pantry.  Take candid shots using your smartphone and share on Instagram and encourage your members to share not only on the church Facebook page but on their personal profiles and Twitter accounts if they have one.  As usual, make sure they understand it is best if a liability waiver form is complete for each participant.

9. challenges

Challenge your congregation to compete with each other.  For example, have a group meet at the church and then spread out into smaller groups to go to other member’s homes.  Challenge the team to ask people to donate any canned or boxed food for the food pantry or local food bank.  Have them take a picture with the food once complete or with homeowners who are willing to participate.  Have a prize like a few custom printed t-shirts which declares them the winner of the “2013 community awareness food drive” or something like that.  By showing people in your community that your ministry is active and growing with each other in spiritual and friendly ways, it may open doors for people who may have shied away from church.

8. automatic blog updates

Keep people informed of what is going on in your church or ministry automatically.  If your website currently runs on WordPress or if you have a CMS that has a RSS newsfeed, you can simply use an app called RSS Graffiti which will automatically publish links and updates to your Facebook page as you post on your website.

7. non-profit connection

Feature a non-profit and their work in your community by sharing something they are doing on your Facebook page or Twitter Feed.  Ask your congregation for support for the non-profit and encourage them to “like” the Facebook page of that non-profit and to get involved with some of their work.  This is a great way to get people involved in serving if your church or ministry has limited resources.  You could even organize an event on your page when a group from your church will join and participate in a mission of the non-profit.  Not only are you helping serve others as God called us to do, a great benefit is your church and ministry may receive recognition and possibly new members.  Do not make the benefit the reason you do this though.  Remember to always be authentic to the mission of the church.

6. bible study discussion

Create a status post on your Facebook regarding a scripture lesson.  Then switch the “voice” to your personal profile and comment on your thoughts on the scripture.  Ask others to participate in their thoughts.  Make sure you always ask a question to encourage discussion.  Remember however to never divulge information that you don’t mind the world to see.  If some discussions need to be confidential, I recommend creating a “private” Facebook group (not a page) or creating a forum community using bbPress for WordPress.

5. surveys

I recommend using SurveyMonkey or a similar Facebook app to create surveys from time to time on the Facebook page. Don’t go crazy with these but they encourage user participation.  Maybe take a survey on your favorite hymn, or perhaps a survey on which non-profit you should sponsor this month.  Make a few boring surveys but try to be creative every once in a while.  For example, how many pies will we get to throw at the pastor at the Fall Carnival?

4. resources

Did you find a good resource that you want to share with your congregation? Maybe it was a video on GodTube or maybe a bible verse, perhaps it was a bible study or a blog post.  Share these on your wall and let people know that you found this neat resource and that it will benefit their spiritual walk because of x, y, and z.  I would seriously not go crazy on these.  A few a week is more than enough.  If you add too many posts, your Facebook will start to look spammy and people will begin to ignore.

3. call to action

Ask your members who like you on Facebook to simply follow you on Twitter (make sure you include your Twitter handle) or ask your Twitter followers to like you on Facebook.  If you have an email list for email updates ask from time to time for people to signup if they want to stay informed and have additional resources for their spiritual walk.

2. email list

While there is a lot of software out there which will help you do this, MailChimp, Aweber, Campaign Monitor, Emma, Constant Contact, etc.  They all have different pros and cons so make sure you check them all out.  I would recommend MailChimp starting out as there is a free plan and it is relatively easy to setup.  It is very important to use one of these lists because they keep you in compliance with the CAN-SPAM Act.  You can’t just send out a mass email using your email program to your entire church anymore.  There is a good chance you’ll be blacklisted and marked as spam.  Your emails won’t even get to your recipients. Once you get everything setup and you start sending email campaigns, don’t just include what you have coming up as events, include material and resources that supplement some of the sermons and studies the church has been going through.  Maybe send a congregational spotlight (see type 20).  I’ll have several posts later on on how to set these tools up specifically so make sure you return.

1. private message/chat/status or timeline post

At the end of the day, sometimes the best way to reach your audience is to talk with them directly.  Make it a point to talk to people who you haven’t seen in a while and encourage them to participate.  Don’t be pushy but just simply check on people.  Form personal relationships that are authentic and you’ll be able to successfully grow your church.