You work hard to create programs for your youth ministry programs. But how do you build attendance when kids’ schedules are packed with soccer games, music lessons, and other activities? 

A strong youth ministry is an important component of building a family-friendly community. It’s easier for parents to attend church events when their kids are engaged. And when the kids enjoy church programs, families are more likely to become active members. And when kids hear other kids talking about how much fun they have at church events, you just might attract those kids and their parents too.

Whether it’s for your children’s or teen ministries, we’re here to help! In this article, we discuss tactics for promoting your youth ministry programs so that you can boost attendance at your youth events and build lasting connections with the kids and teens in your congregation.

Create activities that are fun

Yes, religious education is important. But a good way to turn kids into regular participants is to host fun activities.  

And face it, no amount of promotions will draw people to your events if the word on the street is that your activities aren’t fun.

Here is a list of activities your youth groups might try:

• Movie and game nights.
• Ice Cream Sundae parties during service.
• Themed arts and crafts projects like rock painting or tie-dying t-shirts.
• Icebreaker games, such as “Two Truths and A Lie” where one person shares three things about themselves – two truths, and one lie- and then everyone else tries to guess which one is the lie by asking questions. 
• Faith-based activities, such as a “Bible Scavenger Hunt” around the church with biblical references as clues.
• “Bible Trivia” where the team with the most correct answers is recognized with a prize. 
• Holiday-related activities such as Easter egg hunt and Christmas wreath decorating. 
• Service projects such as singing for the residents of nursing homes and collecting toys for families in need at Christmas time. 
• Bible storytime for all ages.

Talk up your events

One of the best and easiest ways to promote an event is through word-of-mouth marketing. All you have to do is talk about the event–as often as possible and with as much positive energy as possible.

It seems too good to be true, but word-of-mouth marketing really does work. When people hear a message from someone they trust, they give that message far more weight than something they see on a poster. Plus, enthusiasm is contagious. If you show them that you’re excited about your event, they’ll be excited too.

To make this even more effective, create a word-of-mouth marketing team. Invite other ministry leaders and everyone involved with planning the event to assist you by telling everyone they know about the event as well. Ask your Sunday school teachers to talk your event up with their classes.

You can even share a short list of talking points to help everyone on your team articulate how fun the event is going to be and what they can expect to experience when they attend.

A key time to use word of mouth is during church announcements. Ask your most charismatic speaker to make the presentation. Then, bring the event up whenever you socialize with other church members. Try, “Are your kids going to the Sunday Sundae event next week? This year they’re going to…” And don’t forget the kids. Remind them to tell their friends that they’re going and ask who else is going to be there with them.

Create old-school posters and flyers

Posters and flyers are still very important for informing your community about your youth ministry program. Visually appealing, concise, and strategically placed print collaterals will communicate the right information to the right audience, generating leads for your ministry.

Using PosterMyWall, you can design eye-catching posters for your ministry in minutes. Customize church poster templates by adding fun graphics, bold colors and fonts, your contact information (phone number, email, etc.), and a QR code that leads the audience to a sign-up form or a webpage with more information about the youth ministry program. Then you can repurpose this poster design to create flyers through the ‘copy and resize’ feature in the PosterMyWall editor.

You can even arrange a poster-making activity for kids where they unleash their creativity to make hand-made posters. This will also help get them invested in attending.

Place the posters inside the church, in areas frequented by a lot of people, and around the community. As for flyers, you can distribute or mail them to houses in nearby neighborhoods. 

Reach out to parents by email

The easiest way to grow your youth programs is to connect with parents. After all, parents are the gatekeepers of their kid’s schedules and often the ones who drive them to and from activities. The children who attend church as a family activity are likely to grow into teens, and young adults who cherish being a member of the church community. 

A good way to communicate with the parents of school-age children and teens is via email. Create an email newsletter to regularly communicate with and promote your programs to the parents of young children.

Always include a concise and compelling subject line that catches your audience’s attention and prompts a click. Try to make it clear that the email is about an event for their kids that they’ll truly enjoy attending.

