We know that churches are flocking onto Facebook in droves. If you’re part of the drove, we’ve got something for you…

We’re introducing a Facebook church media set. This set includes the following:

• Facebook Church PowerPoint
• Blue Rays Bulletin Cover
• Facebook Church Video

Click to watch the video.

This collection of church media will help to spread the word regarding your church’s Facebook site. You can use the video during your service pre-reel. Alternately, if you use PowerPoints stills before the service, you can use the PowerPoint file to display the good news. The PowerPoint features several variations of the Church Facebook design.

Click here to see the set and download. You must be a Sharefaith member to use this resource. Click here to sign up for a Sharefaith membership.

Churches are all over social media, which is a good thing. But are they doing social media right? That’s another question altogether. In many cases, sadly, the answer is “no.” Churches plus social media has often gone woefully awry. In an effort to prevent your church from careening over the precipice of a social media bad practice, we’re going to tell you what those bad practices are… It’s up to you to avoid them.

• Forgetting that you’re on social media. We touched on this issue in last week’s article about Twitter (Ten Ways the Pastor Can Use Twitter). It bears repeating. In many cases, churches jump on the social media bandwagon, simply to have a presence. And then, behold! they forget about it. This results in a torrent of other bad practices.
• Neglecting to use social media for its intended purposes. Do you know why your church is on Facebook? Besides trying to be relevant and appeal to the social media lovers of your congregation, you’re using it as a communication tool. So, communicate. Many church Facebook pages have a sad and dormant life. There is no activity. No updates. No nothing. Go ahead and liven it up a bit. (How long, really, does it take to announce the topic of Sunday’s sermon?) If you have it, use it.
• Not responding to people’s inquiries on social media. Here’s where it gets bad. Say an interested person wants to head over to your church worship service on Sunday. So, he finds you on Facebook and sends a message or posts on your wall or discussion board. What if you don’t respond? Customer service fail! Your church’s involvement on social media is a major aspect of your church’s testimony/reputation. Do a good job with it.
• Not drawing a clear line between an individual and an institution. So who are you on Twitter? Are you an individual tweeting about your love of the Greenbay Packers and shrimp grits, or are you a church, tweeting about an upcoming Parenting Seminar? Don’t blur the line. Sure it’s fine for churches to be winsome or occasionally whimsical on social media, but let people know who you are. If you want to be a tweeting pastor, fine. Let it be so. But if you want to be a tweeting church, your tweets will probably have a different flavor.
• Going berserk with social media ad nauseum. If some churches don’t do anything on social media, there are some churches that do way too much. A tweet now and then is wonderful. But forty tweets in one hour is too much. Facebook status updates coming through all day long can get tiring. (People will block you from their newsfeed.) Use social media platforms strategically.
• Being too salesy with your message. Remember, your church is not a vendor selling an event or product. Your church is a community of believers. Although social media can be a helpful “marketing” platform (I use the “m” word cautiously), it is best to avoid a marketing-style approach to social media. In other words, avoid this style of approach: “COME TO CHURCH THIS SUNDAY TO HEAR OUR AWESOME BAND. WE ROCK!!!” Or, “Community Church of the City – serving the best coffee this side of Seattle … for FREE!” Or “Sermon Coming this Sunday–the secrets you always wanted to know but never heard about your marriage!” It gets trite, cheap, and a bit loathsome. I’d be tempted to unlike you. Even if you do have good free coffee.
• Ignoring the conversation. If you’re on social media, you ought to be listening to what’s being said about you. Many companies maintain an excellent customer service presence simply by keeping up with what their customers are saying about them. On Twitter, all you have to do is a quick search of your Twitter name. Immediately, you’ll pull up a list of everyone who has retweeted you, commented about you, etc.
• Ignoring the “social” part of social media. It’s easy to think of social media as a one way street:  you going where you want to go. But it’s not a one-way street, especially for churches. A big part of social media is the whole ‘social’ thing. If you’re on social media, be sociable. Retweet. Comment. Interact. Make friends. Fraternize. Fellowship. Don’t be an island. Be a sociable church on social media.
• Offer something of value. Few people will be a proud participant in your church’s social media experience unless you are actually giving something back. Essentially, this means remaining appropriately active on your social media platform. For example, keep people informed, tweet Scripture or inspiring quotes, provide a forum for prayer requests, post event pictures, other something like that. Give people a reason to interact on your social media forums.

