how effective pr help's your church reach your community

HOW EFFECTIVE PUBLIC RELATIONS CAN HELP YOUR CHURCH REACH YOUR COMMUNITY

Justin Dean, That Church Conferencewww.justinjdean.com // @justinjdean

Church Communications

Brought to you by

www.tithe.ly2

www.churchm.ag

www.tithe.ly3

JUSTIN DEAN

Justin  Dean  is  the  former  Communications  Director  at  Mars  Hill  Church  and  now  co-­leads  That  Church  Conference,  a  growing  community  of  church  practitioners  dedicated  to  helping  the  church  communicate  well  and  reach  more  people  digitally.

justinjdean.com

www.tithe.ly4

WHAT IS PUBLIC RELATIONS?

• Everything we say and do (or don’t do) is public relations.

• Whether you like it or not, everyone in your organization is in PR.

• It doesn’t matter so much what you meant to say or do.

• What matters most is how people perceive it and how they feel about you because of it.

• Effective PR is when you’re intentional about it.

www.tithe.ly5

HOW CAN EFFECTIVE PR HELP MY CHURCH?

• We want our churches to grow so we can reach more people.

• We want to reach more people so they meet Jesus.

• A positive reputation is important to effectively reaching people.

• Best way to reach people is to go where they are.

www.tithe.ly6

ENGAGE WITH YOUR COMMUNITY• Build relational equity (H/T @vanbaird).

• Community organizations

• Other churches

• Press & Media

• Influencers

• Government

• Business owners

www.tithe.ly7

• Maintain relationships

• Send out press releases

• Participate outside the church

• Engage on social media (don’t just be a megaphone)

• Share stories

• DO SOMETHING (Don’t just post #PrayFor graphics)

• Documenting > Creating Content

BUILD A PRO-ACTIVE PR PLAN

www.tithe.ly8

• Plan ahead for plausible scenarios.

• Document what you’ll do and how you’ll do it.

• Choose a spokesperson now.

• Rehearse and educate staff.

• Document church beliefs and policies.

• Know your vision, mission, and values.

BUILD A RE-ACTIVE CRISIS PLAN

www.tithe.ly9

• You can’t ignore public relations (remember, you’re already doing it).

• The world we live in, you never know when a crisis will hit. Plan ahead.

• Worst plan is no plan.

• More than just protecting ourselves…

• The church needs to be actively and aggressively pursuing people.

EFFECTIVE PUBLIC RELATIONS

www.tithe.ly10

PRE-ORDER JUSTIN’S BOOK

#PRMATTERS

A  Survival  Guide  for  Church  CommunicatorsLessons  learned  from  Justin  Dean, former  Communications  Director  at  Mars  Hill  Church.

CHURCHPRBOOK.COM

www.tithe.ly11

We believe giving to your local church should be Meaningful, Simple, and Fast. That’s why we built a comprehensive suite of digital giving tools for your church.

www.tithe.ly