Do You Have A Sign?

Information, information, information!  Three words that will make a profound difference in your ministry and how people "buzz" about it. Ministries that are effective in growth both relationally and numerically seem to have cornered the market on informing people about their purpose, vision and in just about every area of the church that they want people to connect.

I was once told about the KISS acronym; keep it simple stupid.  I agree with the concept of keeping information simple, but I also believe in giving as much information as possible in as many ways you can to communicate to a larger audience.

Many leaders I speak with believe there should be a "sample" or a "teaser" without giving away the "answer" or entire story to peak the curiosity of the audience they are trying to reach.  I believe that this is a major disservice to the ministries we wish to promote.  I believe in giving information in abundance, I was hoping to fit the word abundance in a post somewhere.

I recall registering for a seminar that was going to help me grow as a minister and person. The speaker was a nationally know leader and I was excited to attend and soak in all that God was going to say through this person.  The promotion information I received listed what the conference would include: general sessions, meals, small groups, materials and parking.  I registered with a group of people thinking the price was higher than we would like to pay but this conference was going to transform us as leaders and people.  A couple months before the conference we booked our hotel and confirmed our registration at the conference.  We were set! The day of the conference we arrived at the convention center to find that the venue had been changed more than a month earlier.  We traveled to the new location (now more than twenty miles from our hotel) to discover additional conference "changes" that included parking fees, meals were no longer included and the conference would no longer include small groups due to the lack of space in the new location… did I mention ALL of the changes we posted on a sign outside the main entrance?  Needless to say there were some leaders, not just from our team, very upset at the change and additional cost.  The leaders of the conference explained the situation, which was beyond their control, before the first session.  Their demeanor, tone and words were very sincere and aploigenic.  Many people understood the reason for a change in venue, but what people didn’t understand was that more than a month before the conference the directors were made aware of the change and failed to contact many of the groups attending.   

This is a VERY extreme case of failure to give information, however there are people in your church who may feel the same way every time a ministry is promoting another event. They agree to support it only to find little to no information about it and no one place to get answers, things change (sometimes for good reasons) and updates are not posted, or the information given is a "sample" or "teaser" to entice them to look for more. If you want people to support your ministry along with its events and programs, GIVE THEM INFORMATION!  If your program is worth promoting, promote it well and trust that people will give their support because of its quality, focus and information you have provided. Update changes and have contact information to assist people with "general" questions. People don't want a last minute sign to tell them of changes, they want us to be prepared.

Keep people informed and you keep people happy!