Social media works, even for churches. But you’ve got to help it along. Part of doing that is avoiding these tragic social media mistakes. Did we miss anything? What would you add?

Read more articles on church social media.

Are you a Tweeting pastor or church leader? If you’re anything like me, you may have joined Twitter once upon a time just because it was all the rage, and after sending one or two test Tweets, realized it wasn’t for you and quickly found a different techno hobby. I didn’t start using Twitter aggressively until just a year or so ago. Now, I have a small following and I follow more people than I can possibly keep up with. I even tweet three our four times a day. Recently, I did a little experiment on Twitter, and I want to tell you about some things I discovered.

In preparation for this article, I decided to pull some tips from the audience. So, I sent a direct message to fifty of my followers. It was a simple, polite and personal inquiry, seeing if they had any tips to proffer for today’s post. Out of fifty personal messages, guess how many responses I got within 42 hours.

Two.

Not a whole lot of response for fifty messages. Which is fine, of course. People are busy. However, to preface the list of ten ways the pastor can use Twitter, one thing needs to be said. If you are a tweeting pastor or if you tweet for a church, make it a point to be active. My test mimicked and corroborated the CMS work, which reports that “Churches Aren’t Paying Attention on Twitter.” Admittedly, with so many different types of accounts, each one with its own set of messages, inquiries, updates, and push notifications, it’s hard to keep up with it all. Nonetheless, responding to direct messages is important.

Twitter is an optional tool for pastors or churches. If you’re going to use it, then stay engaged. If you choose not to use it, then disable your account to prevent confusion.

So, without further ado, here are ten ways that pastors can use Twitter.

1. To provide encouraging quotes. Here’s a classic use of Twitter (and Facebook for that matter). Quotes. They’re everywhere! In fact, Charles Spurgeon has four Twitter accounts, and every one of him is tweeting his quotes! A good quote from a big name will go viral in seconds, getting retweeted by anyone who got a buzz from it. There can be something a bit cheap about too many quotes all the time, but nonetheless, edifying others with biblical quotes is a good way to use Twitter. Be advised, however, that theology in 140 characters or less runs the risk of reductionism.
2. To link to edifying articles. Twitter is also helpful for posting links. You can even tweet the amazing articles on Sharefaithblog.com.
3. To quote Scripture verses. A helpful snippet of Scripture now and then is also a good way to use Twitter. Since you’re limited to 180 characters or less, you must be selective.
4. To announce Sunday’s sermon topic. Help people anticipate Sunday’s message by sharing your sermon title, sermon text, or a thought from the upcoming sermon. For that matter, announcements of any kind are fair game for Twitter updates.
5. To share prayer requests. Use discretion here. Don’t tweet personal prayer requests. The following is an example of a very bad Tweet:  ”Pray 4 Beth. She told me she wants 2 divorce Joe.” Here is an example of a good tweet: “Today, pause and pray for the more than 140mil orphans in the world.”
6. To learn from others. Twitter is not a one-way street. Besides being “followed,” you should make it a point to follow others. In fact, it’s a nice Twitter courtesy if  you follow a user who follows you. (Of course, you don’t have to.) You can also follow Tweeters from whom you want to learn–say, a pastor you respect or a theologian whose blog is brimming with valuable stuff. Follow other tweeters to learn from them.
7. To listen to others. Twitter is a conversation. Sure, everyone’s talking at once, talking over people’s heads, talking about a million different things, and doing it all with mere keystrokes. However, there is some cohesiveness to the conversation. For you, the pastor, it’s a way to keep your pulse on the culture, to find out how different people think, and to learn from the electronic jabber that fills peoples minds. It’s another way for you to connect with your people. Listen and learn.
8. To open up doors of discipleship and edification. Some people will tune you out within thirty seconds of your sermon. No joke. But some people will give you a few seconds to read your Tweet. It may seem silly, but Twitter is the world where some people live. It is a primary source of communication and interaction for them. For you to be on Twitter is for you to have access to this kind of person in a whole new way. Being on Twitter can open up a fresh chance for discipleship and edification that you didn’t have before.
9. To be real. Now, you may think it’s silly to say that a pastor can be “real” by using Twitter. Isn’t Twitter an artificial mode of communication? Not at all. Twitter is genuine human exchange of thoughts and ideas. A pastor is too often perceived as merely the guy who gets up every Sunday and gives a talk. However, if you’re on Twitter, people may think, “Huh. So Pastor John is on Twitter. That’s cool. Maybe I’ll follow him and see what’s up.” When they do, you’ve gained another connection point with them whereby they can see that you’re more than just the guy on the platform every Sunday.
10. To be salt and light. Twitter is a worldwide platform. Anyone can see what you tweet. Anyone can see whom you follow. Anyone can find out who follows you. Thus, Twitter provides yet another way that we can demonstrate Christlike living in our culture. This doesn’t mean we must try to “redeem” Twitter and wrest it from the hands of people whose Tweets issue forth iniquity. Nor does it mean that every tweet has to be a Bible verse or Christian quote. It simply means that we, as Christians–as pastors–can use this tool in a God-honoring way.

