5 Keys for Building Ministry Momentum

by: Rich Birch

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There are seasons in your ministry when you can feel momentum happening … it seems like things are just flowing a little easier and the energy of the church is pushing the ministry forward. I’ve lead in ministries where the momentum is tangible … every step does seem to be easier than the one before.

However, I’ve also lead in contexts where we don’t have momentum … everything seems to be an uphill push. In a church without momentum every step is more difficult than the one before. Gaining and keeping momentum is a difficult process for church leaders.

Here are a few dynamics that I’ve observed about momentum through my years of ministry leadership.

• 150 Weekends // We all want things to turn around quickly at our churches … but in my experience sustained momentum takes about 3 years to generate. It doesn’t happen in a month or a season or even a year. Distracted leaders have a hard time generating momentum in their churches because they are always pursuing the next shiny object. Your church is getting the results from the efforts it has been focusing on for the last few years. Does your leadership team have the perseverance to focus over an extended period of time?
• Focus. Focus. Focus. // By definition you can’t gain momentum in wide variety of areas. You need to be focus your time, effort and energy on just a few things. Looking to improve the musical worship portion of your weekend experiences? You’ll need to think and act about that every week and almost ignore other areas. Have you narrowed the focus of your church leadership enough so it’s understood what you are trying to push forward? 
• You’ll Need to Be Unpopular // To gain momentum unlike any other church you know … you’ll need to do stuff that no-one else is doing. You’ll need to make decisions and calls that might seem counter intuitive because innovation is the road less traveled. Most churches don’t have momentum … so you’ll need to do things that most churches aren’t doing. People will question what you are doing … why you aren’t like every other church around you. What are you thinking about trying that seems a bit crazy that might just help push forward your church?
• Obsess About the Details // Small wins matters. Someone needs to keep their eye on what happens regularly in the details of your church. Sustained momentum is created by 1,000,000 small things all pushing the same direction … each of those little things pushes towards the end goal of moving the church forward. Have you inspired, informed and empowered your team to get the details right at your church?
• Iterate towards Innovation // Chances are that the areas that you are trying to gain momentum in that other churches have already spend a bunch of time figuring out. Rather than dreaming up what you think you should learn from other churches who have already solved the issue. Talk with them and understand the mistakes they’ve made along the road. Don’t just copy and paste from their church to yours … but adopt their practices and modify them to fit your culture. Which churches should you spend time learning from this year?

Read more from Rich here.

Tags: Momentum, Rich Birch

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7 Ways to Prepare for More Baptisms in Your Church

by: Rich Birch

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We were recently on a leadership team retreat, taking time to reflect on what God is doing at our church. I’m honored to serve at Liquid Church and I count it a privilege to play a small part in what it’s doing. One of the things we were celebrating from the last year is that we’ve baptized 1,000 people in our 7.5 years as a church. We count baptisms as the clearest evidence of life change in our church. It’s a significant milestone for people to get into the tub, tell their story and publicly declare what is happening in their lives.

During the leadership retreat, we were reminded by Tony Morgan that healthy churches should see 10% of their communities baptized per year. This is a great target to work towards as a church! Tony writes about this and some other Vital Signs in a report by the same title that is well worth a read.

Clearly, the reason we’ve seen so many people baptized is the movement of God in people’s lives. We can’t take credit for any of it. I do believe that churches can do a number of practical things to help people as they process the decision to be baptized. Our goal should be to remove as many barriers as possible, so people aren’t hindered by our processes or systems. Here are some practical keys to baptizing more people at your church:

