5 simple ways churches can digitally reach new visitors

It feels like everyday it gets harder and harder for churches to reach new people. There’s just a million things competing for people’s attention. How can a church compete?

But the reality is, so many people are looking for meaning and community, and everyday they search online to help them find them. This is why churches MUST have a presence in the digital space; to help receive and direct these digital seekers.

But where to start? It seems like there’s a million things we’re supposed to do but only so much time and energy available to get it all done. That’s why I strongly recommend that churches focus their energy into the most effective ways of reaching new visitors digitally. 

So here it is, my top 5 list of ways churches (like yours) can leverage technology to reach new people in their city.

Google My Business

Google My Business (GMB) is that simple and predictable info window you see in your Google search results that includes photos, reviews, hours, and important links for the business (and church!) people are searching for it. Churches would be shocked to know how many website visitors find their site through Google My Business. 

GMB is often the first thing people see when searching for a church, BUT often churches don’t claim ownership of their account, which means they don’t have CONTROL over their account. So make sure you have ownership of your GMB account and once you do, make sure you do the following:

Upload church photography: You can upload your own quality church photos so people can see your church doing what it does best!

Respond to ratings and comments: Show that you’re engaged with what people think. Thank people for great reviews and when people are negative, show them you care by responding directly to their grievance. 

Review analytics: You can actually connect your GMB interactions with your Google Analytics account, so you can see how people are interacting with your GMB profile. This helps you understand what people are interested in when viewing your church.

Social Media

Social Media is not new, but for many churches, using it regularly and meaningfully is. We certainly don’t have time to review everything a church needs to know about Social Media here, but here’s a start.

Choose your platforms thoughtfully: You don’t need to post on every platform. Doing so is not strategic and can easily overwhelm a church to the point where it just decides to quit. I’ve seen this happen MANY times. So choose 1-2 platforms and use them well.

Post 2-3 times per week: One of the keys to getting traction on social media is to post regularly, meaning at least 2-3 times per week. This can get overwhelming fast. So make sure you go in with a posting strategy and calendar so that you have more clarity on what you’re going to do and how often.

Create content that is useful to people: Think about what your church is good at and how does it meet the needs of your city? Then create a content strategy around that. If you just post announcements about upcoming events, you’re going to miss people who are on social media for more than just finding out “what’s going on.” 

YouTube

Yes, I know YouTube is technically Social Media, but I thought this deserved its own section. Why? Because churches produce great YouTube contact every single Sunday, but often don’t post it OR they post it poorly. So make sure you take advantage of this free resource to get your message out there by doing the following:

Record your weekly message: If you’re not already doing so, make sure you record your weekly message. If you don’t, consider starting OR think about creating a shortened version of your sermon as a devotional for people who missed the service. The latter is preferable to some as people might be more likely to watch a 4-5 minute devotional over a 30-40 minute sermon.

Brand your thumbnail graphics with series information: Make sure the thumbnail image on your sermon video looks great. It’s the first thing people see before they click on it and what you put there may help determine whether or not people even watch it.

Provide connecting information in the description: Make sure you utilize the description space in your post so you can provide helpful links and information for people wanting to connect with your church.

Website

While it’s true that MOST churches DO have a website, it’s also true that most churches do not have a STRATEGIC website. Creating a website is easy. Creating a website where people get a clear and inviting picture of your community is another matter. So make sure your church website has the following:

Create simple pathways for people to visit & connect: Your church website is not a dumping ground for member resources. Your church website is here to help new and potential visitors learn about your church and take their first steps toward visiting and connecting. Help them do this through strategic pages and pathways geared toward them.

Collect people's information when possible: One of the key ways people take a first step is through direct invitation. While you can’t do this on their first visit to your website, you can collect their contact information through your website and then reach out or follow-up. Businesses do this ALL THE TIME when they get you to download a free resource. They do this so they can connect with your directly. Church should be doing something similar (but in their own way of course).

Work on your SEO: It’s important to consider Search Engine Optimization (SEO) when building your website. SEO is a big and complex area of web design, but you can start with the basics by making sure you submit your sitemap to Google search console, fix broken links, add alt images and captions, stuff like that.

One of the best ways to improve your website’s SEO is through blogging.

Blogging

I’m a big fan of blogging (obviously). Businesses do it to help reach new and potential customers by answering the questions they are asking through a blog post. Churches can do the same! I encourage churches to start a blog on their website by following these guidelines:

Create useful content people are searching for: Think about any blog you’ve ever read. Why did you read it? Because you searched for a question on Google and clicked on the blog article that seemed to have the answer. So as you’re creating your blog content strategy, think about what people are asking and try to answer those questions.

Mention your city and church as often as you can: One way to localize your blog, is to mention your church and city as much as possible, preferably in the headings. That way your blog would be more likely to end up in local search results, which helps you reach local people.

Give people resources to take a step: Once they’ve read your blog article, make sure you provide multiple onramps for people to learn more about your church by doing things like creating a sidebar with links, pastor information in the footer, even a pop-up for your next big church event. All of these can help people move beyond the article to learn more about your church.

In Conclusion

The digital world can feel overwhelming at times and can make church leadership throw their hands in the air and want to quit. I know this is tempting but please don’t! You have so much to offer your city and people there need to hear about your church. So don’t be overwhelmed but stead take your communications development one step at a time..

If you’d like to know more about Clearpath and our services to churches, we’d love to meet for a free 30-minute discovery session. Tap/click below to schedule yours today!