Finally, to come full circle to my opening gripe, let me issue this repeat caution. If you get on Twitter, use Twitter. If it’s not your thing, please don’t feel bad. You don’t have to use Twitter to be an effective pastor. It may be that Twitter is downright distracting for you. Let it alone.

I want to give a shout out to John Manna, a drummer brother from Canada who successfully uses Twitter. Here are his valuable contributions to the conversation. You can tell I learned from his list as I prepared mine.

• Be authentic. Be yourself. Your people know who you really are in person. Don’t try to be someone you’re not on Twitter. (Tell them what you’re eating for breakfast, take a pic and upload it, etc…)
• Network with other pastors around the world. You can follow the “bigger guys” and gain insight and leadership ideas from their world.
• Don’t use it for self-promotion. Instead, promote others that you’re following; let others know who they should follow and why (the benefit of following them).
• Contribute to the Twitter community. Join in on a discussion and give your input. (Share relevant links, point people to solutions, etc…)
• Share what’s coming up with in your next sermon series, church event, concert, etc… . This is different that self promotion, as you are contributing what might be of interest/benefit to others.
• Listen to the conversation. This will give you great sermon material and will put you in line with today’s culture, society.
• Get Feedback. I once threw out a question to my Twitter community that was going to be used in my message the next Sunday. Got great feedback and perspective on the subject (3 reasons why you won’t go to church).

Would you like to contribute to the conversation, too? Follow Sharefaith on Twitter or on Facebook, or better yet, become a member of our high-value worship media library.

The social media phenomenon has been around for quite a while now, and it continues to divide people up into at least two categories: fans and detractors. Whether we acknowledge it or not, social media has affected all of us, and we are all subject to it to some extent. Gospel Coalition members Collin Hansen, Justin Taylor, and I talked about some aspects of social media in this video.

But this does not settle the deeper personal question:  Are we good at using social media? Or are we distrustful of it? In short, are we a guru or a Luddite? Because I’m sure many folks are confused—and distressed about this confusion—it might help to work carefully through a quiz about social media to help you determine your stance. This is in the light and airy tradition of New Yorker quizzes and others, and, hey, it’s all in good fun.

So here goes. Self-discovery, thy name is quiz.

