Regarding “Going Public – Representing the Adventist Church” - PLEASE NOTE:

This document and its accompanying PowerPoint are temporary resources that can be adapted to construct a presentation on the important subject of how to present your church in a favorable way in your community. This is actually a video script—that is in the process of being developed—with some temporary PowerPoint slides that can be used with it to make a PowerPoint presentation. It is part 1 of 2 parts. The title of part 1 is “Mult-media Public Relations.” Part 2 is in a similar format. A more permanent version of CS 05f Going Public - Representing the Adventist Church will be constructed and posted later.

Title of Module: Going Public – Representing the Adventist Church

IICM Module 10 (Video 1 of 2)

Video 1 – Multi-media Public Relations

1. Multi-media Public Relationsa. By the end of this learning module, you will be able to positively present the Adventist

Church in your community in multiple mediums.

Script GraphicsWelcome to International Institute of Christian Ministries Community Services & Urban Ministry learning module 10: Going Public – Representing the Adventist Church.

As an Adventist, you have an inherent understanding of who you are, what you believe, and what you represent. Often however, those that do not belong to the organization may know little or nothing about the Adventist organization.

By the end of this learning module, you will be able to:

Increase the positive presence of the Adventist Church to your community in multiple mediums.

Before we begin, please find and print the Public Relations Check-up for Seventh-day Adventist Organizations, found in your resource folder.

Please take a few minutes to fill this form out before you begin the training video.

You will also need a copy of the “Press Release Template.” This form is available in the resource folder of this course. Print or bookmark it for use later in this training video.

Now, let’s get started.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Increase the positive presence of the Adventist Church to your community in multiple mediums.

Show document

We can’t possibly know how the Adventist Church is perceived in any one community, unless we take the time to intentionally ensure that Adventist organizations represent the organization in a positive way.

Biblically, we are charged with being highly visible. Matthew 5:14 states, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden”.

In Acts of the Apostles, page 90, Ellen White states, “To the early church had been entrusted a constantly enlarging work – that of establishing centers of light and blessing wherever there were honest souls willing to give themselves to the service of Christ.”

Someone clicking on an Seventh-day Adventist Church website and smiling.

Bible verse

EG White quote – key words

It is clear that to influence, we must be visible and known to those around us.

Recently, the Barna Group collected data specific to Seventh-day Adventist brand awareness and perceptions in the United States of America.

This report is available in its entirety in the resource folder of this course.

Let’s quickly review some of the key findings from the Barna Group report.

Overall, four out of five adults say they are aware of the Seventh-day Adventist church. That’s 81%.

A large proportion of U.S adults say they have heard of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, but they do not know enough about it to form an opinion of it (43%).

Of adults aware of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, one out of five have a favorable opinion of the church (20%).

Just over one out of four adults aware of the church have an unfavorable opinion of it (28%).

The number one reason adults gave for having a favorable opinion of the SDA church is having family or friends who are members of the church (16%).

The number one reason adults gave for having an unfavorable opinion of the SDA church is a general disapproval of all religions (10%).

Show Barna Group document.

Show a couple of tables from study

This survey reveals some very interesting information about how the Seventh-day Adventist Church is perceived in the United States of America.

We certainly have some work to do, in increasing both awareness and quality perception of our Seventh-day Adventist organizations.

Create AwarenessQuality Perception

The Seventh-day Adventist Church may be viewed very differently in various parts of the world. It is important to gather data that accurately reflects the location of your Seventh-day Adventist organization.

If you are interested in discovering what your community thinks and knows about your Seventh-day Adventist organization, you can use the survey tool called Seventh-day Adventist Brand Awareness & Perceptions, which can be found in the resource folder of this course. [DON’T HAVE]

You can print the survey and have community members fill it out and give it back to you.

Show each type of survey deployment

Or you can use the survey for phone interviews with random community members, and document their responses.

Finally, you can use this survey within the Adventist Learning Community in its on-line format. Simply direct participants to the “Assessments” tab on this course site, and select the Seventh-day Adventist Brand Awareness & Perceptions quiz and fill out the survey.

Make sure you carefully study the results of your specific community members so that you know how to best increase positive public awareness.

