Everyone is busy. Social media is often an afterthought delegated to a church volunteer. However, when used efficiently and effectively, social media can be a powerful tool for the church. Here are three questions church leaders must ask themselves to navigate social media and the church.
The first question you should be asking is, “Who is your audience? Who is your community?” You must know the demographics of your church, who is going to your church, and who is in the community that is not attending your church. You must also know your target market. Are you trying to reach males, females, young families, or low socioeconomic statuses?
You need to know the audience that you are trying to reach so that you can create social media content that is relative to them. For example, if you were trying to reach senior citizens within your community, you would not be generating or promoting VBS content.
Once you know who your audience is, you then to need to understand your audience’s needs. The needs of a single college woman would be different than an older married couple. Not everything you share on social media will be relevant to everyone, so it is important to know who your audience is and what they are looking for.
For example, Facebook audiences are a huge part of this. As you create Facebook content and ads, you need to understand your audience, their needs, and their interests. You should be less focused on your church and the great things your church is doing and seek out your audience to understand what they need and how they feel. Does your audience struggle with anxiety? Are they in a place where they are too comfortable? You can create images and video content that show real-life examples of what your audience is facing. Knowing what your audience needs helps you reach them and serve them better.
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Daniel Im (@danielsangi) is the Director of Church Multiplication for NewChurches.com at LifeWay Christian Resources. He is a Teaching Pastor at The Fellowship, a multisite church in Nashville. He is the author of No Silver Bullets: Five Small Shifts that will Transform Your Ministry, and co-author of Planting Missional Churches: Your Guide to Starting Churches that Multiply (2nd ed) with Ed Stetzer. He also co-hosts the New Churches Q&A Podcast, the 5 Leadership Questions Podcast, and a brand new podcast with his wife on marriage and parenting called the IMbetween Podcast. He has an M.A. in Global Leadership and has served and pastored in church plants and multisite churches ranging from 100 people to 50,000 people in Vancouver, Ottawa, Montreal, Korea, Edmonton, and Nashville. Visit Danielim.com to learn more.
