Communications 3.0 Trends that will impact your ministry.

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Dec 19, 2011 in Church Technology, Church Websites, Culture, Ekklesia, Featured Articles, General Technology, Ministry Technology, Monk Dev | 1 comment

Read the Communication 3.0 article at Outcomes

With the growth of the web, new forms of communication are becoming dominant. Old methods of communication are impacted by this change. For example, the U.S. Postal Service is considering the elimination of Saturday delivery because mail is down 26 percent in 5 years. Or look at the newspaper industry. We are seeing not only new ways to read the news, but a whole transformation of the industry. Technology’s growth creates behavioral and organizational change in deep ways. These changes require your organization to communicate and interact with people in new and different ways.

Let us look at a few trends that will change how you engage your audience:
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(1) The impact of the Internet is more than technological; it is about worldviews
As the web catches more of our lives in its grip, it becomes a layer through how we view the world. We are becoming more dependent on it. Behavior changes, such as forgetting people’s phone numbers as we keep them on our cell phone, continues with each new technology we adopt. Think about this: one-third of women aged 18 to 34 first check Facebook when they wake up, according to a 2010 study by Oxygen Media & Lightspeed Research of 1,605 young adults. Twenty-one percent of these women check Facebook in the middle of the night, and 57 percent of young women say they talk to more people online than face to face. Facebook is just one site that is changing the rules of how we behave.

Organizations need to see that the impact from the web is larger than the technology itself because it reflects a new worldview. There has been a change in how new generations see the world. In his 1993 book, Post-Capitalist Society, the late Peter Drucker worded it this way:

“Every few hundred years in Western history, there occurs a sharp transformation . . . within a few short decades, society rearranges itself – its worldview; its basic values; its social and political structure; its arts; its key institutions . . . Fifty years later, there is a new world and the people born then cannot even imagine the world in which their grandparents lived and into which their own parents were born. We are currently living through just such a transformation.”

Technology is accelerating this process of change. For example, do you think social media would have taken off as it has if it were around in the 1950s? Or was there a different view of authority that would have discouraged people from posting their opinion online? Part of the explosion of social media is that it aligns with a postmodern worldview. It is important for organizations to see what is underway as more than just technological; it is about a worldview change that is reshaping industries and organizations. The next generation of digital natives is being made in the image of the web.

(2) Mobile requires your attention
According to Google, by 2013 the desktop computer will be irrelevant. The mobile device, be it an iPhone, an Android phone, an iPad, or something we have not even seen yet, will be the primary way that we do computing and interact online.

Mobile is different; unlike a desktop computer, it is always with us and available. This leads to different habits for its use. Google now estimates that 20 percent of its searches are for things that are nearby, and that percentage is even higher for searches conducted on mobile phones. According to Facebook, over 250 million users access its site via mobile device. And those that do are more active than those who access it via desktop. So what should ministries do? As a ministry, imagine that the entire world has a smart phone (like an iPhone), and will want to access information about you using it. Then plan accordingly.

(3) The “appification” revolution is underway
The number of apps available in Apple’s application (app) store now exceeds 500,000 and these apps have been downloaded over 15 billion times. According to Flurry Analytics, in June 2011, mobile users spent more time on apps than they spent online.ÊAs these apps embed themselves into our daily life, they bring changes to our behaviors. The drive to build web and mobile apps will increase as organizations seek to engage users.

The next frontier for organizations is to build mission-focused web apps. Already these apps are being developed for the church (e.g., YouVersion). As you consider an app, think about going beyond presenting information. Use apps to engage users in ways that matter to your ministry, whether it is discipleship, volunteering, or other valuable activities.

(4) We are in a post-website world
We live in a “post-website” world. The advent of social media, including the massive popularity of social networking, has changed the game. The power of social media is clearly seen in Twitter. Founded only a few short years ago in 2006, Twitter became a critical social media tool to the regime changes that recently swept the Middle East.

The primary use of the web is about becoming more relational, not informational. Our focus should be to go where the people are, not to expect that they will come to us. The question you need to answer is, How do we become integrated into the online habits of our audience? Websites are still valuable to accomplish the goals of your organization, but a website is meaningless if no one visits it.

(5) Focus on the fringe that is central to your success
Traditionally, the basic organizing principle of communications has been the pyramid, but that is changing. For example, according to Altimeter Group research, most novice organizations engage social media through a centralized person or a department. However, today, those who have the most advanced and effective strategies are more decentralized. The web allows you to flatten your organization and reduce the friction to communicate and engage people. An example of this is Compassion International, which does its best to get out of the way and connect the sponsor with children around the world. Or Salesforce.com, which launched a peer network called Chatter to connect peers within an organization in a real time environment, removing unneeded bureaucracy to achieve results. How are you using web technology to connect and empower people at the far reaches of your organization?

