in your facebook diocesan convention february 10, 2012, hannah wilder

In Your FACEbook

Diocesan ConventionFebruary 10, 2012, Hannah Wilder

change

millennialsdesire for significance

desire to be part of something greater

collaboration

authenticity

community

tech trendscommunity collaborationself-expressionunprecedented access attitudeauthentic informationflexibility

community

communitydefined for this presentation:inside: your own congregationoutside: neighbors + evangelismoutside: service

communityculture suffering from:

“hyper-individualism”

Deep Economy by Bill McKibben

communityhow does the church combat this?what can we do to be relevant?how can we mobilize our people?how can this fit into the Great

Commission?

communitysafe place to discuss, question,

engage as a grouprelevant place to beplace to be authentictraditionally found in small groupsways to communicate

social networks

11

definedonline gatheringscommunication through comments,

email, text and instant messagescollaboration: photos, videos,

shared items, commentsconnection points: friends,

associates, 6 degrees

facebookpermission-based communitypermission-based communication67 million members14 million photos uploaded daily65 billion page views per month25 minutes per day on average

quote“Being relatively new to facebook, it was like

walking into a closet and ending up in Narnia. It’s a world I didn’t know existed. I’ve connected with old friends, made new friends, spread some good news, got some key information, encouraged some people, counseled others, and got some others worked up. Facebook is like throwing a stone into the center of a pond. The ripples are widespread.”

quote“I went into Facebook solely looking to connect

with friends and family who live at a distance. Within weeks, I realized this medium has enormous ministry potential. Now Facebook has easily become one of my primary tools for interacting with the people from my church and the unchurched. People are far more comfortable discussing pressing needs and issues in their lives initially via Facebook messages than they are through a phone call. I have also benefited from the networking relationships I have with other pastors.”

quote“In the past year social media has proven to be

one of my most effective means of evangelism. I think the fact that people are able to ask questions and push back on Christian ideas from a safe distance provides an effective segue to deep spiritual conversations. I have also found that the e-buzz that goes on following a great worship service or church event acts as a drawing card that entices people to check out our church. The public social media conversation the flows out of authentic Christian community can really capture the imagination of someone who has never experienced it before.”

quote“I can easily keep in touch, comfort and

encourage church members and others who share their life situations on their facebook pages.”

quote“I can start and participate in discussions on

my passions on my facebook page, which connects me with all sorts of people. When I find something interesting in what I’m reading, I put quotes on my wall and it appears magically everywhere. Those who find it interesting comment; those who don’t just ignore it.”

quote“I so enjoy what my priest puts on his page

and what other priests have to say also. The messages really give me comfort throughout the day because I carry them on my cell and refer back to them.”

quote“Facebook provides a connection between

all sorts of people who reflect the complexity of my interests. I find it very interesting to be a link between such diverse kinds of people.”

quote“The battle is worth fighting and not so your

church can look cool. It’s worth it because there are real people with real lives and real pain out there just waiting for someone to reach out. Don’t force them to come to you. Meet them where they are.”

quote“Unlike email, there’s an instantness of

communication with people and no spam, which means that short conversations can happen quickly, but without the intensity of instant messaging.”

quote“With group event pages, we can better

manage what is happening rather than a storm of emails and phone calls trying to arrange the event.”

quote“It is amazing how many people are willing

to connect over facebook even if they are not connecting at church. I see members connecting to each other over facebook and I jump in as pastoral care opportunities arise. Facebook helps me see needs quicker and provide an immediate care response. It helps church members do the same.”

quote“I am considering making facebook a

requirement for all the deacons of our church. I believe it is that powerful as a tool to enhance our larger care ministry.”

fan pagesallow organizations to communicate

broadly with people who like them (fans) via updates

managed by official representativeseasy for people to click “like” and

your posts show up in their newsfeeds

fans can show friends what they care about/like (your church)

fan pagessimilar to profile pages: have friends,

add pictures, have walls. pages allow you to post photos, videos, links and notes to the page and these show up in fans’ newsfeed

tabs uncover more information

groups provide a closed space for small

groups of people to communicate about shared interests (your church, youth group, annual event)

can be created by anyone

administrators manage group, approve applicants, invite others to join

privacypages: information and posts are

public and generally available to everyone on facebook

groups: more privacy settings; in secret and closed groups, posts are only visible to group members

audiencepages: anyone can like a page to become

connected with it and get news feed updates. there is no limit to how many people can like a page.

groups: members must be approved or added by other members. When a group reaches a certain size, some features are limited. The most useful groups tend to be the ones you create with small groups of people you know.

communicationpages: page admins can share posts

under the page’s name. page posts appear in the news feed of people who like the page. page admins can also create customized tabs for their pages and check page insights to track the page’s growth and activity.

communicationgroups: members receive

notifications by default when any member posts in the group. group members can participate in chats, upload photos to shared albums, collaborate on group docs, and invite all members to group events.

pages vs. groupsgroups: more personal interaction,

better discussion boards, messages sent directly to inboxes, a separate space inside fb for just this group to share among themselves, group chat, doc share/editing

pages: targeted updates, vanity urls, indexed by google, stream publishing, extension of web site

groups vs pages

ideascreate youth group pagecreate a page for community

sponsored by your churchcreate outreach pagescreate a group for Bible studycreate a group for volunteers

create• facebook.com/groups• facebook.com/pages

tip: repurpose content

tipsschedule your postsa look at the weekendinvitation to weekend serviceschurch-wide events, diocesan

events, TEC eventsprayers from the BCP

tipspost sermon notes and additional

contentlink to your church calendar to

keep it in front of peoplepost interesting quotes from what

you’re reading

tricks• find someone who is passionate

about facebook to be a resource to staff members just dipping their toes in

• be vigilant about capturing positive stories and circulating them among the staff

tricks• encourage staff to “like” things you post as

the church; this drives an item up in people’s news feeds

• have priest create a profile page and really use it authentically; create fan page for church; create groups for smaller subsets

tipsset your strategyknow your audienceestablish goalsfind your voicecreate a conversationoffer a rich experienceshare exclusive content

tips for priests• transparency and encouragement: post

about your day, thoughts, highlights, life moments that are encouraging and uplifting

• conversation starters: pose questions that let others talk it through, rather than you doing all the talking.

tips for priests• meeting prep: look up people before

meetings to get a snapshot of what’s going on in their lives.

• do not use your account as your soapbox• strive to really connect with people and

build relationships

examplesfacebook.com/SoulCityChurchfacebook.com/

St.MargaretsEpiscopalChurchfacebook.com/campstevensjulianfacebook.com/diosandiegofacebook.com/whoisgrace

examples• facebook.com/episcopalian (TEC)• facebook.com/wired (arrow points to “like”

button)• facebook.com/pages/Service-Coalition-

EDSD/108047429283186

links churchmarketingsucks.com open.lifechurch.tv (“facebook

training”) http://bedeviant.com/simple-social-

scheduling-for-your-churchs-facebook-fan-page

humor a la suzi

questions/discussionhannah wilder | edsd

hwilder@edsd.org

www.edsd.org

619-481-5456