We are going to discuss ways to increase public awareness about the church specific to all forms of media.

These methods include things like using the official Seventh-day Adventist name and logo on documents, posting great signs, and having a social media presence, etc

One of the first ways to improve our community presence is by improving our name recognition.

Ellen White understood the power in a name. She states, “Our name alone, conveying as it does the significant features of our message has power to arrest and convict men and women.” [REFERENCE?]

Here are some great pointers about the name Seventh-day Adventist.Always write it out! If you have to shorten the name, use Adventist.

The acronym SDA is meaningless to the public. Most won’t associate it with a religious organization. In Toronto, Ontario Canada, the acronym SDA is associated with SDA Building Services Inc., which provides cleaning and maintenance services for business and industry.

This principle applies to website addresses too. Just spell it out.

Correct:Seventh-day AdventistAdventist

Incorrect:Seventh Day AdventistSDA

Another way to improve your presence is by branding. Consistently use the Seventh-day Adventist logo.

Here is a quick way to access the current church logo.

Type in your search line – www.adventist.orgType in the search line “logo”Scroll down the page and you will see the logo is available for download in several different languagesClick on the language logo you desire, and it will download to your computer.

Show logo

Show path to download logo capturing computer pages as the user navigates

It’s that easy!

Another great way to provide consistent branding is with the signs outside of buildings, or on roadways.

Make sure that you spell out the name of the organization; Seventh-day Adventist, in letters that are big enough to see, and in contrast with the background of the sign.

Always be mindful of laws pertaining to posting signs in your area. Be proud that the organization is associated with the church.

Don’t be so obscure that the name Seventh-day Adventist is not readily identified.

Show a great picture of a sign that has Seventh-day Adventist Church

Show “Neighbor to Neighbor” sign out on US 31 in Berrien Springs, Michigan.

Media presence in the on-line environment is becoming more and more important.

Make sure you have an attractive webpage that can represent your church or organization to the public.

Try navigating your website and the website of several other church organizations, and see what you like and don’t like about each one.

Websites should be uncluttered and easy to navigate. If a website search capacity requires too much information, users will stop using it.

A great way to maximize your impact, is to link to the worldwide Adventist website from your website. The user will see that your organization belongs to a vast organizational network.

Show someone actually navigating a user friendly webpage – preferably Adventist

www.adventist.org

If possible create Social Media presence by creating a Facebook page, Twitter or Instagram account.

Make sure the person who manages your social media accounts has time to regularly manage these pages and set the parameters to limit abuse and misuse.

Post news, events, pictures, Bible verses, or encouraging thoughts. Social media pages that are used frequently, become more prominent in the social media newsfeed.

Show two facebook pagesMaxwell Adventist AcademyOntario Youth Ministries

Show two twitter pagesPioneer Memorial Church NAD Evangelism

Get listed!Make sure your name and contact information is in as many places possible within your community.

This includes the telephone yellow pages – both in print and on-line format, community directories found in hotel lobbies, community centers, and libraries and newspaper worship directories and Christian business directories.

You may even be able to list your organization on the back of a local Restaurant for a small fee.

Making yourself known in your own community is bound to raise your profile.

Stop the video now, and make a list of places you want to ensure your Seventh-day Adventist organization has a public presence.

Show examples of these.

One of the easiest ways to spread information is by placing Seventh-day Adventist brochures in the lobby of public places. Make sure you have permission to do this first. You can find a variety of pamphlets at http://www.nadadventist.org/article/1073742475/ministries-services/ministries/communication

When your organization has an upcoming outreach event, create an eye-catching newspaper or media add. Write and record a 30-60 second radio add that can run free of charge on the local radio station.Advertise your events at local sports leagues, concerts, or community centers.

Advertise a Bible study course for a specific target group via the newspaper, flyers, or on your website.

You can obtain numerous media instructional booklets on the AdventSource website at http://www.adventsource.org/as30/search.results.aspx?search=how%20to%20place%20newspaper%20ads&section=home

Send holiday greeting cards to your local business and organizations.

