Good Friday is fast approaching, and many church leaders are scrambling to get online services set up so they can preach and celebrate with their congregants. There’s only one problem: it’s tough to get congregants to attend Good Friday online services in the first place.
But just because people are lukewarm about using live streaming and other tools to digitally attend church doesn’t mean it’s impossible to get them to show up and connect with one another. Let’s go over some useful strategies you can employ to get your congregants to attend a Good Friday online service even if they’ve never used Zoom or live streaming before.
Why are online Church services important?
With COVID-19 still affecting many communities, it’s more important than ever for churches to continue to practice social distancing so their members can stay safe and healthy. Online services can help church leaders connect with members, particularly for important services like Good Friday.
Even when COVID-19 is fully gone, online services will likely still be important. They’ll help churches reach out to distant members and make sure everyone can feel included during important services even if some folks can’t attend in person.
Ways to boost online Good Friday service attendance
But many church leaders already know that it’s hard to get people to attend online services, even for days as important as Good Friday. Fortunately, you can boost online Good Friday service attendance through a few smart strategies.
Social media marketing
One great idea is to use social media marketing through platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. All of these platforms are used by millions of people each day, so they’re great channels to reach out to followers and announce the date and time of your online Good Friday service. You can even include extra information about what software or platforms will be used for the convenience of your church members.
But you don’t have to make a bland post with just text. You can use graphic design software platforms like PosterMyWall to create gorgeous digital posters and flyers, perfect for announcing an upcoming service or church meeting.
Mention that you’ll include live streaming
Regardless of how you announce your upcoming online service, be sure to mention that you’ll include a live streaming component. Churchgoers like to feel as though online services connect them to their fellow members and their pastors or other leaders.
Live streaming is a way to remotely connect to your followers and make sure everyone in a church service can see everyone else. It’s a safe replacement for in-person meetings.
Offer tutorials teaching how to use tech
Lots of churchgoers might feel a little trepidation at having to use software platforms to attend a church service, no matter how badly they may want to go. You can alleviate some of this worrying by offering tutorials to your followers.
Help them learn how to use platforms like Skype, Zoom, and other software so they feel comfortable logging into your Good Friday service when the date and time finally arrives. Making sure that everyone knows how to use the software you plan to leverage for your service will also help you begin things on time without having to play technical support for an hour after service starts.
Start a YouTube channel
Want to spread the good word and show people how you can provide digital guidance and spiritual connection online before your online Good Friday service? Start your official church YouTube channel and you’ll be able to prove your point in style.
Not only is a YouTube channel a great way to show a proof of concept for an online or distance service, but you can also make regular videos to advertise your church and bring in new members over time. YouTube is more than just a video platform to host cat videos. It can be a great social and marketing hub for your church as well, especially if your members comment on your videos!
Use email newsletters
Writing letters to church members is a tried-and-true tradition, and you can continue that in the digital sphere by using email newsletters instead. Email newsletters are often more cost-effective, too – you can write a few basic email newsletter templates and send dozens or hundreds of emails with the touch of a button.
Plus, email newsletter platforms and tools allow you to customize your emails to different people, schedule regular email messages on a weekly or monthly basis, and more.
Email newsletters are great for connecting to church members and reminding them of upcoming events, like an online and live stream Good Friday service or Bible study meeting. You can even send out email newsletters to people who aren’t yet confirmed to attend, potentially boosting your attendance in the process.
Text reminders are easy and direct
Another great way to boost Good Friday attendance is to use text reminders. You can do this yourself by punching in every member’s phone number manually, or you can use SMS platforms, which allow you to send mass text messages to an entire congregation.
Even better, MMS platforms allow you to include multimedia like audio and photos, improving your message and adding a little flair to the call to congregate. What better way to drive engagement and to get people talking than starting up an old-fashioned text message chain?
All in all, you can use massive texting services to:
- Announce important information about an upcoming online service, such as the start date and time and the platform on which it will run
- Call for fundraising or other assistance
- Follow up on any missing church members, especially if they’re just a little late for your Good Friday online service
- Send daily or weekly reminders to church members, or sending Bible verses and other messages from time to time
Run smaller events outside Sunday service
While Good Friday is a great occasion to hold church outside of a regular Sunday service, you don’t have to do this just for the day of Christ’s sacrifice. Indeed, you can hold smaller events outside Sunday service all the time, such as a middle of the week Wednesday service for people who have to work on the weekends and more.
In fact, holding events outside of Sunday service more often will help to drive engagement and get people to attend special events like a Good Friday service. The more often people engage with your church and hang out with its members, the more likely they’ll be to come to Good Friday and other big events since they’ll feel more like members of the community.
Make eye-catching digital flyers
You can’t go wrong with making some attractive digital fliers to advertise your upcoming service. Good news; you don’t have to have a degree in graphic design to make gorgeous flyers that would look at home in any professional marketing campaign.
In total, PosterMyWall allows you to customize 22,190+ church flyer templates, so you’re sure to find something perfect for your upcoming service. Try PosterMyWall today and see what else it can help your church achieve!
Senior editor at PosterMyWall.
