Media Outreach

In the past month, my electricity bill has doubled, I’ve purchased a watermelon for $4.00 even though I live alone, and I made chocolate syrup on my dashboard by leaving a Hershey’s Kiss in my truck while I was in the office. Children are playing in the streets, the municipal pools are jam packed, and teenagers everywhere are out in search of truth, justice, and minimum wage. Ladies and gentlemen, summer is most certainly upon us once again.

For many churches, summertime is a virtual hotbed of events.

• kids are off to Vacation Bible School
• kitchens are cranking out potato salad by the gallon for the big church picnic
• there are camp outs, retreats, and goodness knows what else in the coming months

Events such as these can be a great opportunity for new members to really become familiar with the church family. How though, does one invite people to these events? Bulletins and announcements are good, but they can only go so far.

To really get the message out to people, why not consider using an evite? For those unfamiliar, an evite is a tool that can be used through the website to send a message to a specific email address that invites the recipient to partake in the activity at hand. It can be personalized to include:

• the person’s name
• a unique message specifically for that person
• provide information on whatever is going on

I’m not going to lie… when the announcements start up in church, odds are pretty good that I’m going to lose focus: especially during football season. Maybe I’m the only one, but I don’t think so. Furthermore, chances are pretty good that by the time I get to my truck, I will have lost my bulletin. Whether this is the norm, or it’s just a sad social commentary on my own lackadaisical attitude toward what’s going on, I’m not sure. One thing I do know though is that I get a good portion of my information through email, and in this day and age, I think this is a common thing for many people.

Although I’m 28 years old now, I still love summer… even in the 350 degree oven that is Central Texas. Summertime is when you get to sit in the grass and spit watermelon seeds, drink lemonade, and just visit with people. By now, your church calendar is probably chocked full of events like this. I highly recommend using evites to make sure everyone out there knows that they’re welcome to join in the fun.