Sow someone clicking onWebsite addresses

Another great way to raise awareness in your community is to submit news stories to the local TV or radio station, or the local newspaper. Many times, we write stories for our own Seventh-day Adventist publications, but this keeps valuable information on the “inside.” Our communities need to hear about us on a regular basis!

Before you start writing stories, become familiar with the type of community interest stories public sector media outlets like to run. Start observing your church organization for stories that fit local media habits.

Once you know what kind of stories they are looking for, contact the media outlet, and find out if they have any guidelines for submitting stories or up-coming events. A lot of media organizations have a very specific story submission process.

Good story ideas may include;Pastor transferDisaster responseOrganization anniversary, ground breaking, mortgage burningAwardsMission or service tripCamp MeetingLocal or national notable storiesLocal needs based programs

Remember, to include photographs with your stories – a picture does say a thousand words!

Once you’ve successfully submitted a story to a media outlet, don’t let it stop there! Keep building that relationship by submitting new stories or events every once in a while.

Lastly, let’s talk about how to write a press release.

A press release is written communication for the purposes of announcing something newsworthy and creating positive public relations. Usually, news releases are e-mailed or faxed to a newspaper, radio or TV station, or other on-line or printed publication.

A press release is typically submitted to a media outlet with all the details that will inform the public about a story or event.

A typical media release includes the following information.The date, contact person, contact information, and headline or title. The body of the news release usually has four to five paragraphs containing the following information;1st paragraph: Who, what, when, where, how2nd paragraph: Why program is important to audience3rd paragraph: Quote from organizers4th paragraph: Good background information5th paragraph: Registration information or contact for more information

Now that you know what a press release is and what information is necessary to include, its time for you to write your first press release.

Think about an up-coming event that your church or Adventist organization

date, contact person, contact information, headline or title

1st paragraph: Who, what, when, where, how2nd paragraph: Why program is important to audience3rd paragraph: Quote from organizers4th paragraph: Good background information5th paragraph: Registration information or contact for more information

is planning.

With your Press Release Template, which you printed or bookmarked at the beginning of this video, spend 20-30 minutes, writing a rough draft of your event press release.

Once you are done, have someone else read it and see if they still have any questions. If they do, then most likely you need to edit your information.

Don’t get rid of this! Your draft press release can now serve as you example template for when you want to submit an actual Press Release.

Maintaining community presence through all forms of media takes time and effort.

It is one aspect of actively engaging within your local community that can make a huge difference if done frequently and consistently over time.

Actively EngagingHuge Difference

You have reached the end of video 1. Please complete the short multiple-choice quiz posted at the end of this video.

To complete the module on Going Public – Representing the Adventist Church, please view video 2.

Show icon on LMS for video 2

Quiz for ALC on LMS

Going Public – Representing the Adventist Church

Please carefully read and answer the following multiple- choice questions. You will only be allowed to proceed by selecting the correct answer (100% mastery). You are responsible for recording the completion of this learning unit for the purposes of Continuing Education Units.

1. Select the best way to write the name of our organization. a. SDAb. Seventh-Day Adventistc. 7th day Adventistd. Seventh-day Adventist

2. The best signs should include which combination of elements. a. Large letters, address, contact information, logo, colorful background, name. b. Full name – Seventh-day Adventist, large letters, church logo, clutter-free. c. Large letters, contrasting background, name – Adventist, clutter free, logo. d. Full name – Seventh-Day Adventist, church logo, address, contact information.

3. Which circumstance supports Social Media platform usage by the church organization? a. The Pastor of the church is the only one who posts on the site. b. The secretary of the church organization should be the one managing the site.

c. The person managing social media sites has both time and savvy. d. Most social media sites have built in filters for content editing.

4. Which statement is the best description of a quality church website?a. The website is clean, attractive, easy and intuitive to navigate. b. The website has lots of instructional videos on how to navigate the site. c. The website is clean, easy to navigate, attractive, and animated. d. The website has lots of information, colorful animated photos, and music.

5. A press release can be used to best promote which event?a. The baby shower for the Pastor’s son and daughter-in-law. b. The Pathfinder camping trip to the State Park, next weekend. c. The vegetarian cooking seminars planned for the weekend at the church. d. The 13th Sabbath Communion Service happening Sabbath morning.