Section One:
Yes/No (1 point for yes; -1 for no)

1. Do you have a Facebook profile?
2. Do you have a Twitter profile?
3. Do you have a personal blog?
4. Have you ever notified your social network about a meal you ate?
5. Do you want to notify your social network about a meal you ate? (Answer why in the essay portion below.)
6. Have you recently set up a meeting/lunch on someone’s public Facebook “wall” instead of sending a “message” (or, perish the thought, an “email”)?
7. Do you talk bad about blogs and bloggers—and then skim several blogs to see what’s happening online? (if yes, -5)
8. Do you regularly shun person-to-person contact to update your profile photo and interests?
9. Do you think that “virtual” contact is the same thing as in-person contact?
10. Have you declaimed about how social media distracts you—and then turned on either a football game, political talk show, or “reality TV” show? (if yes, -5)
11. Have you ever heard of EyestoSeeHim on Twitter?
12. Do you doubt whether EyestoSeeHim is helpful merely because it is a social media platform? (if no, -5)
13. Can you read professor/pastor Mark Coppenger’s Twitter feed and not laugh? (if no, -10)
14. How many times have you referenced your own writing/speaking on your social media platforms? (-5 if you have never done so; for every 10,000x you have done so, add 1 point)
15. Do you spend more time strategizing for growth on FarmVille than you do in everyday life?
16. Have you expressed excitement over the fact that “it’s Friday”?
17. Have you flirted publicly with your spouse or significant other through social media? (If yes, answer why in the essay section below.)
18. Is it a regular habit of yours to leave long and exclamation-point-filled messages on the social media platforms of “Christian celebrities”?
19. Do you stalk Christian “celebrities” online? If so, how many? (Add +10 for every 50.)
20. Do you neglect your studies and work, only to spend hours crafting intricate “comments” on blogs? (Add +40 for every comment written in the last year totaling 200 words or more.)
21. Do you decry social media, only to hope against hope that its proponents will pick up your works?

Section Two: Short Essay

In a thoughtful essay, assess the strengths and weaknesses of social media as a mode of 1) gospel advancement, 2) self-promotion, 3) community, and 4) fun.
As if in a courtroom, present evidence to back up your position on the following statement: “Social media presents strengths/challenges to deep thinking on big things.”

Section Three: Bonus Points

• Leave a comment on this blog.
• “Recommend” this item on Facebook.
• “Tweet” about this item.
• “Talk” in-person to someone about this piece (Note: this refers to face-to-face conversation, known in previous centuries as “talking.”).

Section Four: Assessment

• 1 to 10: Guru-in-Training
• 10 to 50: Guru
• 50+: You have serious PR “kung fu.”
• -1 to -10: Luddite-in-Training
• -10 to -50: Luddite
• -50+: Do you have electricity?

Owen Strachan teaches theology and church history at Boyce College in Louisville, Kentucky. Strachan writes for the online biblical learning platform, Bible Mesh. He is also the co-author of the The Essential Edwards Collection. Strachan is an erstwhile blogger and a contributor to the Gospel Coalition blog.

The Essential Edwards Collection, 5 Volumes

If you’ve been wanting to broadcast your sermons on YouTube, here’s how to get started. If you have a digital video recorder, you’re just a few steps away from uploading videos. Here’s how to start a church YouTube channel.

Start your Channel.

1. Go to YouTube.com. In the upper right corner, click “Create Account.” This will get you started. The following page will allow you to enter your information.
2. Fill out the information. For “Username,” you may want to enter the name of your church.
3. If you already have a Gmail account, you can simply log in to an existing account. If you would like to create a new account, exclusive to your YouTube channel, you may do so. Otherwise, linking your existing Gmail address to your YouTube channel will make things simpler for logging in, etc.

You’re registered! That’s it. Now, you can get started by uploading vidoes, customizing your YouTube page, or making some preference changes.

Customize your channel page.

