Social Media Best Practices for Churches

Does your church have an intentional social media strategy? How do you use social media to reach your community and serve your church members? Social media can be an important outreach tool in our day and age. The vast majority of American adults are using social media platforms on a regular basis. This reality makes it imperative to get your church’s message in front of your community through social media. Here are some best practices that can help you optimize your church’s social media activity.

Quick Answer

Five More Talents advises churches to implement an intentional social media strategy to effectively reach their community and serve members. Key best practices include appointing a dedicated manager, such as a young person for Instagram where users aged 12-34 are primary, and adhering to a consistent posting schedule to maintain balance. Churches should also focus on their specific audience demographics, actively engage with followers, and allocate a budget for boosting posts on platforms like Facebook to maximize outreach. The ultimate goal of these efforts is to foster stronger community among members and visitors, extending connections beyond the screen.

Appoint someone to manage social media

Managing your social media begins with managing your team. If you have too many hands in the mix, you’ll end up producing less than if you appoint a focused person to manage your social media. This person can be responsible for developing a schedule for social media posts, coordinating media like images and video for social media posts, engaging followers, and tracking success through analytics.

This person should have a good idea of what content your audience is looking for and how to provide it for them. For example, when using Instagram, consider appointing a young person to manage your activity. Because young people (ages 12-34) are the primary users of the Instagram platform, it’s important to have someone who understands them manage your church’s Instagram account.

Why should churches stick to a social media schedule?

Churches should stick to a social media schedule to maintain a healthy balance, avoiding both underposting and overposting. A consistent schedule ensures valuable content is published regularly without annoying followers by posting too often. By creating a schedule or calendar for social media posts, your church can effectively find a good balance between these two extremes. Start by reading our recommendations on how often to update your website and social media content.

How can churches focus on their social media audience?

Consider your target audience when making social media strategy decisions. Not all social media platforms are created equal and different audiences value different platforms more and less. Look around at your community. What are the predominant demographics around you? Here is a convenient look at the demographic breakdowns of the main social media platforms. Knowing your community can help you tailor your social media outreach for optimal effectiveness.

Why should churches engage with their social media followers?

It’s called social media after all. When followers engage with your content on social media, by commenting or sharing for example, it’s a best practice to engage them back. If someone comments on your church’s Facebook post, send them a response! This allows you to connect to the real people beyond the screen and build relationships in your community.

Why should churches set aside a budget for social media?

If you are using a platform like Facebook, you’ll need some room in your budget for boosting your posts. This means you can pay Facebook to put your posts in front of more people in your audience. Setting aside some funds for social media optimization is a wise practice so that you can make the most of your efforts on each platform.

What is the ultimate purpose of social media for churches?

The ultimate purpose of your church’s social media activity is building stronger community among your members and with visitors, leading to great relationships offline. These best practices for social media don’t exist for their own sake. Although social media exists to help people connect online, the aim of your social media strategy should be building great relationships offline. Social media is a great outreach tool that should ideally lead to stronger face-to-face connections.