The last few years the App and Play stores have been inundated with churches staking a claim securing their app name in the mobile world. This week is the second segment of the three-part series highlighting key benefits of using an app and cloud based platform for your church’s digital content. Last week the first segment of our three-part series covered the intricacy’s of online media storage and how to avoid paying for an overlap in services between different providers. If you missed last week’s blog you can read it here, and now for part two. How does your church communicate and relay important and timely information? You probably started with your website and email blasts, then social media and generic text messaging. Today a tech savvy church communicates via their app. If you don’t have an app yet it is time to consider one. While the other methods are still used widely and should continue to be used as effective methods of communication, reaching people via an app is the quickest and most direct option available. Glancing at a smartphone has become second nature for staying connected, it’s what we do. Simple text messages are a great starting point but have quickly become yesterday’s technology. Push messaging is the new norm. Push messaging is the most economical method to reach people. Couple a push message with an in-app message and you have a tool capable of up to 98% view rates, now that’s effective! How do you get a 98% of your messages viewed? One word…relevance! With a powerful tool comes much responsibility. Over using and providing non-specific information is the biggest deterrent to an effective messaging campaign, causing people to ignore or delete your message without reading. What is relevant? New content, updates and reminders for events, volunteer drives, pastor announcements, scripture reference, follow on social media, inclement weather notices, last but certainly not least, donation encouragements. Breaking down the two types of messages; push messaging like a tweet, they are short and to-the-point. In-app messaging elevates push messaging to the next level with a longer shelf-life. The message resides in an ‘inbox’ in the app vs the devices home screen - that once pressed is gone forever. Some messages are best sent as push and others as in-app, it depends on the content and information being communicated. ‘Today is the last day to sign up for the event’ or ‘The temperature is below freezing today, please drive carefully’ are two examples of when to use a push message - because it is a quick reminder. ‘The new bulletin is available NOW in your app’ or ‘Listen to the latest sermon available NOW in your app’ are two examples of when to use an in-app message because it will most likely be referenced more than once. Not all push and in-app messaging services are the same. Next level in-app messages can include rich content (photos, pdfs, audio, video, links) and full html support for complete customization, such as a prayer request or conference registration form. For example, Sermons Anywhere® offers complete control over push and in-app messaging with a suite of options including global and targeted messaging with immediate, scheduled, or triggered deployment.
Next week is the third and final segment of the three-part series highlighting key benefits of using an app and cloud based platform for your church’s digital content. For a real-time demonstration of push and in-app messaging (with rich content) right to your device through the Sermons Anywhere® platform, contact your personal content concierge today.
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