1. Once you’ve created your account, you will be able to access a link that says, “Customize your channel page.” Click. The following page will give you an overview of your account. Here, you will be able to see how many people are viewing your channel, see who is subscribing, and get a view of your YouTube friends.
2. From the top menu, you will be able to make changes to your YouTube account. Click on “settings,” and make sure your channel is visible.
3. Click “Themes and Colors” to change the color and look of your YouTube channel. If you’re in a creative mood, you can even create your own customized look.
4. You may wish to check out the other tabs, including “modules,” and “videos and playlists.” These provide futher customization to make your YouTube channel and settings exactly how you want it.

Upload videos.

1. From the top menu of the YouTube page, you will be able to access the link to upload videos. Click “Upload.”
2. In the page that follows, click “Upload video.”
3. If you have any videos on your computer, you will be able to upload them. Simply locate the file from the search menu that opens. Depending on your Internet speed, you may have to wait a while for your video to upload.
4. If you have a church Facebook, Twitter, Reader, or Orkut accounts, you can auto-post your uploaded video to these accounts.

For further help on media, consider a membership with Sharefaith, where you can have unlimited access to a vast library of more than 34,000 media options, including videos, sermon Powerpoints, and bulletin covers. Click here to get started.

You may have a small church, but you can have a big reach, thanks to technology. We live in the age of a global reach. Employing technology tools for God’s glory is a sobering responsibility. While technology has pitfalls and dangers, Sharefaith is a proponent of giving Christians the knowledge and ability to use it for God’s glory. Here’s how you can reach farther with your sermon.

1. Start recording your sermons in video and audio. The place to start is with a simple recording tool and software. This is not an expensive move. Simply getting your sermons recorded in digital format is important, even if you have no immediate plans to publish them on the web.
2. Start uploading your sermons to YouTube. More people are likely to watch a video clip than listen to a full-length sermon. Although YouTube only allows ten-minute clip lengths, you can upload sermons to YouTube in segments. Or you can upload a portion of the sermon, and provide a link to your church website where the entire sermon may be downloaded. YouTube videos are one of the most viral-prone assets on the Internet today. A short video is likely to travel around the globe and reach thousands of people faster than any other medium.
3. Start uploading your sermons to Vimeo. Vimeo is the fastest-growing video network on the site. Musicians, politicians, performers, and entertainers value Vimeo for its unlimited-length and HD-quality publishing. Vimeo videos are also highly likely to go viral. What’s more, unlike YouTube, you can upload long videos to Vimeo, perfect for preaching and sermons. Vimeo is free, and only requires that you sign up with the site before you can start publishing videos.
4. Keep your people informed by means of a monthly newsletter. Constant communication within a church is crucial. It’s the best way to cement relationships, nurture fellowship, and encourage involvement. One communication tool is the church newsletter. “Newsletter” may provoke thoughts of “Don’t have time,” “where do I start,” and “what do I write about?” Never fear. First, check out a few quick articles on the “how-to” of writing, creating, and using a church newsletter. Then, sign up with Constant Contact, a church-friendly newsletter sponsorship. Their easy-to-use templates and powerful tools will make you want to write the monthly newsletter. Click here to find out more, and be sure to check out our newsletter templates. Using your newsletter, you can promote sermon segments, encourage sharing, and provide links for people to download and listen to your sermons.
5. Remind people of sermons using Facebook and Twitter. Pastors and church leaders can use Twitter and Facebook effectively to keep in touch with their people throughout the week. Sharing verses from the sermon, providing links to the sermon, tweeting the theme of the sermon, etc., are helpful ways to remind people of the messages that they have heard, and encourage them to listen to it again.
6. Post your sermons on your website. One of the best ways to keep your sermons alive and allow them to continue having an impact is by uploading them to your church’s website. Allow your website to function as a sermon library where church members or web surfers can download and listen to your sermon. Providing a weekly podcast or searchable sermon archive is a great way to maintain that global reach with your sermon.

