Communications

Tim Schraeder, the communications guy at Park Community Church, is a big fan of the book Rework from 37signals.  (He'd probably quit being my friend if he knew I haven't read it yet, so don't tell him.)  Tim says the book says some bold things about changing the work culture. Meetings are toxic. So Tim presented some of his own bold statements for reworking church communications. Good stuff!

Opening thoughts.

I love the church, but sometimes I hate the way the church works.

Change is...

Blaine Hogan is an actor turned Creative Director for Willow Creek Community Church.  Here are some highlights from the notes I took in his Echo Conference session called "Ideas, Hope and the Creative Process."

Opening thoughts:

• Art seeks to tell the truth in dark places. It's a lot like faith.
• Most Christian art feels more like propaganda than truth because of a lack of creativity.
• That could change if we view ourselves more as pastors and prophets than technicians and...

Scott McClellan is the super tall editor of COLLIDE Magazine and despite mocking his own Echo Conference session title, he doled out some great advise for being a good blogger.

Here are some take-aways from the notes I took on this session.

Design

• It's what you show the world. It's how you engage and invite people to your blog.
• Even blogs can use a "I'm new here button."  Blogs present content like a TV show, some people will join in mid-season and need to know some of the...

Kem Meyer wrote something fantastic on her blog this week.

"Tools don’t try to tell the whole story. They are a piece of a story. When we try to tell the whole story with a micro piece (Web page, design, technology, etc.) we horde control and fall in love with our own creation. This is a communication dead end."

Too often we try to pack in too much information into one piece of communication.  I really think the root of it comes down to not taking the time to be thoughtful about selecting the...

Our latest free resource has been posted in the training section.  We're taking a look at six things you can do to improve your church communications that won't take a huge time commitment. 

This white paper looks at these topics: website auditing, spring cleaning, signage, volunteer training (refresher of church's vision and why it matters), creating a Facebook page and limiting service announcements.

You can download it now by clicking here.

If God is rejecting my worship on Sunday mornings because of my negative attitude, what does that mean for my work?  Like many of you in ministry, I look at what I do as an offering to God.  Part of the way I can worship God is to help churches better communicate His amazing message.  If I’m being negative, or not following His word, is He rejecting my work as well? 

For those of you working in a church, the issues and problems of the week can easily spill into the weekend.   Graphics don’t...

Several years ago when I was contemplating taking a job in ministry, there was one piece of advice I was given that still lingers in my mind today.  I was told working in ministry is the best way to lose your faith.

By no means am I there.  But at times I’m grumpier, more sarcastic and negative.

I started to wonder why that is.  Part of it is the nature of working in church communications.  It’s an area where there’s a lot of criticism and debate.  Too many times, I run across churches who...

The Center for Church Communication just launched a new project called Firestarter.  The goal is "to recognize churches that have ignited ideas and sparked brilliant communication."  The CFCC started rolling out some of the churches who've been chosen and the first two seem really cool.  They are churches who are focused on reaching out to specific groups of people.  Plus they're churches you've probably never heard about before. 

Check out their websites as good examples of simple design and...

It’s vacation Bible school season. And while kids are running crazy with craft projects and juice boxes, it’s also a great chance for your church to meet folks who typically aren’t spending a lot of time in your building.

A moment from a couple of years ago at my church really stands out of how to do VBS follow up well.  My pastor nailed his sermon following a week of VBS.  He was his normal funny, relevant, theologically sound self, but this was an important sermon because of the audience.

VBS...

I recently heard about a church where a consultant came in and said that adhering to communications standards, including running stuff by the Director of Communications and using the services of the communications department, should be completely optional.  So basically any ministry can do whatever they want.  It was one of those moments I wish I made enough money to keep Seth Meyers and Amy Poehler on retainer so I could have them launch into a SNL really rant. 

Creating a communications...