(6) Research needs to drive your online strategy
Your decisions about online tools should be driven by strategy. And strategy should be driven by research. Use research to understand how your target audience uses the Internet. Do they use mobile devices? Do they prefer e-mail or a Facebook message? Forrester Research has developed Social Technographics, a way to classify people according to how they use social technologies. This helps you to determine if your customers are creators, joiners, critics, spectators, collectors, or inactive. This type of research can help you determine if your ministry should invest in certain social media sites and how to best engage your audience.

If you design your research well, you will probably find some new insights that will surprise you. For example, when David T. Bourgeois, associate professor of information systems at Biola University, worked on a project to determine the best way to reach staff members in their early- to mid-20s, his assumption was that a Facebook page and wall posts were the best solution. However, research showed that they preferred e-mail and actually did not want the organization to use wall posts.

There are several methods of research available to you. If possible, directly surveying your target group is probably the best way to understand them. Creating a well-thought out survey is not simple; if possible, I would suggest that you find a survey used by a reputable research organization and modify it as opposed to creating one yourself. Using third-party data (such as that from the Pew Internet Project or the U.S. Census) will also give you some ideas of how to reach your group. I would also recommend working with someone who has experience doing research in this area.

Conclusion
How can your organization prepare for the communication changes ahead? A friend of mine, ministry online technology consultant Cynthia Ware, often quotes 1 Chronicles 12:32, where “from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” As leaders we need to learn about the shift in worldview and in the technological landscape.
The first act in the story of the Internet has been the vast availability of information. We are just beginning the second half of the story – the pervasiveness of the web in every aspect of our life. This pervasiveness includes but goes beyond our mobile phones to all the things in our life, such as our cars, our living room, and even the appliances in our house. All of our life will become increasingly brought online.

These trends can be positive even though they often require changes in how your organization operates. To succeed, ministries must adjust and adapt to this new environment. For example, an increasing number of churches are exploring online worship services and are hiring digital pastors to interact with their congregation online. One large ministry built a private community site to engage users to learn, serve, donate, and increase participation, but they had to shut it down after a year because it required more community management than their staff could handle. This organization did not want to change and thus closed down the online community website. In most of our strategy work with organizations, there are changes people must consider to implement effective web strategies. Often these include making new hires, retraining staff, and letting people go as the organization’s needs change.

For many organizations, particularly established ones, there is a significant tension between maintaining the current technology and the need to innovate. But with change occurring so quickly, there is a vital need for ministries to innovate and to be willing to fail. Who is leading your organization to translate your mission, strategies, and goals into the web environment?

At Monk Development (an organization that does this for many ministries and churches), we understand this is full-time work. Most ministries have been on their own in navigating their web strategy. Our desire is to see this change. We lead the Ministry Internet and Technology Summit at the CLA National Conference, which brings together experts in technology and social media from across the ministry world. I invite you to send your teams to participate in this conference in Orlando, Florida, April 10-12, 2012 (ChristianLeadershipAlliance.org/2012). The summit will offer sessions on building the right social media strategy, how to increase online donations, best practices of mobile or application development, and other topics presented by thought leaders in the ministry space. In addition, each year research is conducted and presented at this summit that will enhance your ministry’s online engagement. Please plan to join us.

Second, in partnership with CLA we will launch a new CIO Forum. These forums will include peer-learning to share best practices and discuss the challenges we all face. At stake is the ministry impact we make and how we steward our limited time and resources toward things that will deliver the most value.

We as leaders need to think deeply about the transformation that technology is enabling. We should embrace change, but remember the good news that we do not have to put our hope in keeping up with the changes around us. Our hope is in Christ alone and that Jesus promised that he would build his church. Christ will guide us through, even as the transformation of communication and technology continues at an exponential pace.

The Ministry Internet & Technology Summit

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Sep 11, 2009 in Ekklesia, General Technology, Ministry Technology, Monk Dev | 1 comment

The Christian Leadership Alliance has asked that I organize an Internet Ministry conference for CLA 2010 and beyond. This year it will be in San Diego, CA, on April 19-21, 2010. This year we have our schedule of speakers that will include numerous panel members from ministries around the world.

