In many churches I have worked with, I have found that one of he biggest obstacles to growth has been the lack of communication. So much attention had often been placed on the functions and activities of the church, and yet no one had taken up the mantle to make sure that there was clear communication throughout the congregation. So despite being a "busy" or "thriving" church, a large number of the members regularly feel that they have no idea what is going on in their own home church.
Sound familiar? If not completely, I bet parts of those issues face almost all of our churches today. And in this day and age of mass communication, there really is no need for this to be a shortcoming. There are a number of different routes this can be addressed, but for this post we will focus entirely on 5 ways to use an email campaign in your church that are proven and can strengthen your church body.
What is an Email Campaign?
Don't let the wording fool you, an email campaign is nothing more than a system set up to regularly email your members, other churches, or even potential new visitors who are looking for information about the church. It allows you to create emails ahead of time, and assign when they are sent to the members of your email list.
If you are not already using an email campaign, don't worry! They are easy to create. Currently, I use a FREE system from systeme.io that was very easy to set up and has worked very well for my church. I'll post another blog about how to set up and use an email campaign system soon to walk you through the process.
5 Proven Ways to Use Email in Your Church
After realizing that most of my church has and accesses their email daily, I knew this was the right place to start on improving our church communication. I went through a LOT of different uses of email, and trial and error has led me to 5 very specific uses of email that have given us the greatest results.
Once quick side note; prior to launching your campaign, give some thought to the timing of your email sends. I have found that Wednesday morning at 10:00 works best for our congregation. We have services on Sunday and utilize a lot of video information that does well for our Monday and Tuesday events. By sending on Wednesday, I am able to set the tone for our Wednesday evening bible study and prayer groups, but also reinforce the information from Sunday and update our congregation on any on the fly changes that happen. Did I make mistakes early on? Yes. Did I send mass emails to my congregation at 3:00 am? Yep, sure did!
#1: Calendar Updates
This should come as no surprise, but churches can be VERY busy. Small groups, bible studies, auxiliary groups, special events; the list is never ending. Hebrews 10:25 does remind us "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching". As such, we dedicate a portion of our weekly newsletter email to the upcoming events of the church.
"Saturday, Nov. 4, 1:00 PM"
"God in the Mountains Celebration"
"Location: Main Campus Church"
"Contact Pastor Jacob for more info"
I found there really no need for fancy formatting, other than setting this area out in BOLD. A simple calendar style with date, information, location, and contact information. This serves as a reminder, NOT the announcement. If you find yourself a bit more technically advanced, you CAN include a hyperlink from the email directly to your church website for the event. I have begun to use this, but thus far I cannot say for certain that has yielded great results.
#2: Church Event Announcements
This is another no brainer for an email, and has helped changed our church participation greatly. Despite using both video and Emcee announcements, I was stunned to learn how many of our congregation simply did not absorb their information. The email, however, was transformative. After the very first email we sent out, I received a surprising number of calls, texts, and yes, emails from members of our church about their excitement about the event at the top of the email. The surprising part? We had displayed a 1 minute video in our foyer and at the start of the service AND dedicated time for our Emcee to plug the event before our offering.
"Mt. Life Church To Host "God In the Mountains" Festival!"
Simply using a newspaper style of presentation has done very well. Large fonts for the headline, with exciting language fully outlining the details of the event grabbed the attention of our people like nothing else I had tried. As I mentioned before, I then tied the link back to our website or necessary sign up page if the situation called for one.
#3: Church Family Announcements
This was a newer addition to our weekly letters that has really helped tie our church family together. Birthdays, Anniversaries, and major life events highlight this area. We have gotten reports of unexpected flower deliveries, of texts and calls, and of course social media communication. In short, our church is drawing closer.
This has also been a great soul winning tool for our newer members. People like people who are like themselves; and displays of love and friendship go a LONG way. This gives ice breakers for conversations for those looking to make new friends, or ways for Sunday School teachers to keep in mind the upcoming birthdays.
In this weeks newsletter, we have a first. One of our young ministers has recently become engaged, and has asked to do a formal church announcement in the email. While his close friends and family are aware of the news, the rest of the church thus far does not know. Jacob has grown up in our church and this new should bring a lot of excitement. I can't wait to hear the response he gets!
#4: Pastor Awards
1 Thessalonians 5:11 says "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing". Each week, the ministry team and directors meet to talk about the events and happenings in the many areas of the church. Without fail, we will see a church family member hitting a milestone, or going above and beyond in a volunteer fashion that warrants mentioning. So each week, we highlight a saint (or two as needed) for their great work or news.
Rather than just a simple announcement like "JoAnne Smith did X, Y, and Z", we create a weekly award named specifically for this event. We have used names that tied to specific bible events, such as the "Carry The Water Award" in honor of Rebecca watering the camels for Eliezer when one of our saints went above and beyond to help clear a fallen tree for one of our elderly members. Sometimes we have a bit of fun with the names, such as the "Hulk Smash Award" for one of our teenage members who spent his day helping demolish and clear the debris for a construction project at one of our facilities.
Perhaps best of all, we present the information in the style of a small certificate in the email. We have our Production Team create a printable version of the certificate, and then quickly honor him or her with a framed certificate from the nominating Pastor each week.
I know we as Ministers in the Lord work each and every week for the betterment of our congregation and our community, sometimes this extra bit of personal attention goes a long way. What costs us so little in time and effort often means FAR more to our saints. They feel appreciated, valued, and SEEN. And if you have a larger or growing congregation, this can be an underlying issue that often gets overlooked. So if you do NOTHING else from the list, do this.
#5 Ministry Moment
This is a GREAT tool if you have young or up and coming ministers in your leadership, and want to give them a chance to shine. Each week, we have a different member of our Ministry Team or leader provide a quick word of ministry. They are given a rough word count to stay within, and are required to turn this in a few days in advance for review and discussion. The result? I have a small group of leaders who are just ITCHING for their chance to share a though the Lord has placed on their heart.
By having this in writing, we have a chance to clarify their message if need be, or perhaps use some aged wisdom to build up their thought. The reviews from our congregation? Amazing. Simply amazing!
In a recent email, our main church drummer who recently has felt a call to minister in his life penned perhaps one of the most powerful messages on healing that I have heard in my 20+ years of ministry. Our Care Director, who oversee's our outreach programs for the elderly, sick, or in need, was so moved that she is going to have the post added to our literature that is taken on hospital visits.
Would we have ever heard that particular message without this email section? Perhaps...perhaps not. But now, his message has touched his friends, family, and soon, those in need in our local hospitals.
Just START
Week after week, these ideas are put in motion and are being used as a powerful connection tool for our church. Our communication issues are not solved, but they are better. And that is a win I will take every day.
So I encourage you STRONGLY to start an email campaign. Simply collect the email address of your parishioners if you don't have them yet, and then jump over to systeme.io and sign up for a free account and GET STARTED.
I will work on posting a step by step process on how we have created and use that system every week.
May the Lord bless and guide your steps this week!
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