5 Social Media tips for Small Churches

5 Social Media tips for Small Churches

Small Churches need social media tips to engage with their audience better! For years, smaller ministries were frustrated trying to advertise with small budgets. Finally, social media arrived and allowed the opportunity to engage with many people regularly. And promote. Plus it’s free! 

But church social media strategy can be a struggle trying to make it work properly. As you’ll see from these social media tips, “free” still requires a lot of work! 

So, with limited staff (or volunteers) in mind, let’s tackle social media strategy so even a part-time person can master it for a small church. Who knows, you may accomplish more than other larger churches in your area!

1. You can’t do it all. The more you try to do everything, the less likely you’ll be successful at any. So start small. It’s almost impossible to do every social media platform well at the same time. Perhaps start with Facebook (or Instagram) and get really good at it before expanding (however, capture your church name on all possible social media accounts for the future).
2. Do whatever it takes to get followers. Get your congregation and leadership to follow your page. Build more followers so it’s worth all the work! If you struggle with the congregation following, you’re probably offering the wrong content. So adjust! Talk to members with a larger social presence and ask for content advice. Perhaps they’ll join your social media volunteer team and help your church’s social media strategy and your social media presence! The best social media tip? Provide regular content that engages your audience’s needs, concerns, and goals. Only occasionally, mention an event as an opportunity to meet requirements or help them achieve a goal.
3. Create a calendar and a rhythm. Now build content (the biggest challenge for your social media strategy for churches). Start small by creating a sustainable rhythm (3x/week is a good start). Create a not-yet-published library of evergreen content (entertaining or motivational graphics/posts that could be used almost any time) in a shared Google or iCloud folder so others can contribute. A shared calendar will help keep track of everything else that needs posting. Keep posts simple, brief, and consistent in style. Follow other professional organizations for design tips. Need an inexpensive, easy-to-use, design program? Try Canva.
4. Get a social media scheduler app. Hootsuite, SocialPilot, Later, or similar apps allow setup and scheduling of posts so you don’t have to be connected and posting all the time. Some let you build an entire week of posts simultaneously as a time saver! Choose posting times when your audience is probably bored (i.e. 9 pm after the kids are in bed). Some apps suggest times based on your followers. NOTE: watch major world events that may make a scheduled post about church events feel insensitive (then postpone the post). 
5. Be consistent with engaging content. The final social media tip? Continue. Watch what engages and build on successes. Be consistent with posting and, most importantly, engage when people comment!