• Preach on it // The most powerful communications tool at your disposal is the Sunday morning message. 4 to 6 weeks before your next baptism service preach on why people need to be baptized. Summon the motivation and inspiration for people to catch a vision for this. It’s a big deal in the life of your church and it’s a big deal in your people’s spiritual development. Don’t relegate it to a cheesy announcement. Call people to get out of their seats and into the pool!
• Show, don’t tell // Can we talk honestly for a minute here? Adult baptism by immersion is a bit weird and scary. People voluntarily allow other people to dunk them under the water. It’s strange. Our job as church communications folks is to make it as normal as possible. You need to show people what it’s going to look like. Make sure your promotional efforts show people actually getting baptized to demystify it as much as possible. This is one of those times when calling together great photographers from your church to help you will pay long-term dividends as you encourage people to get baptized.
• Simple response tools // Don’t make it hard for people to show that they are interested. Find the simplest way for them to indicate even a fleeting interest, so your team can talk with them. I’ve found that paper response cards are the best way to gather this sort of data. [Check out this article on how to make response cards that people actually use.] Think simple, small steps. Only ask them for the information that you actually need to start the process. Don’t ask them to “sign up to get baptized.” Instead, ask them to “let us know if you are interested in more information about getting baptized.” It’s a subtle difference but it allows people to ease into a decision, rather than forcing them to decide prematurely one way or the other.
• Make it easy to share // Next time you host a baptism, make sure you empower the people who are actually getting baptized to share the experience with their friends. Think through how many different ways you can make it easy for them to tell their friends and family about the experience. This sort of sharing prompts other people to get baptized in the future. Post photos of everyone getting baptized on Facebook …these photos are among some of our most shared and commented on. Video the service and make it available for people to watch. Give out paper invites to the people getting baptized … like party invites … and ask them to invite their friends and family.
• Celebrate, celebrate, celebrate! // People are standing up in front of their community and declaring their allegiance to Jesus … it’s time to party! This experience should be the Mother-of-all-Church-is-Fun-Moments. The music needs to be high energy. Have a reception (with cake!) at the end of the service for the people getting baptized. In all the pre-game huddles that day, make sure you prep your teams to be high energy and excited for the candidates. The place should be filled with high-fives and hugs to reinforce the decision people are making. The Kingdom of God is a party and this is one of those times when we need to let loose!
• Engage the entire family // I was baptized at the same time as my two parents and brother. It was a full family experience. What an honor! Your entire church can work together to encourage parents as they work with their kids through this important spiritual milestone. Talk about it in your children’s ministry and give parents tools to talk about it with their kids. Help parents respond well when their kids ask questions. Few churches have modeled this as well at North Point Ministries has with their Family Birthday Celebration. It’s an intentional strategy to help families leverage this key moment in their lives!
• Prepare for spontaneous baptisms // People are going to come to your baptism service and in that moment decide they need to get baptized. Be ready for them. Have everything they are going to need to make that happen: change of clothes, flip-flops, hair products, towels, a place to get ready and so on. Then let people know during your service that you are ready for them. Prepare a team of people to be ready to talk with folks who might want to be baptized. Don’t ask them to wait … don’t make them take some class … be ready to respond to what is happening in the moment. Ask the band to play another song and wait if people are still getting changed. As people see that you are ready for them, they will respond. It is a faith building experience to watch someone follow through and be baptized during a service when they didn’t anticipate it. [Elevation Church has put together a fantastic resource to help churches prepare for spontaneous baptisms … click here to download it!]

I think there are people at your church who are ready to be baptized. Serve those people by making it easier for them to take this bold step of faith! It’s our job to remove to the barriers. Make the right thing to do … the easiest thing to do. 

> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Baptism, Liquid Church, Rich Birch, Spontaneous Baptism

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Why Your Church Should Think Twice Before Going Multi-Site

by: Rich Birch

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The multi-site revolution is the biggest thing to happen to the broader church movement in my almost 20 years of ministry. I’ve personally been involved in the launch of 12 campuses—working on 2 more as we speak!—and I’ve coached a bunch of other leaders through the process.I’ve written a lot on the multi-site movement and I’m genuinely a fan of this approach to multiplication.

However, you might want to think twice before attempting this approach to multiplication at your church. Avoid going multi-site if the following applies to your church:

• You want to spur growth. // Going multi-site takes whatever is presently happening at your church and magnifies it. If your church is in decline, going multi-site won’t turn that around … it will probably push it further into decline. Take time to uncover why your church isn’t growing and focus on that before making the step towards multi-site. First nail it … then scale it.

• Empty seats at prime time. // When was the last time your “prime time” service was packed to the roof? A building bursting with people provides the relational dynamics needed when casting vision for launching your services. Years ago, I heard an early multi-site pioneer say that if you didn’t have 7 weekend services at your original campus, you shouldn’t go multi-site. Although that is extreme, the core idea is correct. If you don’t have full services, it’s difficult to convince people to head to a new location.

• Fuzziness on why people invite friends. // When launching your first campus, you’ll need to decide what to export to the new location. If there isn’t organizational clarity on what is most important, it will be difficult to make that transition smoothly. It doesn’t matter as much what leaders think needs to be exported—it matters what people in the church think is great about your church. Work hard to replicate that well.

• Leaders who don’t build systems. // There are some church leaders who look down on documentation and repeatable processes because they see them as less spiritual. Those leaders have a harder time making the transition to multi-site because the entire ministry is built on systems. You need people in your leadership who can care for people through structuring a nurturing environment and not just by meeting one on one with people. Leaders need to be able to scale their influence through building a systematic approach to ministry

• Ego-driven leaders. // If you are the sort of leader who needs to get credit for everything that happens, don’t go multi-site. If you are the sort of leader who needs every team to look to you for direction and answers, multi-site is not for you. One of the great paradoxes of multi-site is that it is often criticized because it elevates a few leaders over a larger number of communities. My experience is that leaders who thrive in multi-site are people who can empower, defer and encourage a wide variety of leaders. They give up control to allow their ministry to multiply. Think hard before you make this step: Are you willing to draw in other leaders and release the ministry over to them?

