We are at a unique point in history where information is always available. We have access to worldwide news at the touch of a button, we can be in constant communication with friends or even strangers, and we can Google the answers to most of our questions.

And yet.

We have seen churches struggle to communicate with their regular attendees and their wider community. As churches have scrambled to adapt to the constant changes of our digital world, struggling to “do Instagram” right or tweet enough or live stream on Facebook, they have found their messages to be more drowned out than ever before. People are struggling to get connected, people don’t have the right information they need for services, events, and service opportunities.

Churches aren’t seeing engagement with their weekly services and ministries like they did before, and it’s made us all wonder, what’s the missing piece?

Barna released a blog post about the isolation and loneliness plaguing this generation. The author explained that even in, or maybe especially in, a digital world where we’re all seemingly connected all the time, no one really ever has to be intentionally and personally connected to another person.

And that’s the hole the church can, and needs to, step into.

The beautiful solution? It’s so very simple.

Start with communication.

Personal, direct communication, human-to-human. This will impact your church body as well as the community around you that you seek to reach out to. And not just communicating from the pulpit or on Facebook or in your Instagram stories. Communicate in the most comfortable way for people today: text messaging.

This idea of churches using text messages was actually inspired by a pretty horrible night a friend of mine had years ago. I won’t rehash the whole thing for you, but the highlights are…

• The church plant he was a part of came up with a stellar communication plan
• Nobody on the leadership team wanted or had the time to execute it
• They all went home defeated and frustrated
• He, soon after, got a text from Southwest Airlines telling him his flight the next day was already delayed
• He got more frustrated
• Light bulb!

Okay, so after getting this text from Southwest, he thought to himself “if an airline can get in touch with complete strangers using text messaging, why can’t the church use it to communicate?”

Who was this friend? CEO and Co-Founder of Text In Church, Tyler Smith. This experience inspired him to make a better solution for the church plant he was a part of, but also to find a way to make that accessible to churches everywhere.

Now, there were a lot of kinks to work out.  His brother who was planting a church in California at the time had some hard pushback.  He said Southwest was using text messaging as a megaphone; no intent to get responses back, simply to spread their message.  Churches are all about relationship building.  There’s no way they can send these announcement messages from a shortcode and make any sort of impact.

He was right.

So he went back to the drawing board.

Through a lot of trial and error, he merged the familiarity and personalization of a text message with the efficiency of automation and landed on something really special.

Texting seems like a natural communication channel for me.  I weed through my email more harshly than probably anyone else.  My social media is always full of notifications I don’t check.  I never answer a phone call from a number I don’t know.

But a text?

That gets my attention.

But I’m not going to use my personal experience as a justification. Let’s see what the current data says.  The numbers were staggering back when Text In Church was founded, but they’re even bigger today…

• 23 billion texts are sent every day. 23 BILLION.
• 90% of texts are read within 3 minutes. Email open rates are at around 20%, and it can take hours and up to days before it’s opened.
• 45% of texts are responded to. There is absolutely no other communication method that even comes close to this response rate.
• 91% of phone users keep it within 3 feet of them 24 hours per day.

Now, stop reading and find your phone. Is it within arm’s reach? I’m totally guilty of it too!

The proof is in the pudding. Texting is the #1 way people are communicating and, less than a decade ago, churches were not using it! I’ve never believed that texting should be the only communication tool you use. But it can’t be left out.

A church that texts and a church that has a texting strategy are two very different things. I am not condoning sending a text out every morning with your favorite Bible verse and a list of activities happening at the church.

I am talking about using texting as part of a very well-thought-out, personalized strategy to engage your members and guests. Here are a few basic tips for texting to get you started.

Use a 10-digit, local phone number when texting people. This humanizes the text, rather than a shortcode that people immediately write off as spam. Plus, properly registered 10-digit local phone numbers (which Text In Church takes care of for its members) are now the most trusted phone numbers for delivering text messages. It also allows for two-way messaging. Churches don’t want to use texting to shout information at people; they want to build relationships and foster connections. Two-way messaging allows you to send texts back and forth with another individual.

We have your local number taken care of! Start a free 14-day trial of Text In Church to get started in minutes.

When you’re using church texting as a part of your church communication strategy, remember that you’re texting another human being. This is the most intimate a conversation can get until you get face to face, so be personal. Don’t sound robotic and formal. People don’t like it. Just pretend you’re texting a friend!

Now that we covered the basics of church texting messaging, here are five proven strategies we recommend to improve your communication, both internally and externally. These strategies will help you keep guests coming back, boost attendance, retain volunteers, and ultimately build deeper relationships.

