Have you ever planned a church event, put your heart into making it incredible, but didn’t have as many people attend as you’d hoped? If you’re wondering why attendance was low, you might consider your communication strategy. It can take someone hearing about an event several times before he decides to take action. Your church app is an excellent tool for communicating in multiple ways about upcoming events. Here are five tips to help you get started:
1) List events in the app’s calendar
Make it easy for people to see what events are coming up that they might want to attend by including them on your app’s calendar. Provide links to the event registration form, videos about the event, volunteer signup form, and more.
2) Create a registration form for each event
Paper registrations are a challenge. Deciphering handwriting and entering the data into a spreadsheet or database is time-consuming. Skip those hassles and make it convenient for people to complete the form with a custom registration form in your church app. When you mention the event on Sunday morning, encourage people to go to the app right then to register.
3) Send push notifications about the event
Your congregation is busy too and may forget about an upcoming event. Make sure people have the latest information by sending push notifications about the event. Include a link to the registration form and additional information within the notification.
4) Include information about the event in the app bulletin
In addition to mentioning the event from the stage, sending push notifications, and more, include information about the event in your app’s bulletin. Again, include a link to register for the event within the bulletin so people can take action right away (before they forget).
5) Make it easy for people to share information about the event on social media
You wouldn’t want to attend an event without your friends, right? Well, you’re not the only one who feels that way. Give your congregation an easy way to invite their friends to join in with social media sharing capabilities within the app. Create shareable graphics for each event and include those in the app.
Creating incredible events is only the first step to getting people to attend. If they don’t know about it or seize the moment to register, you won’t see the participation you want. Use your church’s mobile app to make sure people are informed and able to quickly signup for your next event.