Every week, people come to our congregations looking for meaning, connection, and transformation. Often they are invited by a friend, but people also find us in other ways. One way to understand outreach and marketing is to make it easier for people to find us, and to have a pretty good idea of what they will find when they visit.

Your Church Website

Most people will visit your church website before visiting. The UUA offers robust resources to help you:

• Website Usability and Accessibility Guide: The “usability” of your website refers to the ease with which people can use it in order to achieve their goal. Principles of usability help people of all abilities, using any web browser, to make the most of the content provided.
• Search Engine Optimization: Learn about search engine optimization to make your pages succeed in search results and for human beings, and then submit your web address to major web search engines.
• Guide for Writing for the Web: Tips and tools about how to structure and organize your content.
• Training: Writing for the Web: Based on usability research, Rev. Susanne Intriligator developed these videos to help you craft pages that respond to the needs and wants of today’s web users.
• UUA WordPress Theme for Congregations: The UUA offers an easy-to-use UUA WordPress Theme for Congregational Websites which you can use as a framework for your own congregational website without needing to know how to program with html.

Marketing For Congregations

Promotion

• Who is your target audience? How do you communicate your essence to them in a way that is relatable?
• Do you advertise your events that are open to the public?
• How does is your social media presence communicate your essence?
• Consider other methods (yard signs, billboards, print ads) of communicating your presence and essence.

Communication for Relationship Building

• Are inquiries via email or social media answered quickly and in a tone that reflects your essence?
• Are your greeters and other people who talk to newcomers knowledgeable about Unitarian Universalism and your congregation?
• Do you extend personal invitations to church events?

Intentional Programming

• Do you integrate newcomers into small group ministry or other programs that are grounded in UU identity?
• Do you offer identity or life-stage affinity group opportunities (i.e. are you a Community of Communities)
• Do you seek and incorporate feedback about your programming?

Value

• Do you communicate a culture of giving and generosity in how you talk about giving, volunteering and stewardship?
• Do you make it easy to give with online giving, text-to give, regular monthly automatic donations?

Feedback Loops

• Use as many tracking tools as you can handle: Attendance, Participation, Return Visits
• Get feedback from new members (How was your experience in your decision to join?), and departing/drifting members (What do you wish was different in our church community? What did you like?).

Budget Considerations

• Consider an old-school pamphlet rack to help visitors learn more about Unitarian Universalism
• Design and print a pamphlet or palm card that communicates your essence
• Commission a banner that communicates your essence to be used at tabling events and/or hang outside your building
• Host newcomer events where refreshments are served and paid for out of your budget

Reach

• Advertise in publications or outlets that are likely to appeal to religious liberals (NPR, PBS, local papers, local Facebook groups)
• Staff a booth at local fairs, farmers markets, etc.
• Be a welcoming venue for meetings and events by like-minded groups: LWV, ACLU, NAACP, SURG, Black Lives Matter, Environmental Groups, Poetry Clubs, etc.
• Who is your target audience? How do you communicate your essence to them in a way that is relatable?
• Do you advertise your events that are open to the public?
• How does is your social media presence communicate your essence?
• Consider other methods (yard signs, billboards, print ads) of communicating your presence and essence.