Over the years, it’s been shown time and time again that during difficult times, people seek spiritual advice, comfort and help from media resources. Whether it’s a national tragedy like 9/11, the pandemic, or financial inflation, we can track dramatically rising numbers of listeners and viewers seeking help from Christian radio, TV and online.
This means that challenging times are exactly the moment to be sharing a message of hope — and doing it on a regular basis. And as you think through the creative possibilities, here’s a list of considerations to keep in mind:
1) Get back to basics. This is the time to focus on the core message of your church. Based on the talent and gifts of the pastor, teaching, worship and other teams, what is the most essential message you should be sharing? What types of ministry is your church most effective at doing? This isn’t the time to show your church does everything — this is the time to focus.
2) Keep it simple. Most churches are capable of a number of outreaches, but when it comes to your media messaging, this is the time to streamline for maximum impact. What are the resources and media content that would help people most at this moment? Concentrate on that.
3) Prioritize the congregation and new visitor experience. Look at everything you do from the perspective of the congregation — especially new visitors. Sometimes we can get so caught up in our ideas, we forget the reasons our congregation is actually coming — and what they’re actually experiencing.
4) Know the difference between product messages versus purpose messages. Maybe we cut back a bit on selling products, and focus more on our purpose for communicating. Sure we need to continue raising funds for the church and the various outreaches — especially our efforts to help our community during difficult times. But right now in your communication, focus more on helping people rather than selling to people.
5) Prioritize your livestream. Remember that especially during challenging times, people are more likely to visit you online before they visit in person. Therefore, your livestream is a powerful tool for encouraging people to physically attend. And even if they stay online, we want to continue ministering to them. So this isn’t the time to cut back on your online presence, it’s actually the time to go big and make it as powerful an experience as possible.
6) Finally, keep hope in the forefront. There are millions of messages to share and subjects to cover with your social media, sermons, videos and other media content. And please do what you feel God has called you to do at this moment. But keep hope in the forefront. People are watching and listening because something is missing from their lives, and you have the answer. So make sure that answer comes through loud and clear!
EDITOR’S NOTE — This story was written by Phil Cooke and originally published by philcooke.com. Published with permission.