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts on why churches should avoid going multi-site! Join the discussion in the comments section below.

> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Church Growth, Multi-Site, Multiplication, Rich Birch

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9 Things You Can Learn from Skipping Out on Your Church This Sunday

by: Rich Birch

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When was the last time you took team members from your church to visit another church? Whether it’s across town or across the country, a well-planned visit to another church can make an impact on your team like nothing else. Here are some reasons I think you should “get outta here!” and go to another church soon!

• Conference Speakers Oversimplify // I coach and speak at conferences, and I’m confessing that everyone who speaks in those contexts makes it sound way easier that it actually is. The reality is that leading a growing, thriving church is a lot of hard work. Church leadership conferences present a sanitized and safe version of what it’s like to lead. When you see a church on a “normal” Sunday, it breeds hope because everything won’t be as perfect as when they host the leadership conference. An average weekend at a thriving church is what your team needs to benchmark against.

• New Contexts Give You New Insights // Just going to somewhere new gives you insights into what it’s like to lead at home. Sometimes this isn’t even at the church … just “getting out of Dodge” can help your team gain fresh insights on new directions for your church.

• Peer Relationships // Leading in a local church can be a lonely task at times. It’s true that relationships are at the core of what we do, but often we’re building relationships with people who we need something from, such as donors or volunteers. It’s a strange dynamic. Church leaders need peer relationships with people who serve in similar roles. Having someone to call when you face an issue could be the factor that accelerates your leadership. A person to talk with when you’re bummed about something at your church could help you keep pushing through until breakthrough.

• Life Goes on At Home // A few years ago, our leadership team had the privilege of visiting one of the fastest growing churches in the country. It was a great weekend of visiting campuses and interacting with inspiring leaders … but if I was honest, I was a little nervous about what would happen with all us of gone. It turned out to be a smooth weekend and everything went off without a hitch! Going away means handing off tasks to other people, forcing staff to prepare their teams and release the ministry. It also shows them that the ministry is larger than they are.

• Things Are Kind of the Same // Over the years I’ve had the privilege of visiting dozens of churches across North America. In each of these contexts leaders are proud to tell you what’s unique about the community they are reaching. They are clear on how their community is unlike any other in the country, maybe the world! Although it may be true, one of the things I’ve noticed is how similar the communities we serve are. The global dominant culture means that all of our communities have the same stores and restaurants … people listen to similar music … and they are talking about similar issues. This should be an encouragement for church leaders to borrow and adapt ideas from churches in other communities. I sometimes think we over-emphasize our ability to dissect our local culture and that hinders us from applying lessons from other churches.

• The Journey is Half the Fun // Friendships form during shared experiences. Your closest friends are people who you have had a bunch of experiences with. When you travel with other people, you are building a bunch of shared experiences … you’re having fun together! So many times on these trips it’s been the late-night conversations over a plate of nachos that have stuck with me. There’s something about team members seeing leaders in a casual setting that draws the whole team together. The process of getting there isn’t a hassle … it’s the point!

• Distance Makes The Heart Grow Fonder // Even when I’ve visited the most compelling “name brand” churches, I still come home thankful that I get to serve where I do. There are always aspects of other ministries that I wish we could just “copy and paste,” but on the whole I come home to our community with a deep thankfulness that I get to do this … with these people. The grass is green where you water it. Visiting other churches gives me a deeper sense of the mission God has called our church to.

• Dig into the Details // You can read about the “big concepts” and “strategies” of thriving churches. In fact, you will probably understand them before you arrive. But the difference between reality and what’s written in a book or on a blog is a series of very small details. The vision is in the details. It’s how the church you’re visiting executes its vision that creates traction. Look for the details.

• Worship … Without Run Sheets! // Finally, as church leaders we spend a lot of time serving other people. When you are visiting another church, you can participate … like a normal person, not having to worry about what’s coming up next or if the video fired correctly or any other details. It’s sad, but sometimes we have to get far away from our context to get this opportunity.

> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Rich Birch, Skipping Church, visiting another church

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Your Church is Struggling, But Do You Recognize It?

by: Rich Birch

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Often in church leadership we get so busy working “in the church” that it becomes harder to work “on the church”. We’re focused on making weekends happen and caring for people that we lose perspective on whether we’re seeing a difference in our community.

The reality is as church leaders we can be consumed with lots of activity but a lack of focus on pushing us forward.

Sometimes it’s hard to see if we’re making any difference and slipping into irrelevance. Here are a few early warning signs that your church might be struggling to fulfill it’s full redemptive potential.

