This season, consider promoting your Easter services with advertising that is impactful, trackable ... and an inexpensive alternative to print.

Easter is a joyous time for the Church to celebrate Christ, as well as a great opportunity to invite others to experience Him.

So, church communicators, as you desire to reach your community in new ways, here are a few tips to help you engage more successfully.

Stuffed MailboxDo any of these sound painfully familiar?

  • Print Ads: Many churches set aside money every year to run newspaper ads -- alongside EVERY other church -- in hopes that someone will scan the paper and choose their church for Easter. 
  • Bulk Mail: Some send out bulk mail postcards to (expensively purchased) zip code lists, hoping that their slick piece won't get lost between the pizza menu and the auto trader magazine.
  • Door-to-door: If you're bold enough to walk the streets and knock on doors, it can be a great way to make a personal connection with your neighbors - but it takes a lot of time, energy and volunteers to canvass a neighborhood. Besides, many people are a little freaked out by strangers knocking on their door.

While there is certainly value to all of these methods, they can be costly, hard to track, and often ineffective.

Here's an alternative to consider: Facebook Advertising.

The Fishhook team recently gave a seminar on Facebook ads, and built an ad during that session in about 20 minutes. One of the ideas we gave was to use this tool for announcing special events at your church. Here are some great reasons to think about using Facebook this Easter:

  • Targeted Demographics: When creating your ad, you can specify your audience by city, age, gender, and even by what they've told Facebook they "like." A little creepy? Possibly. Effective? Yes!
  • Facebook Ad ReportingStatistics: Facebook will keep track of how many people see your ad, and how many click through to your website. (Be sure to give a little love to your landing page!)
  • Cost: Facebook is cheap! A church in Florida ran a Facebook ad campaign just 9 days before their 4 Christmas performances. Over those 9 days, the ad was displayed 900,000 times, 600 people clicked on it, and they spent just $475. Much cheaper and easier to create than postcards!

Maybe Facebook will be one of many resources you use to reach out this Easter. Maybe it will let you reach people you wouldn't, or couldn't, otherwise. Ultimately, we pray that your Easter season is full of joy, and that lives will be changed by God's work in your church.

Here are your action steps: