Are You Ready for the Christmas Rush?

A recent report by the Pew Research Center shows that over half of Americans plan on attending a religious service during the Christmas season. That's a lot of people! It's an easy calculation to figure out how many in your community are planning on attending Christmas services.

Is your Church ready to welcome so many guests?!

Here are 3 things to look at this week to help prepare for new (and old) guests this Christmas.
(Parts adapted from 8 Ways To Get Your Church Ready For Christmas)

Update Your Website

We live in a digital world. When is the last time you looked in the Yellow Pages for information? When is the last time you saw a phone book for that matter?! Google is often the first place people will start looking for your church. And if someone didn't invite them to a particular place, they will search online first. That's why it is so important to update your site with all the holiday information early.

• Be sure to update your site with your Christmas theme and graphics to help maintain the continuity of all your communication pieces.
• Include all special events and service times. If you are having special refreshments or photo opportunities - tell them!
• Don't overlook the basics. Make sure all contact information is correct and actually works. There's nothing like a phone number that isn't answered or doesn't have a current message. Does the contact email actually go to someone who will respond in 24 hours or less?
• Along the same lines, it is VERY important to have current location information and directions to your church easily available. Provide links to map apps to help guests navigate to your church.
• Consider adding a "Plan-A-Visit" page with information about what to expect when guests visit your church. Links to recordings of your service or instructions on childcare will help guests connect with your church before they take one step inside. Here is my church's Plan-A-Visit page, it's not perfect, but it gives you an idea of where to start.
• Add a staff page with contact information and photos for each department leader. People like to know who is in charge and who they can look for when they go somewhere new. Providing photos of the Lead Pastor, leaders in the kid's areas, worship leaders, and hospitality hosts will help add a friendly face to look for when guests come to your church. Contact emails can provide a way for parents with any special needs, allergies, etc. to ask questions and also allows you to prepare for the unexpected.

Focus on Hospitality

If half of your community is planning on attending a Christmas service, that could be more people than you have had in quite a while. They may be family that are visiting members of your church, or they may be new to your community, or they may just be looking for somewhere to connect for the holidays.
No matter why they come into your church, this is your opportunity to make your first impression. And you only get one chance!

• Make sure your hospitality team is ready. It is probably a great time to give a pep talk on the importance of making a good first impression.
• Are your hosts knowledgeable about helping parents with children? Do they know where different age kids go for services or how to check them into your classes or security software?
• Train your team to greet guests warmly and offer to help with directions. Invite guests to enjoy the refreshments or participate in any special events you have going like photo areas or fun activities.
• Staff should take lead rolls in greeting during special days. Leading by example is one of the best ways to make hospitality part of the culture in your church. Remember, "staff" may mean volunteer team leaders. Just because they aren't paid doesn't mean your volunteers aren't leaders of their teams or in your church.

Plan Your Special Events

The Christmas season can get overbook with all the festivities. We have activities at work, with our families, at school... it goes on and on. The same goes for the church calendar. You may have a special kids' play, or choir concert, a special Advent service, or a Christmas Eve service - maybe even a community meal.

These are all great outreach opportunities for people in your community. It may be much easier and less intimidating for guests to show up for a special Christmas service or event than to attend an average Sunday morning.

Be sure to communicate all the special events you have planned for this Christmas season.

• Information Cards - Handout information cards with all the details for your special services and events. Be sure to include your theme and design graphics to maintain continuity.
• Social Media Posts - Here's an easy way to let your community know what events your church is hosting and all the details. You can also boot your posts for a minimal amount to help get your post out to more people.
• X-Frame Signs - X-Frames are an inexpensive way to list all the events you have planned so your congregation can see and, hopefully, make plans to attend. They also can help reinforce your theme for the season and help set the mood with your theme graphics.

November 3rd - 7 Weeks Out

This week, it's time to focus on the Main Theme!

Once you have the basic idea for your Christmas service or even your sermon topic/theme, it's time to get to work on the designs for your communication pieces.

We know you have a lot to do as a pastor or leader in your church. That's where we want to help. Stinson Press can help take your Christmas service ideas or sermon topic/theme and put them to work. Our graphic designers can help bring your vision to life and do all the layout work for all your communications.

Some items that you need to start this week:

• Main theme graphics
  • Everything starts with this one. To keep continuity in your Christmas communications, this needs to be priority-one.
• Every Door Direct Mailings (EDDM) through the USPS
  • EDDM mailings take time to prepare and ship out. Be sure to decide early if you are going to do a direct mailing this year.
• Signs and banners
  • Some larger signs can have longer lead times. Decide on banners and signs early so they can arrive in plenty of time.
• Printed pieces
  • While you don't need to finalize all the pieces this early, you do need to have a gameplan. We can help you decide on sizes, layouts, quantities, and timelines for any piece in your communication plan.
• Digital graphics for social media
  • We can take your theme graphic and create some original social media posts that include your church or service information. Let us know which social media you use and how you use it and we will help develop content for you.

Contact us today to help with your next sermon series or "big day" event. Call me (573) 686-6011 or send me an email at toddt@stinsonpress.com.

1-573-686-6011