For a church to thrive and be a continued focal part of the community, it has to attract new members consistently.
The issue is that, on the whole, church numbers are down. Aside from religious teachings being less prominent across the United States, plenty of statistics also back up dwindling attendee numbers. Membership numbers were at 61% in 2009 after a steady decline, and that has continued to drop to 41% in 2021. Despite the doom and gloom, there are ways to adapt and innovate. Here are methods to attract new members and grow your church.
Live stream to reach further afield
Streaming is one of the best ways a church can utilize technology. Church live streaming allows you to grow your community beyond your physical presence. By venturing outside of your local confines, it is possible to attract significantly more members to your church. People are able to follow masses and services wherever they are located, whether it is in the state, across the country, or even internationally. All they require is a suitable device, an internet connection, and a link to your church live stream. Many contemporary churches near me are following this approach.
Perform online marketing
There are various approaches available to market your church online. Firstly, it’s important you build a dedicated website for your church. Like your church itself, this is effectively the meeting place for your members and is necessary for search engine optimization. Social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, is fantastic for spreading the word about upcoming events and other church happenings. You could even use pay-per-click ads for an instant injection of interest for your church, where you can target the local community or spread out.
Increase engagement
Engaging with current church members is one of the most effective tactics to use. You are able to accomplish a lot more with 200 engaged members than with 2,000 attendees that are disengaged. To ensure engagement levels are maximized, make it easy for members to get involved. This can be as simple as having a message on your website or setting up a kiosk to alert new guests at your church. Volunteers for your church can go a long way to enhancing organic growth. The more people you have spreading the positive word about your church, the more likely others will want to join your fellowship. It’s effectively a snowball effect where you don’t have to push too much on your end.
Host public events
Your marketing efforts don’t have to be located exclusively online. Hosting public events, like a community outreach day, for example, can go a long way to boosting the visibility of your church. An engaging, safe environment for the community that allows people to socialize and have fun puts your church in a positive light. Furthermore, you can use it as a way to positively advertise your church, your fellowship, and why people would like to further engage in your church activities. Note: avoid trying to be overly pushy and making events look only like a publicity campaign.
These four tips are a great starting point for getting new members to your church.