Church communication gets kicked into high gear during big events. There’s fancy signage printed and hung up everywhere, the website (hopefully) has some information about it, and your social media accounts are all hyping it up. However, what about once the event is over?

Whether it’s the Christmas season, Lent, or the last crazy month before VBS, it’s a time for preparing. Preparing for the holiday festivities, hosting family or traveling, preparing our hearts as we fast.

As churches, you spend a great deal of time, also, preparing for these worship services. Maybe your worship team prepares some special music. Your sanctuary is likely decorated beautifully. I’m sure the sermon has been planned and practiced for months.

Why?

Well, because these are some of the most significant holidays and events for Christians to celebrate. But it’s also because we know that at our Christmas and Easter services and VBS we will host more people than most other services all year long. There will be a huge influx of new people who show up, maybe for the first time.

Maybe they come because it’s part of their family’s tradition.

Maybe their kids have been begging them to do a VBS.

Maybe they have held tightly to their beliefs, but have walked away from the church. And during such a significant holiday, being at church feels right.

Maybe they are just looking for a fresh start, a clean slate, a chance to begin again.

In all of your preparations, don’t forget to create a follow-up plan so that when you meet all these wonderful new people, it doesn’t end there. It starts a conversation that leads them toward a relationship with your church, and ultimately, with Christ.

Have your follow-up messages ready to go in advance. Don’t wait until after the event to decide how you are going to follow-up with your guests. Craft your text messages so that they are ready for you to use when the time comes.

Be sure to have connection cards available. Whether that be paper connection cards or digital ones, there will be A LOT of visitors so distribute and display connection cards for your guests.

You can also use a connection card online as a registration tool for VBS or as a Plan A Visit tool. This allows you to reach out to these people before the events. That’s HUGE! Make it easy for them to find and fill out. Avoid asking too many questions, just get enough information so you can follow up with them such as their name, phone number, and email address.

You may be wondering, how can we make a lasting impact on these people?

One that says…

You belong here.

You’re welcome here.

You’re wanted here.

They are going to feel that over time, as they build genuine relationships with people. And how do we do that in a day and age that is pulling at people’s attention from every angle? By building a follow-up system that engages people for an extended amount of time and creates opportunities to connect with them.

We can’t expect new people to come to church and do all the work. They showed up. They took that vulnerable, awkward, first step, and now the ball is in your court!

You know they will be impacted by your outreach events and services. The message of Christmas leaves an impression. It invites them to follow the journey of Christ from the manger, to ministry, to the mystery of Easter. VBS has a huge impact on children. They go home talking about it and wanting more. So how will you nurture that? How will you continue to shepherd those new people once they leave the walls of your church?

Reach out to them. Text them. Then maybe text them again. And then text them again…

I think you get the point.

Here are a few follow-up text message examples you could use after an outreach event…

Example 1: Merry Christmas {FIRST_NAME}! Thanks again for joining us for our Christmas service. We hope you have a blessed holiday! ~ [INSERT PASTOR NAME]

Example 2: Is there anything we can be praying about for your family this week?

Example 3: Hey there! It was great to have your family this summer at VBS. We are kicking off our children’s programs on September 4 and would love to have you join us!

Example 4: Hey there Judy! We just wanted to let you know we are grateful you joined us this Easter. We hope to see you back next week!

People are worth it, and they need to be reminded that they are wanted. Church doesn’t always feel as open and welcoming as we hope it does to the outside world, so let’s change that one intentional text message at a time after each amazing outreach event.

Prayer is a part of the lives of every Christ-follower. This is something we engage with corporately during our worship services and something I’m sure you encourage your members to be doing every day to enhance their own spiritual lives. But how often do you or the staff at your church engage with personalized prayer for the individuals in your congregation? Unless you have the capacity to be in relationship with most of your regular attendees, most people won’t share the things they need prayer for in passing after a service.

Ask your people how you can be praying for them. This is super simple. Send a text message out to your regular attendees or maybe even people you haven’t seen in the last 6 to 12 months. Here’s what that message could say, Hi Sam, how can I be praying for you this week?

We have found that churches that use this specific message get the most replies and give them the ability to minister to people and meet the needs of people who are sick, going through financial troubles, or needing encouragement.

Pro tip: Rotate between different segments of your congregation to ask this question so everyone doesn’t receive it at the same time and to tailor the message to each group. For example, you could ask college students that question on the first Monday of the month, young families the second Monday, and the rest of the congregation on the third Monday so your team, or if it’s just you, has the time to adequately respond to people’s needs.

Related blog post: 3 Critical Text Messaging Components for Prayer Requests

We hear it from pastors all the time…

“Our worship team does a fantastic job – the music is so powerful!”

