Why Your Church Should Be on Social Media Right Now

By Ed Stetzer

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“Social media is no longer a fad. It is established in our culture.”

My mother-in-law is on Facebook, which can be, well, fun. The same is true for my teenage daughter.
Actually, about three-fourths of online adults are on some form of social networking.
This means that for the sake of the gospel and the mission, your church needs to have a voice there as well.

Social Media Is the New Town Square

Throughout history, people of all generations have gathered in town squares—public spaces where the local community gathers for social and commercial purposes. In the old days, it used to be a literal “town square,” and it still is in some places. Until social media came around, town squares were shopping malls and other social areas. Social media is the 21st century town square.
The Apostle Paul preached in open squares where the people gathered. In Acts 13, it was to the Jews at Antioch in Pisidia. In Acts 17, it was to the literal town square of conversation—Mars Hill.
People today aren’t sitting around in debate clubs. They aren’t going to the town squares in the middle of cities. Instead, they’re having discussions on social media. It’s where people are gathering, debating, discussing ideas and connecting with others. Why wouldn’t you want to be there?
If churches truly want to see the Gospel impact and influence a community, they should go to the place where the most significant conversation is actually taking place right now. Today, that’s on social media.

Strategically Utilize Your Social Media Demographic

Let’s take a look at some stats from Pew Research for three major social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, which are going to be the most important for your church to engage. Pinterest is an important one, but really only among women. If you are able, you would be wise to set up a sort of women’s ministry Pinterest account, but you probably don’t need a church-wide account on that platform.
First, Facebook.

Facebook

In short, everyone uses Facebook. There is no one demographic that is significantly more attracted to Facebook than others, though women of all backgrounds are more likely than men to be on Facebook.

• 71 percent of all online adults use Facebook.
• 58 percent of the entire adult population use Facebook.
• 66 percent of all online men use Facebook versus 77 percent of all online women.
• What about age groups? How does each generation use Facebook? The stats are unsurprising, but for the first time ever, more than half of online adults over the age of 65 are using Facebook. Here’s the breakdown:
  
• 87 percent of all online 18-29 year olds use Facebook.
• 73 percent of all online 30-49 year olds use Facebook.
• 63 percent of all online 50-64 year olds use Facebook.
• 56 percent of all online 65+ year olds use Facebook.

It’s fair to say that your church needs to have a presence on Facebook. The vast majority of online adults are there, so you should be. But Facebook isn’t the only social network people are using.
Pew Research reports, as of 2014, “52 percent of online adults now use two or more social media sites, a significant increase from 2013, when it stood at 42 percent of Internet users.”
Let’s take a look at Twitter.

Twitter

Twitter users tend to be racially diverse, but amidst their racial diversity, it does seem that many Twitter users are young, college-educated, wealthy and living in urban areas.
Here are some key Twitter stats:

• 37 percent of online 18-29 year olds use Twitter, as opposed to 25 percent of 30-49 year olds and 12 percent of 50-64 year olds.
• 30 percent of online college or graduate-level graduates use Twitter, as opposed to 16 percent of online high school (or less) graduates.
• 27 percent of online adults who make $50,000 a year or more use Twitter, as opposed to 20 percent who make less than $30,000 per year.
• 25 percent of online adults in urban settings use Twitter, compared to 23 percent in suburban settings and 17 percent in rural areas.

Suffice to say, Twitter is a good place for your church to be no matter what, but especially if you’re in an upper-middle class city or university setting. Set up and account and connect with your community.
Finally, check out Instagram:

Instagram

Instagram is almost as racially diverse as Twitter, but it is actually more popular among African Americans and Latinos than it is among White people. According to Pew’s statistics, the most common Instagram user is likely an African American woman between ages 18 and 29 who’s had some college education and lives in an urban area.
Some Instagram stats to consider:

• 29 percent of online women use Instagram, compared with 22 percent of online men.
• 38 percent of online African Americans use Instagram, along with 34 percent of online Latinos and 21 percent of online Whites.
• 53 percent of online 18-29 year olds are on Instagram, as opposed to 29 percent 30-49 year olds,and 11 percent of 50-64 year olds.

Instagram is a crucial social media platform for your youth or young adult ministries. This social media platform is growing rapidly, and Instagram is great for sharing pictures and videos of what’s going on in your ministries.

A Few Applications

Because people are there, here a few things church leadership should consider.
First, every church should have an active Facebook presence—and that presence must be public and not simply a semi-private group page. A group page is acceptable for internal communication, but every church needs to have a public page as well.
A Facebook page’s full potential is seen with two-way conversations and not just one-way announcements.

Social media is no longer a fad. It is established in our culture.

Facebook is a great way to engage with guests after they’ve visited your church, though that is probably best done through someone’s personal account and not the official church Facebook page.
One of the ways I’ve seen Facebook put to great use by churches and other ministries is in the area of prayer. Today, it can be pretty tough to make sure you have everyone’s most current email address, which makes emailing major church issues or announcements and asking for prayer somewhat difficult. Through Facebook though, your church can share a major prayer request or physical need someone may have, and instantly, church members or people in the community can respond and help in any way they can.
Twitter is not as essential for the local church as Facebook is, simply because many more people use Facebook, but Twitter is no less useful. A church on Twitter can share events, interact with church members and visitors, and engage with culture.
Further, Instagram is a platform that gives your church an opportunity to share pictures of your ministry, promotional videos for upcoming events, and even encouraging quotes or Bible verses. Instagram is especially important among younger demographics.

“All Things to All People”

Social media is no longer a fad. It is established in our culture. And churches should do everything they can to engage the public in this forum. As of January 2014, 74 percent of all adults who have some sort of presence online use social media—your church needs to be accessible there.
With some strategic thought, churches can reach those who are regularly using social media. The Apostle Paul provides some insight for churches that are still on the fence:

“I have become all things to all people, so that I may by every possible means save some. Now I do all this because of the gospel, so I may become a partner in its benefits” (1 Corinthians 9:22b-23, emphasis added).

All of the stats in this blog post are from Pew Research Center’s 2014 Social Media Update, which you can access here.  

​Chris Martin contributed to this blog post.
Ed Stetzer is President of LifeWay Research and LifeWay’s Missiologist in Residence. He has trained pastors and church planters on five continents, holds two masters degrees and two doctorates, and has written dozens of articles and books. Ed is a contributing editor for Christianity Today, a columnist for Outreach Magazine and Catalyst Monthly, serves on the advisory council of Sermon Central and Christianity Today's Building Church Leaders, and is frequently cited or interviewed in news outlets such as USAToday and CNN.
More from Ed Stetzer or visit Ed at http://www.edstetzer.com/