7 Church Marketing Strategies That Work in 2024

Marketing is an essential part of growing your church family. Spreading the word about your church means more people know about it, potentially increasing your visitor count. 

A 2020 Gallup survey showed that only 47% of Americans are church members, down about 20% from 2000. If you want more visitors and church members, you’ll likely have to work harder to catch their attention.

That’s where church marketing comes in. A good marketing strategy doesn’t only attract visitors but also turns them into regulars at your church. So, what kind of marketing strategies work for today’s churches? Read on to find out.

Why Is Church Marketing Important?

Church marketing is important because it builds awareness about your church and grows your membership.

Scripture tells us to spread God’s Word everywhere, as written in Matthew 28:19-20: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

In addition to growing your membership, good marketing can bring more donations to help your church fund important events and initiatives. 

The Most Effective Church Marketing Strategies in 2024

These days, you have many options to market your church, whether offline or online. A good blend of both types of church marketing strategies can help you bring in more visitors from various demographics.

What are the most effective church marketing strategies you can try in 2024? Here’s our list:

Church Websites

Church websites are one of the staples of church marketing. They’re usually the best place to publish church information because visitors can freely explore and learn at their own pace. Statistics also support this, with research showing over 17 million non-churchgoers visit church websites. 

With that many non-churchgoers visiting church websites, you can try attracting some people to stay on the site and learn more. Pique their attention by sharing your church’s mission or your ministry work. If you craft a compelling story, you may even turn those website visitors into church visitors.

Creating websites doesn’t have to be hard. You can use tools like Tithe.ly Sites to build a website from the ground up within minutes, regardless of experience.

Social Media

Social media is like a town square for the digital age. It’s where people advertise, communicate, and share thoughts. A good church social media presence helps you connect with existing church members and maintain that feeling of belonging. It can also reach more people and attract new members because everybody can see your social media posts.

Implementing effective church social media strategies takes effort, but it’s worth it. Fortunately, there are great tools like Tithe.ly Media to help you create well-designed social media content.

Online Maps

A good way to get your church’s name out there is to literally put it on the map. Building your church’s profile and filling out details on platforms like Google Maps can help community members find your church.

If your church is listed on an online map platform, people are more likely to find it when they type “church near me” in the search bar. The map app will pop up, and your church will likely appear if the person searching is close enough. This helps newcomers discover your church, increasing their likelihood of visiting.

Member Testimonials

Testimonials are powerful because people like stories. Having testimonials and stories of people’s experiences in your church can drum up curiosity and attract new visitors. You can publish these testimonials on your website, social media pages, and business review sites like Yelp.

How do you get these testimonials? Simple: just ask your church members. You can request testimonials on church bulletin boards, newsletters, or any other media you use to connect with members.

The great thing about member testimonials is that you can publish them in many forms. Written posts published on your website are common but consider making larger content from the more compelling stories. Short videos about your church member’s experiences can be an attention-getter and make good social media posts. 

Church Business Cards

Sometimes, the subject of churches just comes up naturally during a daily conversation, and your members might invite their friends or family to visit.

Church business cards make sharing your church’s information much easier. Print out professional-looking cards that contain your church’s name, contact information, service times, and other relevant information for your members. 

If somebody is curious about your church, members can simply give the card and provide an easy way to know more about your church.

Holiday Services

Major holidays like Christmas, Easter, and Mother’s Day tend to attract more people to church than other days in the year. Lifeway’s study states that 63% of Americans think church service is an important part of Christmas. People are more likely to go to church on holidays because they often attend service with their families.

This means holidays are your chance to make an even better impression than usual. Your entire church staff should be on their A-game and ensure holiday services go well without a hitch to create a memorable experience for newcomers and non-churchgoers.

You can also use holiday service to promote your church’s outreach initiatives and other programs, like summer camps, counseling, and more. Raising awareness about these programs may bring new supporters into the fold.

Community Events

Some people are hesitant to attend service because they don’t know anyone at your church. Community events are a great way to introduce your church and its members to people in the area. Once people are more acquainted with your church, they may be more inclined to visit.

Here are some ideas you can consider for your church’s community events:

• Community barbecue or potluck
• Outdoor movie night
• Charity auctions
• Sports competitions

Don’t forget to promote your church events to ensure everybody in the community knows about them.

Tithe.ly’s event management feature can help you run these events smoothly. From quick event setup to easy online event registration, it’ll greatly simplify your event administration.

Essential Church Marketing Tips

Effective marketing isn’t just about the strategies you use. It’s also about how you execute them. That’s why we’re sharing our top tips to succeed in marketing your church:

Set Marketing Goals

Goal-setting is essential in your marketing efforts. If you have a goal to work towards, you can figure out what to do to achieve them. Discuss with your entire church staff to set realistic, achievable goals that align with the church’s vision.

Build a Diverse and Talented Team

Building a diverse marketing team with members from all walks of life helps you see things from many perspectives. Don’t be afraid to recruit people of different backgrounds or ask for help from church volunteers. Sometimes, it takes another pair of eyes to reach an audience you haven’t reached before.

Choose the Right Marketing Channels

How you market your church depends on your target audience. Pick channels that are most likely to resonate with your audience. For instance, younger churchgoers may respond better to digital channels, while older people prefer printed media.

Develop a Church Brand Identity

A solid church brand identity builds trust and a sense of belonging among your members. It also helps people identify messages and communications from your church much easier. Some key elements of a church’s brand identity include:

• Color palettes
• Fonts
• Logos

Having a consistent brand identity doesn’t mean hiring expensive graphic design firms. You can either develop one in-house with your marketing team or contact a local graphic designer to commission a church brand guideline.

Create Marketing Calendars

Churches are often event-driven. Whether it’s Bible camp or regular service, there’s always something happening at the church. As a marketer, you need a calendar to keep track of all these events.

A marketing calendar helps you keep track of which events are coming up, giving you enough time to craft marketing materials to promote them. Getting the word out might increase the event’s attendance and attract new visitors.

Build Connections With Members

Getting people to come the first time is one thing, but getting them to come again is another. Turn visitors into regular church members by thanking them for coming and encouraging return visits. 

Use convenient messaging and newsletter software like Tithe.ly Messaging to reach more members at the same time. Additionally, Tithe.ly People can help organize your contacts and make looking up church members much easier.

Closing Thoughts

Church marketing is an integral part of your efforts to get more people to visit. Choose the marketing strategies that appeal to your church’s target audience and execute them well for the best results.