“Our greeters are so warm and welcoming. New people never go unnoticed!”

“I prepped for months on that sermon, and I felt great about it.”

“But…”

There it is. The ever-present “but” that clings to so many churches.

“Our attendance week over week is declining.”

“New guests aren’t coming back.”

“It feels like we are missing the mark.”

We have worked with thousands of pastors who have experienced the same struggle.  And while it is incredibly important to make sure Sunday morning is well prepared for and engaging to guests and members alike, we are fighting more than just music style preferences to keep people in church.

Think about it. Many people who visit your church for the first time have months, years, or maybe even their whole life of NOT going to church on Sunday morning. Even your members who are committed to your church and its mission have kids, vacation, sickness, a hard week at work, you name it! We are competing with the everyday hustle and bustle of busy family lives.

That is what inspired utilizing text messaging in a strategy we call the Sermon Series Bump!  With the help of pastors all over the country, we developed a strategy to communicate before and during a new sermon series to boost attendance, and incredible success has come out of it.

In fact, churches are reporting back a 10-15% bump in weekly attendance! The solution is simple and highly effective.

The whole philosophy behind the Sermon Series Bump is to get people excited about the new material you are going to be sharing and, honestly, to keep it at the forefront of their minds.

But why texting, you might ask? Don’t forget the statistics shared earlier…

• 26 billion texts are sent each day
• 90% of texts are read within 3 minutes
• 45% of texts receive a reply

People are way more likely to open and read a text than answer a phone call, read an email, or browse the bulletin. Whether we like it or not, it’s the reality.

The Sermon Series Bump is essentially three intentionally timed and crafted text messages.  That’s right, all you need are 3 simple text messages and a new sermon series, and you can sit back and enjoy church growth!

So, now that you understand the strategy, here’s how it works…

The Invitation Message

Send the first text on the Wednesday before your new sermon series will start. Send it around lunchtime so members are reminded to invite their friends when they are with their co-workers. This is a simple reminder that a new sermon series is starting and that you’re excited about it!

Is Wednesday a busy day for you? That’s fine! Schedule the texts ahead of time to ensure they go out exactly when you want!

You can start by addressing them by first name to make the message feel personal. Keep the rest of the message simple and straight to the point. Not only is this a good reminder for the upcoming series, but it’s a great talking point for people. Imagine this guy is sitting in his breakroom at work. His phone goes off and he gets this text. It’s so easy for him to say, “Oh, my pastor just texted me about a new series at church. Sounds interesting, you should check it out.”  The invite is natural and low-pressure – it’s a win for everyone.

The Reminder Message

Send the second text on the Saturday morning before, as a last minute reminder. Again, keep it simple, just a note of excitement with the time and maybe a note about coffee or donuts.

This helps keep attending church on the forefront of people’s minds as they make their weekend plans. Pastors are fighting the busyness of life to get people in the door on Sunday mornings, so don’t be afraid to remind them.

Let me emphasize this point: Don’t be afraid to remind people about church! It’s not being annoying or pushy. It’s being genuinely invested in the spiritual growth of your community. The world has no problem fighting for people’s attention; we have to get comfortable asking and reminding a bit more often.

The Follow-up Message

Finally, send the third text the Tuesday after the first Sunday of the new sermon series in case they missed Sunday and to remind them what’s coming next week.

Speaking in a sermon series can be great because it generates buzz around multiple Sunday messages, but it can also be hard when someone misses the first sermon in the series and decides to just “catch the next series”.

Include the link to your last sermon so they can feel prepared for the next week, and encourage them to show up. This is simply giving them access to the information since they missed it and eliminating the fear or excuse that missing the first week should keep them from coming for the remainder of the sermon series.

Related blog post: Increase Church Attendance with These 3 Text Messages

There is a lot more to guest follow-up than simply texting them. I fully know and appreciate that. But before we can dive into how to utilize text messaging as part of a bigger, comprehensive guest follow-up plan, we first, we need to discuss what’s NOT working and why.

Inconsistency is the first big mistake that churches make when it comes to guest follow-up. When a first-time guest shows up at your church, they have a lifestyle of not being at church. If your invitations or introductions are sporadic and unintentional, they will get drowned out by the noise of life.

Consistent communication is key to showing a guest that they’re important. We know you care, but they need to know you care. And the best way for them to know it is for you to show it.

Irrelevant content and methods in church guest follow-up is the second mistake we often see. For example, are you sending the singles ministry event invite to a married couple? Yikes.

Don’t do that. Instead, since you don’t know anything about the person yet, send basic content to them: come to service, come to our lunch and learn, etc. Remember, your follow-up plan is just the beginning of the relationship with your guests, so there will be plenty of time to learn more about them once you make that first step towards building a relationship with them.

