You've heard that, with its over 500 million users, Facebook is now the 3rd largest "country" in the world! What does that mean? It means, the second you log in to Facebook you have entered of the LARGEST mission fields in the history of the planet! Spreading your message has never been so important. Getting your message to go VIRAL is the best way to reach the WORLD together along together along together with your message.
Virally?
What do they mean when they saying viral? They mean passing on the message from person to another, multiplying exponentially after each exposure & at last leading to epidemic proportions. (Well, at least 100 NEW people!)
Like anything else, success does not come overnight (unless you’re Justin Biber). It all boils down to publishing content consistently that your congregation will appreciate, enjoy & ultimately help in bringing them closer to Christ.
Let's start with the Fundamentals:
Every day Posts
The essential rule in Social Media engagement is to always be "UPDATING". People are always looking out for what is new, so make it a point to post every day or better yet as often as you can. No matter what your topic or theme may be, keep it clear, simple & engaging. In case you do that, your followers will quickly reply & even re-post it. Try an inspirational verse or saying for the day... Guaranteed "Like" magnet!
Pics
Images & humor will bring more attention than anything else on Facebook. Make positive that you don't post personal or controversial pics & always ask permission before posting pics of your congregations as some people have lovely reasons not to have their picture on Facebook. (Even people in the Witness Protection Program must go to Church!)
Videos
Oh, the questions I get on this! Do I need a fancy camera & lapel mic with a camera man & a production team prepared to edit the video with 3D graphics & lower thirds? NO. Most Laptops have a built-in camera & mic that is lovely to do every day devotional videos for your congregation. The KEY here is to make it simple, simple & part of your every day or every week system. If your spending over0 or 15 minutes, you are taking long!
Simple steps:
. Keep it below minutes & is even better!
. Use whatever camera you have or buy a $39 dollar USB webcam at Wal-Mart
. Use Jing from techsmith (free) to record your desktop or your face.
. Upload to screencast (a free service provided by Jing)
. Switch back & forth from your face to your desktop for a brilliant chilled effect that people will wonder in case you put HOURS in your production!
. Do it. Record, upload & post to Facebook...Today!
The beauty of this system is that there is NO editing & No setup. Speedy way to get an everyday video out the door for your congregation.
Send a Note
In case you think that a Note is the same as the regular status update, you are wrong. Using the Notes is recommended for posting longer messages as it does not have a maximum character limit. Moreover, notes can be fundamentally retrieved unlike a status update which may be difficult to locate when there is numerous posts made in a single day. (I usually have several hundred!) So, if of your followers would like to read a positive post again, all they must do is go over your notes tab & quickly find "the eloquent masterpiece's you have written". You can see the Notes application on the left side of your Facebook Home Page. From there, you can write your message & start tagging people.
Tagging
Tagging is a feature in Facebook that allows users to refer & identify people in Images, Videos & Notes. It is a way of linking & sharing knowledge to a targeted audience. This function however has its limits such that Facebook only allows a maximum of 50 tags for both Images & Videos & 30 tags for Notes. For the more advanced users, there is always a work around for this. (Yes, I have got connections.)
Like/Share/Re-post
The lovely elderly reliable Like, Share & Re-Post are your most convenient allies in Facebook. These gestures are displayed on Live Feed & your friends & congregation who think the same will most likely duplicate it. Personally I am glad there is not a Dis-Like button
Questions & Polls
Posting of Questions & Polls is a positive way of catching people's attention. Who doesn't like giving their view? Questions spark people's interest & will ignite healthy discussions along the way. Facebook provided some template questionnaires; otherwise you can make your own. Take full advantage of this feature to analyze & assess issues, interests, feedbacks or even sermon research. Friends can be invited to take the poll & you can also link the poll to an Event. (OK, that is about as complicated as I will get.)
Visitor Poster
Time in some time, it is a refreshing twist for your followers to see a post from a "Guest Poster/Pastor". You can invite an upcoming speaker to post a few times to introduce himself & prepare your congregation for him coming. Ask some members of your group to contribute to your Facebook Page's content. Use this strategy at random so that it won't be predictable. Keep in mind to give "teasers" prior to the event date to build-up excitement on your Page.
Events
Generating an Event is another way to circulate your message across your followers & even beyond your Church members as Events are displayed on a person's Facebook profile & News Feeds. Keeping your Event public will also permit non-followers to see it (& all its contents) & may add themselves to the visitor list. Inviting non-Facebook users is also feasible as long as you have their e-mail addresses.
Twitter
In case you have a Twitter account, you can use it alongside Facebook to spread knowledge. Before, Twitter was primarily used as a messenger to invite Twitter followers to view Updates/Postings on Facebook Pages. Lately, Facebook users have been allowed to post status updates from Twitter to Facebook using the Twitter App.
Contest
Have you noticed the surge of Facebook contests? You could use the same for your Church's Facebook Page. Stick to fun, simple & fascinating themes like picture contests, art contests, t-shirt/poster design contests, best "quotation", "passage", or "tips", guessing games (ex. how plenty of golf balls are in a fishbowl), & bring-in-a-friend (referral) to name a few.
Now, to the More Advanced Stuffs:
Word of Mouth & Discussion Boards
Facebook's Discussion Board is an avenue for making connections between & among people on Facebook. A Public Discussion Board is usually provided in a Facebook Fan Page. However, it takes a few steps to set up a Private Discussion Board (in case you prefer it that way). It is fundamentally a chat room where people speak about positive topics or a way to catch-up on each other.
Newsletter
Newsletters automatically send the latest updates or feeds from a Page to its followers. Most often, these Newsletters are sent by e-mail. They work to increase readership & engagement as well as encourage participation in discussions. There is several Newsletter Applications obtainable on Facebook & it is up to you to select which among suit your requirements.
Meme
A more contemporary viral phenomenon dubbed as "Meme" has also taken Facebook by the storm. Memes are one-of-a-kind ideas that are created & transmitted among people within a culture to be specifically imitated. Facebook had its memorable share of Memes historically in the past year such as "25 Things" (Make a list of 25 random things about yourself), "Cartoon Character" (Sometime in November 2010, users were asked to make use of Cartoon Character for their Profile Picture as a campaign to finish infant abuse) & "Doppelganger Week" (Posting a picture of yourself beside a celebrity that resembles you, some kind of a look-a-like game). In case you happen to have an idea or an idea similar to this that would advance your cause, by all means spread it!
These techniques might overwhelm you at first but as a mate of mine always says "Do it time & you can do it again, better". In other words, Practice makes ideal.
To conclude getting people to like & follow your Church's Facebook Page is manageable, however, keeping people interested, connected & grasp its mission is a different ballgame. In case you play the social media game right, your message will be spread across the world fulfilling our great commission.
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