1. Being too fearful
A lot of clergy's experience of the media is when something goes wrong – such as complaints about a building project, a death or lead being stolen from the roof.
This type of coverage is hard to control and can leave us fearful of what will be printed.
This type of coverage is hard to control and can leave us fearful of what will be printed.
As a result, many people deliberately steer clear of the media whenever possible and miss out on the opportunity to carefully highlight positive things.
The video above explains why we need to be prepared rather than scared.
The video above explains why we need to be prepared rather than scared.
2. USING JARGON
Too many clergy use internal slang when they’re talking to journalists which, quite frankly, some of the congregation don’t even understand.
People who have never been to church certainly won’t know what being ‘sanctified by the eternal blood of the lamb’ means. Keep your language simple (without being patronising) if you want to go beyond preaching to the converted.
People who have never been to church certainly won’t know what being ‘sanctified by the eternal blood of the lamb’ means. Keep your language simple (without being patronising) if you want to go beyond preaching to the converted.
3. OFFERING DULL STORIES TO JOURNALISTS
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Learn to spot a story so that you know which of your events are worth shouting about and which aren’t. Some deserve two lines on an email, some deserve a full press release.
Most important is that your event is ‘unusual’. It doesn’t need to be groundbreaking, just something slightly different. See the guide to spotting stories. |
Do your stories send journalists to sleep?
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4. OVERLOOKING FREE ‘EVENTS GUIDES’
Most newspapers, radio stations and village magazines have a ‘What’s On’ section, which is free for churches to promote things like fetes, special services and concerts.
Yet loads of churches never use them to promote their events and just rely on word of mouth to get noticed. Just think about how much it would cost to print and distribute 20,000 flyers – why not do it for free through the local radio station or paper? See the guide to using What's On lists.
Yet loads of churches never use them to promote their events and just rely on word of mouth to get noticed. Just think about how much it would cost to print and distribute 20,000 flyers – why not do it for free through the local radio station or paper? See the guide to using What's On lists.
5. IGNORING SOCIAL MEDIA
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Facebook and Twitter are powerful and free ways to promote your church.
Some churches use them well but others are either sceptical or just don’t know where to start. Setting up a Fan Page on Facebook or a Twitter feed are both free and easy and you can use them to ‘tease’ your sermons and promote your special events with minimal time and effort.” See the very basic guide to social media. |
Facebook is your friend
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