Don't Keep Secrets from Your Guests
by Chris Forbes
Free tips for getting the word out about your church from the Ministry Marketing Coach
Your church has so many great things going on don’t keep them a secret from the guests who come to your church. New people need information if they are going to feel welcome in a church. Your job is to make sure they get as much information as they want.
Guests have very little information about your ministry and are visiting to see what they can learn about it. Make it as easy as possible to get what they need. Create an information desk and put it near the entrance of your church. Place one by each entrance to your church, since you never know what door people will come through. Most visitors don’t know what door is the “main” entrance, and may come in through the nursery door, side door, or even the back door, if you have one. Be ready.
An information desk should provide visitors with all the needed information about the church, its activities and its outreach ministries. Make sure visitors can get both written and oral information. This means the person at the desk needs to be well-informed about church happenings.
Put a sign in plain view that easily direct visitors to the right place. An unmarked information desk is useless to new people, so mark it well. The sign should read “Information Desk,” “Guests,” or “Welcome.” That way, guests can find the desk and will easily know its purpose.
As with greeters, personality and disposition go far in making newcomers feel welcome. Find an outgoing person who enjoys people for this position. That person should treat every question as important, yet not as a problem they had to solve or an imposition on their conversation time.
Also, train your workers to keep the area clear of members wanting to hang out and talk to the person behind the desk. That way, visitors don’t have to wait until the conversation is finished before getting the needed information.
Action Point!
Set up an information desk if you don’t have one. Make sure there is a clear sign that identifies its location as a place for information. Train your greeters to be enthusiastic and keep them knowledgeable about the activities and information of the church.
