Whenever I speak at a conference or seminar about why churches should be on social media I always receive a very good response to my message.
I see the passion rise and urge to act from the people listening. They now understand the unique opportunity that social media provides for churches that has never happened before in human history.
Here’s what happens next.
After getting all fired up they return to their church. Start posting on social. See the results. Many contact me and share with me how they are amazed at how many people have engaged with or seen their post.
Then slowly after a month or so, the ‘problem’ creeps in. That problem is busyness.
Lets face it. We all feel that squeeze. The ‘I’ll do it tomorrow’ because today is SO full. Then tomorrow never happens.
Ever felt like that? I have.
The result is that a social media account can look like it’s not been updated in weeks, possibly months. Not a good look for any living and breathing church! What message does that send?
Here are a few strategies to help you overcome the jostling priorities or lack of creators.
1) Schedule time in your calendar
I have weekly time allocated on my calendar to schedule and coordinate the creation of posts for all social networks. For some of you can block out half an hour and that will be sufficient. If you don’t you are guaranteed to fall back into the same pattern eventually. Look at your weekly rhythm and work out the best time. For me I choose time Monday because so much content opportunity is created on a Sunday. It is a great way to put into action what I see from a Sunday.
2) Use scheduling tools
Every social network has scheduling tools. That means for much of what you do you don’t need to post it live. You can redeem SO much time scheduling. Just remember to engage with people when the posts go live. Find out more about different scheduling tools here.
3) Repurpose existing content
Every single Sunday your church creates so much content. Sermons where there are so many posting options to choose from. Your church community, volunteers, musician, just think about the life of your church on a Sunday. And create a posting list of ideas. Here is a list of 46 different posting ideas I crowd-sourced from many different churches when we brainstormed different posting ideas.
4) Use existing graphics
Some of you have very little time to create content for your social media feeds. I know that feeling. Many of us don’t have in-house designers to create content for us. But don’t worry. I was recently introduced to churchsocialgraphics.com They are some very smart cookies who have taken the task on and created a niche service to solve this problem for churches. At a price we can all afford.
For my church’s social media we love posting scripture and quote style posts. But we lack the resources to create as much as we would like. I find that our audiences loves sharing and engaging with these style posts. For us it is a daily post.
They have a very good budget conscious price of $49 for 390 beautifully designed scripture and quote style posts. Check them out here.
[Note its an Affiliate link: I get a small affiliate payment from any sale, but seriously wouldn’t recommend this if they weren’t up to the high standard I’d expect. Any money I receive pays for book giveaways like this one, my blog hosting, design updates and my coffee addiction].
Free Graphics
I also recently designed some really good scripture posts. You can view them here and download them if you like them. All free!!
Your turn
What is your biggest challenge with your church’s social media account? Have you overcome your problem? I’ve love to know. Do you know of any other services that can create content for your church? Drop a link below.
