Internally Marketing Church Events increases your event attendance. Even though ministry is about more than achieving a high attendance at events. More people means more opportunity for ministry. So here’s how to increase your numbers.
Internally marketing church events. Standing out from other voices.
Larger churches offer multiple ministries and therefore, more engagement opportunities for the people who attend them. And for the people who plan and lead these events, this means you must compete for the attention of your prospective attenders.
Because just like the world outside of church life, people set priorities and make choices on where and how to spend their time. And even though your event has the noble intention of contributing to their spiritual welfare, it doesn’t mean they’ll automatically flock to it.
Therefore, you have to persuade people to attend your event with messaging that stands out from the other church ministries.
Internally marketing church events. Knowing and speaking realistically to your audience.
In a large congregation there are many people with a variety of needs. So who exactly are you trying to reach? Is that target audience clear in your mind?
Smaller churches tend to plan events with a general focus and for the entire congregation. But in a large church setting, your events should have a more specific purpose, audience, and message in mind.
And don’t assume people people intuitively know the event is for their spiritual good and want to attend. Instead, market to them as consumers. In other words: WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME?
So position your marketing message from their viewpoint. How will they benefit? Be concise and use bullet points. Especially if you only have 30-50 words in a church bulletin. Your target audience may respond altruistically to a cause, but they still look for an intrinsic benefit.
So don’t recruit church ushers with this announcement:
We desperately need church ushers for our 9:30am and 10:30am church services to hand out bulletins, collect the offering, and seat people. If interested, call the church office.
Strive for a positive, upbeat message that focuses on them.
Do you like meeting new people? Enjoy helping others? Skilled in the art of friendly conversation? Our church ushers often make the first impression on guests. And we’d like it to be a great one! Is that you?
Then join us as you…
- Greet people at the sanctuary door
- Help them find seats
- Take up the offering
Internally marketing church events. Partner with other ministries rather than compete.
As much as possible, support and work with other ministries rather than compete against them. For example, plan a Men’s event alongside a children’s event. And encourage men to attend your event and take their kids to the children’s event.
Then position them as the family hero in your marketing message.
Give Mom a break. Take your kids to this Children’s ministry event and then come to this great Men’s event!
Plan your topic or theme around something that’s relevant to their stage of life. Then promote the event through men’s, women’s and children’s ministries. Why women’s ministry?
Because wives pay attention to announcements more than their husbands and will often champion an event they believe will benefit their spouse and also presents something attractive to them—a night off from the kids.
It benefits the Children’s ministry too. Because now, parents encourage their kid’s involvement. So the two events feed and support one another and present a win-win for everyone.
There are other internal church marketing strategies and methods that will improve your church event attendance. Check out Elements of Internal Church Marketing on Amazon.
It outlines a complete strategy to plan purposefully, market successfully and produce quality church events that attract participants and make a spiritual impact.
About Chip Tudor:
Chip Tudor is an author, blogger and professional writer. He publishes books, humorous Christian drama, and thought provoking blogs from a Christian worldview. This blog is originally published here.
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