Irrelevant methods of communication can also happen when churches ignore peoples’ communication preferences or don’t offer choices at all. Don’t just communicate exclusively via email because that’s how you’ve always done it. Everyone prefers a different method of communication, so use a combination to stay relevant! You need to meet people where they are and find a communication channel where they feel most comfortable. If you’re sticking to only one method of follow-up, you’re missing out on the people who don’t access information that way. Relevant communication takes into account many different preferences. Even though this is added work, it always pays off.

The third BIG mistake is probably the most common mistake we see in guest follow-up communications. It’s insufficient. And we totally get why. Sending multiple messages to, hopefully, multiple first-time guests week after week after week… it can become a huge, time-intensive, workload.

However, insufficient follow-up is simply noise. It’s a quick email blast that people don’t read. It feels automated and generic, and people see right through it.

Also, many of your first-time guests have a lifetime pattern of not being at church. One or two follow-up messages aren’t going to impact that.

So what’s the answer? What does it take to have a sufficient follow-up process?

We’ve found that it takes at least 6 weeks of using a variety of communication methods to follow up with guests sufficiently. It’s comprehensive and focused on relationship building. Sufficient guest follow-up is investing in that person and doing your best to build a relationship with them.

Effective follow-up means truly connecting with your guests. Our culture has more ways to connect than ever, but sometimes that can mean a lot of messages and a lot of noise. In order to break through that noise and meaningfully connect with your church guests, you need to plan out how you’re going to communicate with them.

Once you have a strategy that is sufficient, relevant, and consistent, you can utilize text messaging as a way to ensure that your messages are read and most likely responded. Texting IS the way people are communicating with their family and friends. At the root of church, there’s community. Use the method people are most comfortable with to build that long-lasting relationship with them.

Utilize a system like Text In Church to personalize each and every message, have two-way texting conversations (not from your personal cell number – hooray!), and even schedule text messages ahead of time so no one ever slips through the cracks!

Texting is just one of 6 powerful tools you can use in a comprehensive guest follow-up plan. Watch this video to learn about the other 5 communication tools.

Not only are your volunteers a critical part in making church run on Sunday mornings, but they have the capability to be the hands and feet in making personal connections with those in your community.

It is vital to invest in your volunteers and have a series of messages to send them. This starts when they are brand new volunteers, carries on through their ministry time at your church, and even as someone transitions out of a volunteer space. See it as a place to not only equip new volunteers but encourage them and let them know you are here to support them.

Let’s think through some ways we can do this kind of follow-up. Imagine we’ve asked folks that were interested in being part of a hospitality team to text SERVE to the number on the screen and they did that. They’re going to get a text message back that says, Hi Jenna, thanks for signing up to serve! I’m so excited to have you join the team. I’ll send you an email with more details.

That’s simple. Now, let’s also send a reminder.

Hey Jenna, just a reminder, we’ll meet at 9 a.m. on Sunday morning to prepare for worship. See you there.

This is a great way to start conversations with people. Now, they can text back to ask questions. Or confirm and say, Awesome, looking forward to it.

For the third text, we’re going to validate them. We’re going to say, Jenna, I’m so thankful to have you on the hospitality team. ~ Pastor Joe. And notice it says, Jenna there. You should personalize most of your messages and say “Hi Judy”, “Hey Steve”, “Hey Tyler” – I’m so thankful to have you on the hospitality team. ~ Pastor Joe.

Then, let’s encourage them… Wow! Thanks so much for all you do to make our worship awesome each Sunday. You’re the best! ~ Pastor Joe. Simple, right? But such an effective way to make your volunteers feel special and appreciated. Thank you’s go a long way.

The messages I just shared with you are messages that are part of one workflow you can add to your Text In Church account specifically for volunteers when they sign up to serve.

By making your volunteers feel valued, appreciated, and needed, they will feel more connected to your congregation and eager to help. This can be communicated easily and certainly through your church texting strategy!

Church texting is a huge step in the right direction for churches to create a member communication plan and first-time guest follow-up plan that is relevant, comprehensive, and effective.

Text Messaging is the preferred communication method for most people and truly makes your church more accessible to members and guests alike. Utilizing a church texting strategy can impact your church communication plan in five major ways…

• Create long-term impact after big events
• Build a culture of prayer among your members
• Increase church attendance with the Sermon Series Bump strategy
• Follow-up with new guests
• Retain and build relationships with volunteers

Learn five more strategies, including 67 copy & paste text messaging templates to take the guesswork out of making authentic and personal connections by downloading our Text Messaging Playbook!