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Christmas is days away, so it is time to make a plan to ramp up for high attendance season. Remember that un-churched people are very receptive to coming to church during this time.
If you had 15 seconds to describe why folks should come to your church this season, what would you say? Be sure you emphasize that in all of your communication channels. This is the best time of year to connect with hearts and emotions. This is where personal testimonies and stories can hit a home run. Stories about how families can make Christmas more special, or how giving in time or money changed a life. It is the ideal time to let folks know church is the place to be to have a more meaningful 2020.
10 Publicity Tips
TIP #1: WORD OF MOUTH is the best publicity. Create a culture of invitation; most of the time people will come to church if they are invited.
TIP #2: Create Facebook events and get members to share them on their personal pages. With a few social media champions you could create a virtual ‘street team’ to leverage all social media platforms available.
TIP #3: Post a simple video or do a brief Facebook LIVE broadcast, by previewing rehearsals or holiday decorating with an excited spokesperson encouraging them to attend. Better yet, have a child invite people to come—who could resist? There are many free Christmas videos you might use to engage people before and during the season.
TIP #4: Purchase a Facebook ad (pay per click) at very low cost or “boost” a FB post that you have already created. You can even choose the criteria of those you want to receive it on their news feed.
TIP #5: Submit events to community calendars, local media or Chamber and put flyers on area bulletin boards. Get your people jazzed about everything by posting a poster in the bathroom stalls; you even call it the Stall Street Journal!
TIP #6: When you post pictures from rehearsals and behind-the-scenes prep to generate excitement and #tag as many people as possible.
TIP #7: Create engagement by asking questions on social media such as Share your favorite holiday traditions or recipes. These are popular conversation starters that folks might also “SHARE” if particularly moving or funny.
TIP #8: Schedule plenty of childcare helpers and mention childcare in all your publicity.
TIP #9: Be accessible; if your church office closes early for the holidays, forward calls or ask some loyal volunteers to be available to those that decide at the last minute to attend a church event.
TIP #10: Be creative. Put a banner on a visible drive-by area of your campus, or hand out yard signs for members to place on their lawns as reminders to folks passing by. Maybe create a family photo booth in the next week or two and encourage them to “share” holiday hoopla in their digital neighborhood. Some churches get creative with flash mobs in public places, free gift wrapping services or handouts at holiday parades. If you church has a relationship with preschools or schools in the area, see if you can send a half page flyer about holiday activities at church to the kids’ home via backpack express.
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