A year ago, the SermonView team embarked on a journey to answer a question: How can churches better reach people interested in Bible studies in their community?<\/p>\n
Today, churches aren\u2019t seeing the kind of results they used to get with old-style tear-off Bible study card mailers. In part, this is due to a smaller number of people using mail as a primary form of communication. In addition, a single mailpiece cannot speak to the diverse needs of a community. We knew there had to be a better way, so we started working the problem.<\/p>\n
Our team went through dozens of possible solutions—looking at cost and availability—to determine where a Bible study card-style system would work. The solution we kept coming back to was social media—especially Facebook.<\/p>\n
Many churches had been wary to give Facebook a second chance because they didn\u2019t see results on their first try. But our research pointed to Facebook as the key, and we just had to find a working system that unlocked the power of social media advertising.<\/p>\n
One year later, we have some answers. Here is what we\u2019ve found:<\/p>\n
Facebook advertising can lead to Bible study interests<\/strong> Not only is it able to reach each person individually, but it collects more data about its users than any other social media network, allowing advertisers to target specific needs and specific interests. All of this adds up to a perfect vehicle for reaching new faces in your community. But if mostly larger corporations and businesses are finding success with Facebook advertising, how can it be used effectively for your local church?<\/p>\n Generating Bible study leads<\/strong> SermonView is committed to perfecting this<\/strong> Today we can reach more people, faster, and with more data than before—helping churches to connect with the people in their community who are just waiting for an invitation to learn more about Jesus. It is time to redeem social media in a way that builds real connection and invites people into a genuine community of faith in their local community.<\/p>\n Want to try using Facebook to reach people in your community? Contact us<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A year ago, the SermonView team embarked on a journey to answer a question: How can churches better reach people interested in Bible studies in their community? Today, churches aren\u2019t … <\/p>\n
\nToday, 79% of all adult internet users in America are Facebook users<\/a>. And two out of three Facebook users are on it daily<\/a>, spending more than 50 minutes per day<\/a> on the platform. This level of saturation rivals direct mail, and—even better—it gives advertisers the ability to reach each individual in the household.<\/p>\n
\nAlthough Facebook is a portal into people\u2019s lives, it is also a confusing maze of options that can paralyze even the most sophisticated user. As our team started diving into the world of Facebook, we tested types of advertising, several different audiences, and varying styles of ads. After millions of impressions, and over sixty thousand interactions with interests, we learned some powerful lessons about how to use Facebook effectively. Specifically, here are four things we’ve learned:<\/p>\n\n
\nThrough our experiments, we have discovered a system that meets the needs of local churches, and we\u2019re excited about the results that churches are seeing. With multiple churches continuing to help test this new avenue for reaching communities, we have found a system that beats the costs of traditional Bible study interest mailers and allows a church to better control their costs and number of interests. Today we are seeing interests responding to a request to receive a Bible study at 30%-50% the cost of the best results from a traditional Bible study card mailer. We are also learning what works in various types of communities and creating better ad models as we learn.<\/p>\n