SUMMIT OVERVIEW: Technology is changing the way we work, live and operate as nonprofits. Centered on the theme of increasing your communication, operations and donor engagement The Ministry Internet & Technology Summit features twelve sessions that will expand your reach, increase your donor base and enhance how you do ministry in this increasingly online world.

TOPICS COVERED: Social Networks & Communities, New Media, Donor Management, Internet Marketing, Mobile Web & Applications, Interactive Media, Web Applications, Branding and Infrastructure.

WHY ATTEND? In today’s economic climate nonprofits need to be good stewards through decreasing costs as well as doing more with less. New technologies and web strategies can equip your ministry to achieve these goals. Learn from real world practitioners and experts who will equip you in ways that will make an immediate positive impact for your ministry.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND? Ministry executives, technology staff, development and fundraising officers, marketing and communications professionals and other nonprofit leaders interested in being on the leading edge of today’s technology.

SESSIONS:

A Look into the Near & Distant Future of Online Ministry
In this session leaders will learn to apply a web strategy framework to address their ministries needs both for today and tomorrow. Learn from cutting edge organizations and hear what experts say is next on the horizon. This session is designed for strategic leaders regardless of their technological level of understanding. In this session participants will 1) learn how to plan for an effective ministry online strategy, 2) explore key emerging technologies that will impact their ministry and 3) hear how cutting edge organizations are implementing revolutionary practices today.
Drew Goodmanson, CEO, Monk Development and cofounder/pastor, Kaleo Church, San Diego

Lost in Translation
You have a unique brand story. Don’t let it get lost in the way you express it. Social media, your web presence, print collateral, direct mail and events are all opportunities to consistently reinforce your story. This interactive session will unpack the importance of creating a brand identity that aligns with organizational strategy and avoids blind use of trends and gimmicks. In this session participants will learn 1) how to create a powerful story for your ministry, 2) how to integrate it across your entire communication and 3) how to ensure your story aligns with your organizational strategy.
Tim Ellens, President, CHANGEffect

The New Church Social: How Interactive Media Values Can Transform Your Ministry Mastering social media strategies is a communications imperative for businesses, churches, and nonprofits. As we move towards a technologically immersive environment, best practices for new media strategies have amplified value. Explore best practices you can employ for your particular new media needs. In this session participants will: 1) learn to identify five new media values, 2) gain the ability to implement these values into their social media strategy and 3) explore how small changes in communication practices can result in greater communication impact.
Cynthia Ware, Online Technology and Church Development consultant, TheDigitalSanctuary.org

The Three “I’s” in Internet
From mobile to social applications, including wikis, microblogging and social networks, ministries are constantly presented with innovative ways to connect. From case studies and current research, attendees will learn how to: 1) leverage new media trends 2) increase online donations and 3) maximize a website visitor’s experience.
Ron Weber, Chief Operating Officer, Trinet Internet Solutions, Inc.

How to Successfully Raise Funds Online
Learn how Campus Crusade has collaborated to launch several of its most effective multi-channel fundraising campaigns, with particular success in the online space. Hear important lessons learned from one of the world’s largest Christian ministries and receive practical tips for cultivating donors on and offline. Participants will learn 1) best practices in driving successful integrated multi-channel fundraising, 2) specific examples of multi-channel fundraising in action and 3) practical applications for the cultivation of donors.
Dave Raley, Director of New Media, Masterworks and Megan Hawkes, Executive Director, Constituent Engagement, Campus Crusade for Christ International

Back to Basics: Website and Social Media – More Tools In Your Communications Belt
Explore websites, Internet presence, email blasts, and social media and learn to select and tailor these tools for specific ministries using basic communications principles. Hear from a one-woman communications department that successfully implemented these tools at a 900-student seminary. Participants will acquire 1) a clearer understanding of how to develop an online strategy specifically for their ministry 2) ideas for developing and implementing those strategies with limited personnel and resources and 3) practical steps for creating and implementing an effective online communications strategy.
DJ Turner, Director of Communications, Denver Seminary

Online Ministry Opportunities, Challenges & Lessons
Examine key findings from an online ministry research project that included many large and small ministries. The research gathered includes web surveys, analytics, key performance metrics and interviews from online ministry leaders. Explore opportunities in fundraising, donor relations, evangelism and discipleship. Learn common online mistakes. This session includes time to learn from peers, regardless of ministry size. In this session participants will: 1) learn from innovative online ministries, 2) gain an understanding of pitfalls and 3) examine the results of online ministry research.
Drew Goodmanson, CEO, Monk Development and cofounder/pastor, Kaleo Church, San Diego, Kevin Ring, President, Unconventional Method and Dave Bourgeois, PhD, Associate Professor of Information Systems, Biola University

Information Technology: What’s Hot and what’s not
Our panel will share their thoughts and respond to questions and good and not so good trends in Information Technology for ministries. This panel brings a wealth of insight into the leading edge IT trends affecting ministries today. Come with your best ministry IT questions and be prepared to walk away with answers.
Nick Nicholaou, President, Ministry Business Services and co-founder Ministry Technology Institute, Clarence White, IT Secretary, The Salvation Army – Western Territory and Steve Hewitt, Editor-in-Chief, Christian Computing magazine.

The Case for Online Kingdom Excellence
Explore a standard of online ministry excellence centered on Kingdom principles that promote long-term Kingdom success. Examine critical new research, while studying a five-point model for online excellence: strategy, presence, measurement, engagement, and impact. In this session participants will 1) consider creative and innovative ways to create impact through online ministry 2) be armed with language, data, and examples to make the case for online excellence within their organization and 3) receive validated practices and benchmarks against which they can measure their Internet strategy.
Kevin Ring, President, Unconventional Method and Dave Bourgeois, PhD, Associate Professor of Information Systems, Biola University

Ministry Growth through Email Communication Best Practices
Explore critical and relevant principles from the for-profit world to make email communications programs more effective for your ministry. Email can advance your organization’s goals like few other programs. Understand the hurdles and challenges inherent in email communications to dramatically increase effectiveness in attracting and retaining donors. Participants will gain knowledge of 1) best layouts, day/time to send, service providers, and more 2) understanding of the difficulties of getting your email seen correctly across all email programs and 3) how to get emails opened and read.
Mike Atkinson, Principal, uneekNet

Delivering Income Solutions through Data Strategies
Improved income comes through connecting with the right donors at the right time using the right messaging. In today’s competitive fundraising environment, successful nonprofits must employ smart data strategies to maximize income. The best data strategies are centered in relationships, not technology. Participants will: 1) understand how to optimize communication with your donors using your data 2) learn how to interpret donor-giving patterns to improve donor relationships and 3) find out how to choose the proper channel and timing for the best donor communications.
Steve Thomas, Partner, Oneicity

Ministry IT Roundtable
Join Information Technology colleagues for a session on solutions and cutting edge thinking by our “best in the business.” This session will be a wide-ranging roundtable discussion that will help ministry IT professionals to learn key insights and best practices to maximize their organization’s Information Technology systems and programs. Come prepared to help and be helped!
Nick Nicholaou, President MBS Inc., and co-founder, Ministry Technology Institute and Alan Weisenberger, VP or Technology Services, ECCU

Online Conversions

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Mar 10, 2009 in General Technology, Monk Dev | 4 comments

Lately I’ve been in a couple conversations regarding online conversions. Are they happening?

Yes and by the millions according to sites like GodRev (see Joy in Heaven). Using GodRev as the example, they take people through a process of Knowing God where visitors go through a multimedia rich 7-step engagement towards a final “as easy as a prayer” commitment to accept Jesus with a final suggested prayer:

“Lord Jesus Christ,
I am sorry for the things I have done wrong in my life. I ask your forgiveness and now turn from everything which I know is wrong. Thank you for dying on the cross for me to set me free from my sins. Please come into my life and fill me with your Holy Spirit and be with me forever. Thank you Lord Jesus, Amen.”

From hearing the founder of GodRev at a conference, they then try to connect people who fill out this form with local churches and/or Christians.

Often I see two variations of reaction to people when the topics come up:

1. Pragmatists: Let’s save as many as we can by crafting a message and leading them to say a prayer. Often portraying Jesus as Savior but not as Lord.
2. Skeptics: I don’t really trust that there is legitimacy to most of these conversions online. The internet isn’t a place where this should be pursued.

What are the challenges with online evangelism? What is the role of using the internet as a tool for conversion? Should or how should it be done? What would be the best practices if you were to build the ideal circumstances for it to take place?

The Truth about Church Websites and Effective Online Outreach

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Mar 4, 2009 in Church Technology, Church Websites, Featured Articles, General Technology | 11 comments

Thank you for all who participated in today’s webinar, nearly 80 people signed-up for it. For those who missed it, here was the description of the webinar:

We have all heard about the importance of a church website, the craze of social networking and the need for pastors to blog. But how effective are these strategies really in being missional and gathering people? Learn from a 2009 study on “The State of the Church Online: Websites & Mission” involving numerous church websites & strategies where we learn what really is happening. Answer questions such as: How effective is your church website? What can you do to improve this? Who is visiting your website? Why are they really visiting? Where are these visitors coming from? What are best practices in design and outreach? Learn how to enhance your web ministry and impact hundreds, if not thousands of people. This valuable session will equip you with practical strategies that your church can implement whether you are an online expert or a beginner.

