Inspired by videos shared by churches across the country, we've listed 10 of the most effective ideas here. Why not try one idea each week, to help your community get to know your church a little better, and open the door to invite them along to a service or event.
1. Meet the team
Arriving at an unfamiliar church can be daunting, so let your prospective congregants find out who they might meet when they arrive. Record a 20-30 second video with your vicar, youth worker, churchwarden, or whoever else helps to run your church.
Why not tie this in with your AChurchNearYou.com page – with our latest update, you can add a bio about your vicar, and add a video on to a page.
2. Event recaps
Holding an event at your church? Take some short clips during the event and publish them on your social media accounts, to show people what happens in your community. The attendees might like to share your video with their friends too, increasing the reach of your video.
3. Live
A recent survey by Sprout Social found that 36% of social media users want to see accounts use more live video streaming. Making the most of this trend can help your church to reach a wider audience, as Facebook and Instagram send notifications to all followers of an account when it goes live, ensuring that your content is seen by as many individuals as possible.
Trying Live for the first time? Find out all you need to know here.
4. Sunday Sermons
If you know of members in your community who can’t make it to church, why not film the sermon each Sunday and post it after the service. This will allow people outside of the service to feel included in your church’s Sunday worship.
Get some tips from our content creator, Mariano Gobbi, on how to set up your video here.
This works really well as a Live video.
5. Sunday School/Kids’ Club
Task your younger members of the congregation with creating a one minute video depicting a Bible scene. Giving them ownership over content will encourage them to engage with the project and will allow them to have a tangible piece of work that they can show their parents and friend.
6. Tour
Whether your building is old or new, a tour is always popular with those in the local community. Interesting facts and a friendly face to guide the video tour may inspire people to come and see your venue for themselves.
7. Teach new hymn
Trying out a new hymn on Sunday? Give your congregation time to prepare by teaching it in a video during the week and hear the benefit in the service!
You'll want to add subtitles to your video to make it accessible to all. Learn how here.
8. Welcome message
Many churches have received new members of the congregation who have felt compelled to visit after reading a welcoming message on AChurchNearYou.com. Go a step further and film your vicar, or whoever meets people at the door, speaking those words of welcome to the camera.
9. Mission/values/aims
Let your community know what your church’s aims and values are by discussing them in a video. You could even record a prayer group discussion about each person’s individual relationship to the church’s mission, getting more people involved and aware of your digital evangelism efforts.
10. Explainers
Christmas or Easter approaching? Most people have an awareness of these times of the year, but do they know the true meaning behind them? Explain what they mean to Christians, and maybe talk through those special services to encourage people to try them out.
Share your posts with us by using the hashtag #ChurchofEngland and tagging us on Instagram and Facebook with @TheChurchOfEngland, or on Twitter with @ChurchOfEngland
Iso Neville
Social Media Officer
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