How to Save Money and Advance the Ministries of the Church at the Same Time

It’s generally understood that the economy fell into a recession in the final months of 2007, however much of the economy really didn’t feel the brunt of the downturn until the third and fourth quarters of 2008. As labor markets tightened, many churches began to feel the effects; weekly contributions saw a decline, families were forced to move to other parts of the country which created resource gaps, both monetarily and in terms of ministry service.



So, what’s next? The economy will ultimately rebound, but it will not look like it did in 2007 or early 2008. Housing and land prices are not predicted to return to the highs found at the end of the boom for many years. In fact, some say they won’t return to the highs during our lifetime. Consumer spending, gained primarily as a result of consumer debt, drove much of the country’s economic growth over the past twenty years. There’s no reason to sit around and wait on the economy to rebound in order to advance the ministries of the church.


The good news is that the Church has a wealth of resources and talents that go unused. Perhaps one of the best ways to both advance the ministries of the church and save money is align the resources and talents found in the church with the physical and spiritual needs of those in the church. How does one do that? Utilize a tool like ChurchSpot that connects the spiritual gifts, hobbies and talents of the church body with the needs found in the church’s ministries. As a result, the specific talents are utilized to meet the needs of the church and its ministries. A pastor recently mentioned that they spend $7,000 per year on lawn services and an additional $4,000 on snow removal services. As a result of utilizing a tool to match the church’s resources with their needs they were able to find the individuals in the church body who were excited to take on these responsibilities. Those who might not have believed that the church could utilize their talents suddenly were contributing the church and the church effectively found $10,000 to invest in the other ministries of the church. Think creatively about how to advance your ministries and your church’s mission. There are creative things that you can do, even in a recession, to advance the Gospel and mission of your church.


About ChurchSpot: Founded in Indianapolis in 2008, ChurchSpot develops web-based software designed to advance the ministries within the Christian church. For more information on how ChurchSpot works, go to ChurchSpot’s website http://www.churchspot.net/Marketing/How.aspx.

Church Communication Channels

Many communication strategists believe that in order for a subject/event/topic to be firmly placed in the minds of listener/reader/churchgoer, one must hear it at least on seven separate occasions. Multiple communication channels, as describe below, can facilitate effective church communication.

Church Website

Your church website is the single most important place to provide information to attract those in your community who do not already attend your church. Your website should look professional and inviting, but should clearly communicate Who You Are, What You Believe, Why You Believe It, When You Meet and How to Contact Church Leadership or at least a ministry leader who can answer questions about the church. Other items such as the church calendar, content describing each of your ministries, and information on small groups can also be helpful, but challenging to keep updated with fresh content.

Utilize Google Ad Words and Keywords to reach out to a subset of your local community. You can attract them to your website where you will provide specific content that is of interest to them. This can be an effective channel for reaching your local community.


Ministry Advancement

Ministry communication is perhaps the most important communication that occurs within the church. Effective communication facilitates the advancement of ministry and greater commitment from the church body. It is also the most difficult communication to make effective. Why? Because ministry communication must come directly from your church’s ministry leaders. Until recently ministry leaders have not had access to flexible and effective communication tools. As a result, communication can be haphazard, unreliable and often times, ineffective. Ministry communication, in this style, is only effective as a result of intense effort by the ministry leader.

There is an alternative… Use ChurchSpot to manage ministry communication. ChurchSpot puts communication in the hands of your ministry leaders. Each ministry leader uses a ministry homepage to communicate their ministry’s purpose, philosophies, and ministry direction. They describe how to get involved and talk about the results of the ministries they lead. Leaders post ministry photos and send email to ministry participants from ChurchSpot.

ChurchSpot takes effective ministry communication to a new level. With ChurchSpot, your ministry leaders have control of their communication. Communication is improved, greater levels of commitment are achieved amongst the church body and the church demonstrates that it is alive and active 24/7.


Email/Instant Communication
Email/Instant Communication is effective for quick, “on-the-spot” communication. It should be used sparingly to maintain its effectiveness. It can be used to quickly mobilize a ministry team, to make a last minute announcement declaring the status of an event or to communicate emergency prayer requests. However, end users quickly become fatigued by the bombardment of email. Instant communication should be used sparingly and with great judgment.


Sunday Announcements/Bulletin
Sunday announcements are the traditional communication channel for most churches. Sunday announcements are the church’s form of a television commercial or billboard advertisement. They are effective at spreading a message to a broad audience; however they may or may not gain the attention of your specific target audience who will mobilize as a result of hearing the message. Utilize Sunday announcements for the items and events that have broad appeal to the church body.


Social Networking
Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are all examples of social networking that have gained prominence in some churches. Social networking provides an opportunity to stay connected with the individuals and families in the church throughout the week. While these networks are fun and social in nature, they lack the focus required for effective church communication. To the extent that a social network can be managed, it can demonstrate that the church is alive and active 24/7.


Blogs
Blogs provide a medium to talk about specific topics that are relevant to both the church body and to the community at large. Blogs provide church leadership with the ability to answer questions and pose questions to their readers intended to get the reader to think or ponder. Blogs can be used along with keywords and AdWords from Google/Yahoo to allow a church’s website/blog site to rank higher in today’s search engine tools. More prominently displayed web and blog sites receive more views/impressions from the surrounding community allowing the church’s voice to be heard on topics of spiritual and community importance.


Summary
An effective communication strategy will keep your church body informed, help coordinate the ministry activities going on within the church and improve the likelihood of greater levels of commitment from the church body to accomplish God's purposes. A combination of the above communication channels is essential to effective communication.


About ChurchSpot
Founded in Indianapolis in 2008, ChurchSpot develops online ministry tools for greater levels of commitment and easier communication within the Christian church. For more information on ChurchSpot, go to ChurchSpot’s website http://www.churchspot.net/Marketing/How.aspx