While these ideas may be helpful, there is only one indispensable factor. It is the Holy Spirit. Any sermon, regardless of its precision, brilliance, and oratorical perfection, will be futile apart from God’s empowerment. Make your ministry a God-dependent one. Using your feeble human grasp to try to attain a viral sermon or be the most-watched minister on YouTube is prideful and damaging. Depend on God. Pray without ceasing. Humbly give your ministry to God for His blessing.

So Facebook can be pretty confusing. In a recent post, we discussed how to create a Facebook group. But did you know that there is something different called a Facebook page? If you want to get your church on Facebook, you will need to decide if you want a Facebook group or a Facebook page. Here’s to helping you decide…

What is a Facebook Page?

A Facebook Page is like a person’s Facebook profile, except it is designed for an organization, not an individual. Facebook Pages can behave like a person–connecting to and friending other people and Facebook Pages.

What is a Facebook Group?

A Facebook Group is a page organized for a common interest or organization in order to promote discussion and interaction among the group members. It looks a lot like a Facebook Page.

What’s the Difference?

According to Facebook, Pages and Groups are for two different purposes: “Groups and Pages serve different purposes on Facebook. Groups are meant to foster group discussion around a particular topic area while Pages allow entities such as public figures and organizations to broadcast information to their fans. Only the authorized representative of the entity can run a Page.”

Facebook Pages lack some of the functionality that Groups have. Most small organizations prefer Groups, since they give a better chance to grow virally and promote tight interaction. Big organizations, one with whom an individual is not likely to feel a close relationship with (think Coca Cola) are more likely to create a Facebook Page.

In two sum-it-up sentences: Facebook pages are to market an organization. Facebook groups are to promote a common interest.

Pros and Cons of a Facebook Page

PROs

• A Facebook Page is often more welcoming than a group. “Liking” is easier than “joining a group.”
• A Facebook Page gets indexed by search engines. In other words, if someone searches for “Your Church Name,” a user might find your church’s Facebook Page. Groups, on the other hand, aren’t indexed by search engines.
• A Facebook Page can host applications–those creative add-ons that Facebook users often feature. Groups can’t do this.

CONs

• Facebook pages do not allow you to send personal messages to the inboxes of group members. Instead, they allow you to send updates, which appear as the little red alerts when you log in to Facebook.
• Because it is a “page,” it is less likely to promote interaction and fellowship. “Pages” were created primarily for businesses or celebs to gain a presence and grow their reach on social media. “Groups” were created primarily to generate interaction and discussion. Obviously, the church could use both of these…but which one is better?
• Facebook Pages cannot host events. True, a Page can create an event and manually invite people from the Page friend list. However, a Page cannot host an event and easily invite all fans with a single click. A Facebook Group is capable of doing this. Considering that most churches are event-oriented, this could be a factor in deciding between a Page and a Group.

(Creating a page is really simple. Just click here and follow the instructions.)

Pros and Cons of a Facebook Group

PROs

• Facebook Groups gives you tons of control over who gets to join, and how they participate and interact.
• Facebook Groups are designed to promote a “relationship” feel, giving members a greater sense of inclusion and participation.
• Because Facebook Groups are an extension of your personal Facebook profile, you can grow faster by directly inviting friends to join through personal messages.

CONs

• If your Facebook Group grows larger than 5,000 people, you may no longer send personal messages to the inbox of members.
• Facebook groups offer just a few applications–discussions, photos, videos, etc. Extras don’t work.

The final word is this–Pages are awesome. Groups are awesome. The question to ask as you decide is this: how do you primarily want to use your Facebook presence? If you conceive of your Facebook presence as a marketing tool to gain a gathering and promote a cause, a Facebook Page may be your best option. On the other hand, if you want your Facebook presence to have a closer feel and promote more fellowshipping, you may choose to create a Facebook Group.

What does your church use? Why?