paradigm shift and reality check Each bubble represents some form of communication Of course you may wonder what this has to do with technology

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1 Understanding the Church Communication Wheel The wheel is a paradigm shift and reality check to how a church should communicate in the 21 st century. Whenever there is an event, announcement, meeting, or any other message that parishioners need to hear, consider the following: each aspect of the wheel, which spokes to disseminate the information, and the time frame in which the information is posted in the various media forms. Each bubble represents some form of communication that most parishes either have in place or need to develop. Each line represents the connection of the spoke to the hub. Of course you may wonder what this has to do with technology. Simply put, any communication that uses traditional print forms needs to find its way to digital versions as well and so, by association, print media needs to be presented in this discussion. Let s begin the most important area: the website.

2 The Website The hub of the wheel; all communication should be connected to, drive people towards, and be posted on the website, although there may be a few exceptions. There is a large amount of available space on a website. Basic parish info Mass times, location, contact info Save the date What s new Pages to display details of information People have asked why there are no arrows pointing to the hub to show that information should be leading to it or arrows going both ways to show content flowing in both directions. The reality is that depending on the message you need to disseminate, it will need to find its way on to multiple platforms and in various ways. Communication is neither as simple as just putting it in the bulletin and then on the website verbatim, nor is the website the only place you will ever see that content again. The fact is that you are essentially creating a marketing campaign for most of the information your parish is putting out there; moreover, not every platform will be used for every campaign, but 99% of the time it will end up on your website. How that data is communicated will vary from platform to platform. In the end, the diagram would become very messy trying to show the flow of information. What you need to understand is that your website is central to all of your parish s communication and that each spoke needs to be considered for each campaign. A/V in Worship Space This area has a lot of potential but can also be overused or poorly run. A good scope and plan are necessary to know what this equipment will be used for and how it will be maintained. From a communications standpoint, this equipment provides a visual tool to aid in disseminating information such as announcements, focus on a particular ministry, financial and stewardship updates, and upcoming events. Ideally, you can run a slideshow of any important information. It goes without saying that images will be very important here. Treat this as a billboard. Don t just put words up on the screen. Pictures are eye catching and will draw people to the information you want them to see. The liturgical applications are great but are part of a different discussion but most importantly, you need a plan on how you will use this tech that best serves your community. Bulk s and E-Newsletters Bulk s are s that are sent out to a large number of recipients at one time. Often these are used to communicate information to an entire congregation electronically. Usually

3 some version of software is incorporated to send bulk s without address limits, prevent spam filters from kicking in, and to keep addresses private from all other receivers. There are a few companies that will provide this service for a fee but will include templates for newsletters, flyers and any other announcement you might need to broadcast to your entire parish. The biggest benefit can be in savings on postage, paper, ink, and usage of you photocopier. Beyond financial gains, these software options can embed the document into the body of the and also track if people are opening and reading your s letting you know how effective your efforts are not something you can accomplish with snail mail. E-newsletters are a powerful way to broadcast information to a wide audience using bulk . This media stream can also help keep parishioners up to date on happenings that are specific to their interests (youth ministry, young adult ministry, lectors, servers, choirs, etc.), communicate save the date info before a full promotion campaign would start, convey what has happened during past events, highlight people from the parish to the community, share reflections on various topics and seasons within the Church calendar, plus any other application that can be imagined; the sky s the limit. Lastly, helpful links can be embedded into the e-newsletters to share information that wouldn t be possible using paper or would need a lot of extra paper. For example, let s say you wanted your moms bible study group to see the latest edition of the Catholic Update published by Franciscan Media. Instead of ordering a bunch of newsletters and mailing them out, post a link in you e-newsletter so your audience can read it online. You could also embed links to videos as well. Of course, for any of these options to work, you must harvest addresses and keep them up to date. If you haven t started a method to collect this electronic gold, get going. Well above 90% of all Internet users, no matter what age range, use . Social Networks According to a study done by the Pew Research Center, (2013) 72% of all online American adults use some form of social networking. This is up from 67% last year and 8% in A surprising statistic from this study is the growth in use by people 65 and older. Their use has tripled over the last four years to 43%. Another study shows that 42% of online adults use more than one social network site. Needless to say, social networking continues to grow to be a regular means of communication that churches need to use to communicate with their communities. Facebook is by far the most popular form of social media with over 1 billion users; however, Twitter continues to increase in popularity. Beyond these, other social networks are used by many people such as Instagram and Google+. It is important to know which forms are being used the most in your community and then learn how to use them in your communication plan.

