The Church of England Digital Labs team have been keeping an eye on some of the trends impacted by the pandemic - one of which is the move towards hyper-local communities.
The Global Web Index (GWI) reported this at the beginning of 2021, saying now more than ever, people want to walk to work, meet local friends and feel connected to their neighbourhood.
Where do people go when they want to find something locally? Most likely straight to a search engine or social media. So, how easy is it for local people to discover your church community?
As much as we might hope, not everyone will search for a local church many might be looking for something more specific like a toddler group, friendship café, wedding venue or free debt advice, all of which may be operating within the church building or run by its community.
So, how can you make sure your church is easily found for these things, as well as church services? In this Church of England blog (viewed in full here)https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/digital-labs/blogs/seven-ways-raise-visibility-your-church-community-online, the team walk you through the following points to help improve you do just this.
1. Update your A Church Near You (ACNY) page
2. Create or update your Google My Business listing
3. Update your website homepage and content pages
5. Add a location tag to social media posts
7. Join local Facebook groups, and be sociable