• More Memories than Vision // A sure sign that your ministry is slipping into atrophy is when you pine for the “good ole days” or you look back fondly on what happened did years ago. If what has happened seems better than what is going to happen … you may be slipping into irrelevance. Is the view in your rear view mirror bigger than the one in the front window?
• No Sacrificial Giving to Next Generation // No one is going to pass on the message of Jesus to the next generation than you and your leadership. If you can’t identify the areas where you are preferring the next generation over your generation than you might be creeping towards your demise. Does your senior leadership team actively support and resource ministries with younger generations?
• Never Say No // A sure sign that a church has lost its way is that it’s lost it’s ability to discern what activities push it towards it’s mission and which don’t. The end result is a church with a lot of activity but no progress. Busyness does not equal effectiveness. Churches with clear vision are defined more by what they avoid doing than what they choose to do. When was the last time your leadership decided against a good idea to pursue the great one?
• Form Over Function // Organizations that have lost their grip on making a difference become more concerned with the “how” of ministry rather than “why”. Policies, procedures and past practice drive the activity of the church rather than the mission you are called to. This is a delicate balance because systems help churches grow … but if they become the obsession of leaders they will destroy your organization. Are you more concerned with the wineskin than the wine?
• Lack Faith Based Risks // Churches that make an impact are taking risks … actual risks. They put stuff on the line to accomplish what they believe God is calling them to. They step out in trust asking God to give them clarity for the next steps. When was the last time your pulse quickened because of something you risked as a church?
• You Don’t Eat Your Own Dog Food // If the staff of the church wouldn’t attend if they weren’t getting paid … it’s a sure sign something is seriously wrong. Why are you taking money from a church that you don’t love? What does that say about you?
• Narrow Donor Base // On a practical note … if there is a very small donor pool funding the mission of the church it’s a sign of the church’s inability to engage a broader community. Why hasn’t your church been able to connect with more than a handful of donors?

Read more from Rich here.

Tags: Leadership Engine, Recapturing Vision, Rich Birch

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What Churches Can Learn from the Cultural Influences of the Disney Organization

by: Rich Birch

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Over the years, I’ve had the privilege of taking a bunch of family vacations at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. I love it … partly because it’s such a fun place to visit and partly because I find leadership lessons everywhere I look. My family recently spent a week at WDW and it got me thinking about how it’s changed over the years and what those changes can teach me as I lead at my church. Disney is a big organization attempting to stay on the cutting edge of impacting culture. Here are a few of their changes that jumped out at me:

• Personalized Technology // In 2013, Disney rolled out a series of products under the banner of MyMagic+. This technology personalizes your vacation experience. You can book your ride times from home, before you even leave for vacation. A few of the newer rides create automatic digital souvenirs, which blend music, professional video and images of you on the ride. It’s reported that Disney has spent $1 billion to provide this sort of personalization to its guests.
  • How are you leveraging data to make a better experience for people? What if we celebrated people’s birthdays and anniversaries as they arrived at our services each week? What if we generated name tags for people with a scan of their license plates as they pulled into our parking lots?
• More Intimate Experiences // Disney recently finished the Magic Kingdom’s largest expansion in its history, with a completely redone Fantasyland. In the middle of many great new attractions is Enchanted Tales with Belle. It’s an almost 30-minute small group experience where you are face to face with Belle from Beauty and Beast while kids re-enact the story. Don’t miss this … Disney could have invested in a new show, ride or theater experience … but they chose to structure an incredibly intimate time where families interact directly with the story.
  • Growing churches need to fight the urge to move people into larger and larger crowds. How can you break your ministry into smaller communities to give intimate growth experiences? Where is the “mid-sized” community being developed at your church … between the large gatherings and small groups?
• Global and Local Expansion // I asked a long-time “cast member” at Disney World when the slowest time of the year is now. He commented that Disney has done a lot of global advertising to draw in guests from around the world, so there really isn’t a slow time of year due to varying vacation schedules. At the same time, WDW just opened a massive parking garage called Disney Springs as part of a new expansion project targeted at Central Florida residents and people vacationing at other Orlando attractions.
  • How is your church reaching out to “hard to acquire” first-time guests and more readily available “low-hanging fruit”? What’s a series of Sunday services that you could do to draw in a different demographic than you normally reach? (I love what The Meeting House is doing with some daring new ground in its series entitled ISIS, Islam, and Jesus … a great example of trying something new!) Who is the core community your church is perfectly tuned to reach? How can you reach more of those folks? (Have you heard of First Baptist Church at The Villages in Florida? This church is unashamedly reaching retired folks … check it out!)
• Increased Re-Rideability // Disney changes some of its rides so they are different every time you ride them. The Star Tours ride at Hollywood Studios has 54 potential variations in the story line. The Toy Story Maniaride is essentially a 3D video game that you travel through … begging guests to ride it again to increase their scores. The new Test Track ride at Epcot allows guests to design their own futuristic car and then see how it performs … again implicitly inviting guests to come back and tweak their designs. These changes are a far cry from the “It’s a Small World” generation of rides where guests experienced the same thing for decades.
  • Are you offering variety in your experiences so that people have a sense of anticipation when they come to your church? What is the balance between offering a repeatable experience that you can do with excellence and fresh experiences that keep people engaged? How are you adding elements of surprise and delight into what your church does to keep people interested and coming back?
• The Experience Before the Experience // Let’s be honest … a big part of a Disney World vacation is standing in line and waiting for something to happen. It’s a pretty ingenious business model really! I’ve noticed that throughout the park Disney attempts to make these “waiting” experiences as elegant and entertaining as possible. At the classic Haunted Mansion there is a bunch of new interactive elements designed to entertain and delight guests before they enter the ride. The queue for the brand new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride includes games and all kinds of fun stuff to do while you wait for your turn on the train. Even the Pinocchio Village Haus restaurant has menus with really cool animations to look like they are built by a cuckoo clock maker! All of these small sub-experiences help you enjoy the experience before the experience … whether that’s a $100 million roller coaster or a $10 chicken burger!
  • Where do people “wait” at your church? How can you add to those experiences to make them great? Can you get a volunteer to stand with folks as they check in their kids … maybe handing the kids treats or stickers? What happens before your service as people arrive? Could you do something in the foyer to welcome people and build anticipation?

>> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Rich Birch, Walt Disney, cultural influence

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Seth Godin Delivers 8 Key Insights for Church Leaders

by: Rich Birch

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Seth Godin is an American author, entrepreneur, marketer and public speaker. Over the years I’ve been inspired, challenged and shaped by Seth’s approach to communications and marketing. It was a dream come true to have an extended time with him … listening to what he is currently thinking about these topics. This post could have been 88 insights from Seth, but I’ve tried to boil it down to just a handful that I think are the most salient for church leaders today.

“People who settle are exposing themselves to huge risks.” 

• Seth commented that in a hyperlinked global culture choosing the “safe” path — the path of working for the industrial giants of the past — is risky. We need to be innovating or attempting something new to stay ahead in today’s culture. As a leader, am I choosing the “safe” path defined by the previous generation or am I doing whatever it takes to move forward?
• Take Away: How can churches take risks to impact our culture? What risks should you take this month to move your ministry forward?

“Gutenberg launched the printing press when 96% of the people in Europe were illiterate.” 

• Let this fact sink in for a minute: Gutenberg built a technology to solve a problem no one knew they had. If we’re going to reach people no other church is reaching, we have to do things that no one else is doing. What does extravagant innovation look like at your church? Why don’t churches have R&D departments devoted to pushing the envelope and making an impact in our culture?
• Take Away: What are we doing that no one else is doing to reach people no one else is reaching?

“We live in a world where people pay real money to raise invisible sheep!” 

• Seth used FarmVille, the online social media game where people “farm” virtual plots of land, as an example of an unpredictable outcome of today’s culture and market. Culture is shifting all around us … people are interacting in ways that weren’t conceived of 5 years ago … and we can’t dream of where we’ll be in another 5 years. I’ve always been struck by the fact that we overestimate how rapidly technology will change, but underestimate how quickly technological changes impact our society.
• Take Away: How are you staying an active learner to tap into where our culture is headed?

“If you can get someone to change … you are making art.” 

• A driving force behind Seth’s dialog was how we need to do things … make things … serve people … in a way that changes people. I was struck that this marketplace leader was talking about life change as an outcome. As church leaders, do we think enough about the “change” we’re shooting for with our programs and services?
• Take Away: What would happen if you started clearly articulating goals for how you want people to change with every interaction with your church?

“Anyone with a laptop is one click away from anyone else with a laptop.” 

• The great outcome of the information technology revolution isn’t that we have access to unlimited amounts of data … it’s that we have unlimited access to people. Technology is about enabling relationships. At its core, church is about connecting people.
• Take Away: How can we leverage technology to bring people together in our community?

“Treat different people … differently.” 

• One of Seth’s core messages was that today’s successful organizations market to smaller niches rather than the masses. The “television industrial complex” is dead. Stop trying to think about the global dominant culture and start trying to reach smaller circles. This is a challenge for church leaders, because we are largely focused on gathering larger crowds. We celebrate church leaders who are able to market themselves to as broad a demographic as possible. Are we rowing our boats in the wrong direction? Is the future about niche-ministries like Game Church and the house church movement?
• Take Away: When was the last time your leadership team talked about what “niche” you are trying to reach?