4 Establish goals for using social media such as posting comments, driving people to your website, and creating a buzz about church. You need to ask yourselves: What do you have to say that your parishioners (not the staff) are interested in and value? Which need are you filling? Why should someone read what you have to say? Which types of content will you solicit from your community? You should also set a limit on the number of posts. You can actually overload your friends/followers and cause them to stop paying attention to what is being said. Bulletin Boards Bulletin boards are used to convey information on various topics and events in the parish. Their look should be considered part of the environment of the building and should be treated as such. If the boards are drab, outdated, or chaotic in appearance, people will not look to them as a source of information, and their boring appearance conveys apathy. Boards that are creative, imaginative, in sync with the Church calendar, and up to date will draw attention to the information they hold and feel welcoming. Some things to keep in mind: Each area should have a focus this will help people easily find information they want to know about. Keep it updated keep track of event dates and pull down the postings when they are past. Take down anything that is faded or looks old. Change themes, pictures, background, and borders regularly to continue to draw interest. Be judicious not every poster, flyer, booklet, or display needs to be posted on every board, or in some cases, any board. Pay attention to the focus of the board. Be creative! Don t get complicated, cluttered, or overthink it. Bulk Mailings This is an important form of traditional communication for any parish. Generally information is provided regularly to each family household. Often it may be in the form of a newsletter, flyers, letter, or stewardship forms. It is the surest way for the parish to distribute information that it wants everyone to know about. There are two important things to note, however. First, not everyone reads these mailings. Statistically, younger generations would prefer to read this information in their inbox or in some other form on a screen. Paper for some of them is clutter and sometimes is automatically thrown out without being read. Second, not every piece of information is intended for such a wide audience. If there are items that don t pertain to every household, consider more focused forms of dissemination. The paper, ink, number of envelopes, and possibly additional weight to the mailing costs money that inevitably will have no

5 return. Take the time to determine who your audience is and decide whether traditional mailing, bulk , or a combined version is the best course of action. Pulpit Announcements Technology could have a dramatic effect in this area of communication as we talked about earlier. Depending on the setup in your worship space and any screens in hallways, narthex, or gathering areas, pulpit announcements could potentially be streamlined or enhanced more than ever before. Try to keep them short and to immediate needs. Announcements that might be repeated on a regular basis could be promoted through technology exclusively. Keep the announcements for the whole parish messages for specific groups can use other means. You lose your audience for other announcements. Ultimately each parish must determine the formula that works best for their audience. Some people need verbal reminders whereas others may tune them out and will read notices posted on the screens. There is no one right way for this method of communication to work best. Trial and error will dictate the direction for your parish and could be very different from what other parishes do depending on which technology you have available to you. Bulletin The bulletin is the parish equivalent to a Swiss Army Knife. Often it is used to provide contact information, Mass times, parish weekly events and meetings, reflections, readings for the week, theological education, calls to action, and advertising for the diocese and neighboring parishes. For bulletins to be truly effective in the 21 st century, two things must happen: first, realize that the bulletin, although very important, is not the hub of communication anymore; second, determine the scope of the bulletin. The bulletin has limited space, and every ministry within a parish has information that needs to be disseminated. Beyond this, many outside organizations, such as other parishes, the diocese, and charitable groups, want space for their events as well. To prevent overcrowding, people need to decide which items are published. Some parishes are very good at this process, whereas others try to add as many articles as possible and end up creating an illegible mess. Up until recently (and still true for many churches), the bulletin has been the hub of communications. This must change. The parish website needs to take over this role. Moreover, people who want information passed on, must provide content that is web ready (links, pictures, and words transmitted digitally, not on paper). Understandably, many people within churches do not use the Internet as their main resource of information and depend on the bulletin to keep them up to date on the happenings of the parish. No one is saying to eliminate this form of communication, yet; however, churches need to review and possibly revamp the purpose of the bulletin.

6 With this shift in communication flow, parishes must reevaluate the scope of the bulletin. Is it just a fact sheet? Who is the target audience? Should anything ministerial be provided, such as, reflections, theological teachings, etc.? Once parishes refocus, then they must decide what stays, what goes and can be found somewhere else, what gets expanded, and which new features are added. Other questions to ask: what is the expected return of information posted in the bulletin, if any, and is it financially worth to create a more eye catching product to achieve that goal? Ultimately it comes down to understanding that the bulletin, although still a valuable communication tool, is not central to dispersing information anymore, and each parish must reevaluate its role. Future Additions Everyone knows that technology changes quickly. Churches need to consider tools that businesses use every day and weigh them against their needs and the reality of their likely usage. Other forms of communication to think about include additional social networks, an outdoor digital sign, voice over IP, online meeting software, presentation software, and technology yet to be invented. Many products and services can provide solutions to these possibilities. Parishes need to investigate and evaluate these companies to decide which tools best fit their goals in the most fiscally responsible way. Ultimately, the Wheel is not only about communicating with your parishioners, but also reaching out to people who may not be affiliated with a religion, but are searching for one. The culture of traditional neighborhood centered churches is changing. People willingly travel to reach a community that speaks to them. Learning how to communicate beyond the walls of your church will help you extend a welcome to those who are intentional about their faith.