How to Use Social Media to Promote Your Children's Ministry

Social media is a great way to promote your ministry. In fact, I would go as far to say it is a must if you want to connect with today's kids, students, volunteers and parents. Here are some tips on using social media to promote your ministry. 1. Choose the right platform(s). There are way more than enough platforms you can use to promote your ministry and more avenues are popping up each day. Sharing your work on the right platform(s) is a must if you want to use social media to promote your work or ministry. Do some research and find out which platform(s) your audience is already using and target those first. With so many options out there, it is important to choose the most effective one(s) for you. Look for platforms that your connections are already on. This will make it easier to connect with them. 2. Use a calendar. If your organization is not using a social media calendar, it can compromise the quality of your posts. Using a calendar when you post makes a world of difference and helps you avoid mistakes like last minute writings, repeated posts or a lull in some of your channels. A calendar can also help you plan out your posts in advance. 3. Get connected to your followers. Your social media posts need to be interactive so you can encourage followers to get involved and interact with you. 4. Don't overdue it. Avoid promoting your business or non-profit in every single post. Some people use the one-in-seven rule. This rule says that for every 7 posts, 6 should be content-based. In other words, use the 6 posts to share articles, ask questions, focus on current events, etc. Plain and simple - don't sell too hard. Your weekly posts calendar should have 6 posts that are helpful to readers and then the 7th should be dedicated to promoting your product, brand, resources, etc. 5. Use video content. Visual content is a hit on social media. It will grab people's attention and is a great way to share your passion and products with people. As people are scrolling through their feeds, visual video content can grab their attention. Narrative-driven video gets the most responses. 6. Build a community based on your product or business. Look for people who like your posts and and re-post your content. As you build a community of people who like your content, they will get involved in helping spread the word to people outside your community. The result can be rapid growth in your community. 7. Provide great content. One of the most important things you can do to grow your community is to provide value to the people who are following your content. Post things that your audience will find useful. It can be something new they have never tried in ministry or something that brings a smile to their face or entertains them in some way. Great content will attract the right people to you, make people want to follow you and help people spread your content. If you can make this happen in your children's ministry community, you will be a successful social media strategist.

Your turn. What social media methods are you using to promote your ministry? Share your thoughts and ideas in the comment section below.