Information about the study:

• 74 churches participating (target = 100) Sign your church up to participate in the study.
• web analytics
• congregational surveys
• phase II : interviews/case studies
• church size range of 5 to 45,000 people
• 27 internal designer & 20+ other designers

We are releasing some of the key findings from a sample set of our research (the full research project will last 2-3 months longer).

• 0% of respondents who were Non-Christians said their going to church was influenced by the church website.
• 6% of participating churches had a gospel presentation on their website.
• 27% of the respondents said the church website was how they first learned about the church.

We looked at 3-case studies of College Park Church, Park Community Church & Kaleo Church. We looked at the content viewed as categorized by activities a New Visitor would access (Service Times, I’m New Here type information) versus Events or Media. (see graph) We compared these to a few other churches who were receiving 4-11% of new visitor traffic and made some design observations. We also looked at where the online visitors were coming from to visit these churches.

We shared research based on segmenting three different profiles: Visitors (attending the church for under 3 months), Beginners (3-6 months) and Regulars (6+ months). Here are some of the findings based on the profiles:

Visitors

• 77% said the church website was somewhat to very important in my decision to attend the church.
• 83% said the church website was somewhat to very important in facilitating their participation in the church community.

Beginners

• 45% said the church website was somewhat to very important for their ongoing discipleship and spiritual growth.
• 73% said the church website was somewhat to very important in sharing their faith with others (friends, business colleagues, others)

Regulars

• 27% said they visit the church website more than once a week.
• Feature Rated Most important: Listen or ability to download Sermons.
• Most requested functionality: Ability to post prayer requests or needs.

Again thank you there was a lot more information from this, if enough people comment below that they’d like to hear it we’d be happy to schedule another webinar.

Future Webinars: Beyond the Web 2.0 Noise: How to use the Internet to Disciple & Create Real Community

State of the Church Online : Goals Met

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Feb 21, 2009 in Church, Church Websites, General Technology | 4 comments

We have hit and now are exceeding our response goals! Thank you to all who promoted & participated in the State of the Church Online surveys. We have over 500 responses to the Social & Community Network survey and over 50 churches who will participate in the web analytics evaluation. Thank you Church Relevance, Godbit, Digital @ Leadership Network (DJ & Cynthia), Collide Magazine, Tall Skinny Kiwi….I can hear the music getting louder to try to make me finish…Church Tech Review, ChurchBIT and anyone else I’m forgetting!

We have begun to analyze the data from the State of the Church Online for Social & Community Networks + Church Websites & Usage. Want to hear the results of these studies? We will put together a report of the findings and two Webinars are scheduled to report on these results. Sign-up:

The Truth about Church Websites and Effective Online Outreach
Wednesday, March 4, 2009 10:00 AM

Beyond the Web 2.0 Noise: How to use the Internet to Disciple & Create Real Community
Wednesday, April 8, 2009 10:00 AM

The State of the Church Online – Part II Church Websites & Usage

Posted by D. Goodmanson on Feb 13, 2009 in Church, Church Technology, Church Websites, Ekklesia, General Technology, Monk Dev | 1 comment

• How effective is your church website?
• Are regulars coming back frequently?
• Are you gathering new people? If not, who is visiting your website?
• Why are they visiting?
• Where are these visitors coming from?
• Church website designs have improved greatly over the last few years but are the designs created for the right online visitors?

Church website designs have improved greatly over the last few years but are the designs created for the right online visitors? You are invited to participate in ‘The State of the Church Online – Part II Church Websites & Usage ‘ survey. This survey will examine 50-100 church website analytics to find the trends, benchmarks and case studies for excellence as it relates to church website design and usage.

Would you like to submit your church to participate? We ask that you have Google Analytics set-up on your site for at least 3-months, preferably a year. We will ask participating churches to send a quick survey to their members. Make sure either you are the contact person or you can provide the person who can send church members a quick survey regarding their usage of the church website?

In addition to this survey you can also participate in The State of the Church Online – Part I Social & Community Networks survey. Our prayer is that these studies help bring clarity and guidance for churches to pursue excellence online to the glory of God.

Link: The State of the Church Online – Part II Church Websites & Usage

EDIT: Saw DJ Chuang’s better layout on the Church Website survey.