“You are yelling at people who think they have a problem that you can’t solve …” 

• Seth implored people to stop trying to “create the need” in people through marketing, and instead to find people with a problem and help them solve it. Marketing has traditionally attempted to foster discontent in an area and then introduce a product to deliver the solution. People have stopped listening to that sort of advertising … they see right through it. They need someone to help solve the problems they actually have.
• Take Away: Are we solving problems that our people perceive they have? Or are we trying to convince them that they have the problem we want to solve?

“After 100 years of poking people … some stuff stopped working so well.” 

• Seth had some comical old and odd advertisements for us to check out, like babies wrapped in plastic … starting drinking cola young … crazy sexist stuff … and doctors preferring Camels! Although these ads get laughs today, they also point to a cultural shift and a growing suspicion of marketing. People are sick of all the targeting, segmenting and marketing. Our role in communications today is to connect people together and share experiences, not to “sell” them on what we have in the warehouse.
• Take Away: What are we advertising at our churches today that we’re probably going to laugh at 5 years from now? (Be honest!) Should we stop it now to save ourselves embarrassment in the future?

>> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Communication, Rich Birch, Seth Godin, insights, marketing

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The Announcement Dilemma: 8 Reasons Your Congregation Tunes You Out During Announcements

by: Rich Birch

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This weekend all across the country people are going to get up in front of their churches and talk about upcoming events and opportunities to connect with community. They want to move their people to action but in reality a large portion of the room will simply tune out for that part of the service and then tune back in when something more interesting comes along. You know it’s true … because you’ve done it!

We get belligerent and blame the people for not engaging in the mission. Sort of like a shepherd blaming the sheep for not going to the right pasture. We need to understand why people are stopping to listen to shifting our behavior to help them connect with what we’re talking about … here are 8 reasons people aren’t listening to your announcements:

• What’s in it for them? // We want to get them to attend our event. We need volunteers for the upcoming thing. We have a need that we are hoping they will fill. We focus too much on what’s in it for us … but people are intrinsically motivated to pay attention to things that will positively impact them. Frame your announcements in a way that shows how what you are talking about is going to make a difference to them.
• Too Much Insider Language. // Why do church leaders love cute names for programs and acronyms? These are surefire way to alienate your audience because they need a dictionary to understand what all the different “special names” are for the events and programs at your church. Work hard to ensure that you use plain language that everyone can understand.
• You need to sell not market. // Marketing is about making sure that people understand about the features and benefits of your product or service. Sales is about working with people individually to overcome their objections and get them to sign on the dotted line. Church leaders think way too much about “marketing” to people when what you need to do is think about “selling”. Who is person that is going to talk to people directly about engaging with your church?
• No Heart. // Do you feel like yawning while you’re doing the announcements? Imagine what your people are thinking! If you don’t connect your message with their heart every once and while they will stop listening. People want to know why you are passionate about what you are talking about. Move beyond dates, times and locations to the big “why” behind what you are talking about that moves you emotionally.
• Too much noise. // You want your people to take away the teaching points from the message . . . to chew on what difference that will make in their lives for the coming week. Everything can just be noise. Every time you add another announcement you add exponentially reduces it’s effectiveness in breaking through. Two announcements are 30% as effective as one … three is 90% less effective as one. How are you ensuring that you are doing the minimal number of announcements possible to ensure maximum impact?
• Bad News Bill // Is it always the same person from the finance team that gets up once a month to tell the church how much they are behind on offering? People will learn to tune out that messaging quickly. If you are always the barer of bad news … people will stop listening. Don’t “candy coat” everything … but avoid using the public stage as the place to disseminate bad news.
• Wrong Audience. // If you are announcing the up coming hiker club trip to the wilderness on Tuesday afternoon . . . which maybe 2% of the audience could possibly attend . . . you are telling 98% of the audience to ignore you. By having announcements that only focus a small part of your community your are training your people to tune you out. If your announcement doesn’t impact 50% or more of the people in the room … why are you talking about it?
• Too Much Treadmill. // When was the last time you celebrated something fun that happened at your church? If you are always taking time to market what’s coming up next you are missing an opportunity to engage (and reward) people who have been involved in something already at the church. Celebrate your people and what they are doing . . . they’ll listen more.

>> Read more from Rich.

Tags: Attention, Awareness, Rich Birch, Sunday morning announcements

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15 Ideas to Help You Evaluate Your Church Bulletin

by: Rich Birch

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Recently I emailed some friends and asked them to grab their bulletins from their weekend services at their church and mail them to me. I was overwhelmed when just over 100 that arrived in my mailbox or email! It was so fun looking in at what’s going on at so many churches across the country. I asked for this bulletins because I wanted to learn from what other churches are doing to regularly communicate with their people through this channel. I’ve picked out some of the pieces that stood out to me and provided them here for you to check out as well. How are you leveraging your church bulletin (or program … or worship folder … or whatever you call it) to communicate with your people? I hope these inspire you to reconsider how you can make it better … I know it did for me! [You can download all 17 bulletins in one ZIP file.]