People are busy, so keep it short and stick to the information that is most pertinent at that time. Your most important messages should come first so that people see what you want them to see upfront.

Create short headlines that summarize each event so anyone skimming the newsletter will be able to easily find the events that interest them the most.

Content you can include in your newsletter:

• Highlights and pictures of previous church events.
• The schedule of upcoming youth services and events. 
• Testimonials from parents and children about how the youth ministry has enriched their lives. 
• A list and schedule for your church’s ongoing youth programs and services.

Designing emails is fast, affordable, and convenient with email marketing tools like PosterMyWall. With hundreds of professionally designed church email templates, you can customize your newsletter to reflect the personality of your church and send it to your mailing list directly from PosterMyWall. PosterMy Wall’s features are easy to use so your email will be designed and ready to send in minutes.

Connect through social media

Most parents try to limit their kids’ screen time. Considering this, your social media outreach efforts should mostly be geared towards parents but also visually appealing to their teens and kids (in case they see your content in their feeds or the parents decide to share the post with them). Conduct surveys and focus groups with parents of young members of your church community to determine whether they’d like your outreach targeted to them, their kids, or both. 

You can add youth ministry-related content on the church’s feeds or create separate social media accounts for the youth ministry if you have enough resources to maintain it.

Incorporate bright colors, eye-catching fonts, fun graphics, and photos of kids having a great time in your social media content. With PosterMyWall, you can easily create visually compelling graphics and videos, including social media content, to promote your church. Browse through the church social media templates, select the ones that resonate with your church, and customize them to convey your messages. Then you can publish your designs to your social media accounts directly from PosterMyWall. 

Create a committee of parents that are in charge of and review all content targeted towards kids. Teens have access to social media, but you should still respect their parents’ preferences in terms of how your socials are used and the content you create for them. 

Post engaging content on social media regularly to attract and retain the attention of your audience. For instance, you can share information about upcoming events, pictures, and videos from past events showing how much fun the kids who attended had. You might also post videos of young people sharing their experiences with the ministry. 

Parents like to know how their kids benefit from participating in your youth ministry programs. Be sure your posts highlight educational value and skills practiced–in addition to the fun they’ll be having with their peers. 

It’s important to actively interact with your audience. Here are some ways you can do so:

• Periodically host live Q&A sessions. Invite pastors and youth ministry leaders to announce upcoming programs and address any parent questions. 
• Set up FAQs in your social media chats and on your website to answer any common questions someone might have regarding your youth ministry. 

Make the youth feel valued 

Another way to increase participation in your church youth ministries is to make young members feel like valuable members of your church community. Learn the interests and talents of each kid and teen, then provide them with opportunities to utilize their skills at church. This will make the current members of your youth ministry feel like integral members of the church community. It will also help get people talking about your church in a positive way, which can attract new visitors.

For example, invite a budding young writer to assist in creating your newsletter. Aspiring artists can design posters and graphics to promote church events. Bakers and cooks can help cook meals and bake treats for church events. Anyone with musical talent can play their instrument or sing at church events.

Additionally, encourage young church members to bring their friends to ministry activities. They’ll love sharing their experience with their friends and may return with their parents. 

Make your events easy to attend

Eliminating attendance hurdles helps increase attendance. 

Ideas for making it easier for kids to events include:

• Check the schedules of local and school events before you set your dates. The fewer alternative activity choices families have, the easier it is for them to attend your event. 
• Create programs for days when school is closed. This will give working parents an alternative to hiring childcare.
• Set up a ride-pool for anyone who has transportation issues. This will help out kids whose parents’ work schedules make it hard for them to attend events. 

Final thoughts

If your ministry offers great activities and events for kids in an inclusive environment, you have to promote it with graphics and videos that convey that. Just make sure that you use the channels your congregation prefers and incorporate their preferences in the content.

With the tips and tools discussed in this article, you’ll be able to build a robust youth ministry where the parents trust you with their kids and the kids are excited to keep coming back.