• It’s doesn’t have to be in full color. // You’ll notice that a number of the bulletins that I’m going to highlight use color to communicate but good design can go a long way with a black and white bulletin. I like what Beulah Alliance Church did with a custom printed stationary (with a stripe of color) and then the rest of it’s in B&W. [Good design is about thinking through how you place the information in an attractive manner … color is optional.]
• The Bigger the Church … The Smaller the Bulletin // I noticed that larger churches seem to limit more what is in the bulletin. Although these ministries have a lot to offer their their people … they narrow the focus of this piece exclusively on what people need to know to take their next step. This is a discipline that I think churches of all sizes should mimic. What actually needs to be in this piece? [North Point in Atlanta has over 25,000 people every weekend but they have one of the smallest bulletins I’ve ever seen!]
• Branded to the Message // The core of a great weekend service experience is the teaching. Many of the bulletins that caught my eye were designed around the message that the Pastor was giving that weekend. This helps to build anticipation in the people attending as well give a sense where the morning is going right from the moment they come in. [Check out how Celebration Church branded the bulletin to their Christmas Series.]
• Make Financials Easy to Understand // If you are going to communicate where your church is at financially make sure to communicate it in a way that is easily understood by non-numbers people. Many churches have “financial reports” in their bulletins but they aren’t clear what they are attempting to communicate. [Check out how simple Central Church made it to understand where they are at.]
• Pictures > Words // We live in an increasingly visual culture. It’s not that people can’t read … it’s just that they don’t. Find ways to add more pictures and images in your bulletin to communicate what you are trying to get across. Find some pictures of people from your church and include them in the bulletin. Use images to draw people’s eyes to what you want to communicate. [Check out how Christ Church of the Valley uses images to communicate!] NOTE: CCV’s bulletin is my favorite of all the ones I received. I love the short story about people being impacted by the church … love how clear what to do if I’m new … love how simply they communicate next steps.
• Repurpose Other Design Elements // Increasingly churches are using slides and graphics to support the announcements portion of the service. Why not take those images and reuse them in your program? If it’s a big enough deal to talk about from stage … it’s a big enough deal to take up more space in the bulletin and use that same slide. [Check out how Christ Community reuses it’s slides.]
• Take the Space to Make it Simple // Are you trying to introduce your people to something new? Take the space to make it super simple to understand. I noticed a number of churches are trying to get people to move to “Text to Give” services. It can be confusing for people who are doing it for the first time. [Notice how Christ Fellowship tried to simplify this process with a simple 4 step process.]
• More is Not Better // Rampant across many of the bulletins I received was just way too much information. If you are ever thinking to yourself “How small of a font can I use and still have people read it?” … you have way too much in your bulletin. So many bulletins had literally dozens and dozens of “calls to action” contained within them … people can’t respond to all that! If you make everything “special” and put it in your bulletin … nothing will be special. [This was a noble attempt by Creekside church to inform people about everything that is going on at their church … but I think it gets lost in how many different things are communicated!] I’d be tempted to slip in an announcement in that bulletin that offers to give people a free $10 iTunes gift card to the first 10 people who read and respond to see if people are actually reading all that. [Doncaster Church is another example of this issue.]
• Declare Your Strategy // Can you articulate your approach to ministry in a straight forward way that makes sense to people who are reading it for the first time? The bulletin is a great place to communicate to your guests how your ministry “works” and what their next steps are. [I think First Baptist Spartanburg does a great job summarizing their 4 fold strategy in their bulletin.] I love the reflective questions listed … they engage people in self reflection and invite them into the mission.
• Perforated Response Cards // Many of the programs that stood out to me had perforated parts for people to tear off and respond. This is an effective way to follow up with first time guests or collect information on how people are reacting to the service. [Check out how First Christian has a “week specific” response tear off that lines up with the announcements for that weekend.] They were looking for people to volunteer with transportation and a Christmas project and had a simple check box response form to respond to those asks.
• Discipleship Embedded Bulletin // What if the bulletin was a discipleship piece? What if it offered help for people and didn’t just try to get something from people? [I dig how Genesis Church has a Bible reading and reflection plan right in their bulletin!]
• Don’t Have a Bulletin! // A number of the friends that I asked to send me something told me that they’ve dropped the bulletin all together. There is a trend of moving away from this printed piece as just sending out a weekly email or maybe hosting it on a blog. Churches are opting out of the bulletin for cost savings, environment stewardship and effectiveness. [Here is an example from a Harvest Bible Chapel of the email that they send out to their entire database every week.]
• Best Use of a Beard // [I love the cover of Open Door’s Bulletin.] Too much fun.
• Help Your Guests Know What to Expect // When I was a kid I remember using the “bulletin” to try to figure out how much longer I had to sit through the service .. our church had the entire order of service printed in it. It seems like most churches have wisely moved away from this sort of “service order” listing in their program … however there is still value in helping your guests anticipate what is going to happen. Not knowing what is going to happen during the service is particularly nerve wracking for a first time guest! [Check out how South Point clearly defines what’s happening at their service.]
• Contextual Contact Information // Who should your guests talk to when they need help at your church? Often churches seem to make it hard to find contact information on the various key leaders that guests should connect with if they have questions. [I like how obvious Sugar Grove Church makes it to find contact information for various departments.] Help people connect with people … not departments. Give out contact information for actual people! [I love how The Meeting House provides the direct cel phone number of their campus pastor right on their program … that campus is a few thousand people … and you can call the Campus Pastor directly.] (Try it! Tell Matt I say hi!)

I’d love you to provide a link to your bulletin (or program!) in the comments section. What do you think your piece does particularly well? At my church we focus our bulletin totally on the first time guests … I don’t think our “regulars” look at bulletin at all. We used to have this cool “story of us” on the inside of our program every week for about 18 months. I liked that piece because I think it brought people up to speed quickly on who we are. I also like our current version of “what to expect” … I think it makes it pretty clear what is about to happen for our guests. I’d love to hear about yours!

>> Read more from Rich here

Tags: Attention, Awareness, Brand, Rich Birch

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6 Gut-Check Questions to Ask When Your Ministry Seems Stuck

by: Rich Birch

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We’ve all had ministries or programs in our church that aren’t going well. They lack critical mass to make the sort of impact we are looking for. They seem just a little stale and past their prime. Your people are “voting with their feet” and not showing up to the ministry like they used to. Rather than get bitter about this reality … our job as leaders to make things better! Here are some questions that you could use to evaluate that ministry you suspect is losing traction:

• Can you clarify the why? // People in your church need to have a clear sense of “why” this program or ministry is a vital part of their spiritual journey. When you communicate about it make sure to spend more time talking about the “benefit” of the ministry to them rather than just the “features” of it. Don’t just tell people that the student ministry meets on Sunday evenings and includes a great small group experience … explain to parents and students that your ministry is designed to help students wrestle with the issues of faith, make friends and be influenced by great adult leaders. People won’t engage with something if they are unclear how it will benefit them.
• Do you need to reduce the internal competition? // Don’t make your ministries compete for the time, resources and attention from your community. Make sure that you aren’t asking your people to do multiple things at the same time. Cancel everything else where people might be choosing that over the ministry you value. People get to the point of “ask fatigue” … you can only ask so much from them. Clear the calendar and your people’s “head space” to be available for your ministry.
• How can you listen to your people more? // Have you taken time to listen to your people about why they aren’t attending your ministry? Grab a few “opinion leaders” in the group you are trying to serve and take them out for a meal … people rarely refuse a “free meal” … and ask them why people aren’t engaging with the ministry. Send out a digital survey to the people you are trying to serve and ask them open ended questions about what they are looking for from your ministry. [Use tools like SurveyMonkey, Wufoo or Google Forms] Listen carefully to what people are saying … try not to prejudice them with your thoughts on the “what and how” of the ministry.
• Have you used enough channels to communicate with people? // How many different ways do you communicate to people about the ministry? Chances are you need to increase the messaging to your people. If people aren’t complaining that they are hearing too much from you … you aren’t communicating enough. If you are relying on just one or two ways of getting the message to them … you aren’t communicating enough. (Oh yeah … Sunday morning announcements doesn’t count as a communications channel … it’s a terrible way to reach your people.) Usually higher friction forms of communication get better traction. Gather a group of committed volunteers and call people to let them know about the upcoming event. Arm a group of people to “lobby surf” on Sunday to find potential candidates for your ministry. Good ole’ fashion snail mail still works … send them a snappy direct mail piece!
• Do we have the wrong leadership in place? // Would you follow the leader who is leading this ministry? Are they trained and equipped to do the role that you’re asking them to do? Sometimes in churches we have a tendency to just put in “available” people rather than the right leaders. You might need to switch the person leading the ministry to gain the traction you are looking for. Every ministry area needs to be lead by people who attract other people. At the most basic level … if people don’t want to be around the leader it’s hard for the ministry to gain traction.
• Is it time for a gut check? // Would you be a part of this ministry if you weren’t in leadership at the church? Do people you really care for “opt out” of the ministry and you’re okay that they are missing it? Are you having to generate a bunch of internal energy to convince yourself it’s worthwhile? Maybe the best thing to do is just to cut this ministry or program and find a new approach to impacting people?

Great churches are defined more by what they don’t do than by what they do. How have you gone about evaluating ministries in your church and whether they should continue?

Tags: Evaluating Ministry, Evaluation, Questions, Rich Birch

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