Church Communications Training Day

On Friday, June 14, Episcopal House will sponsor a Church Communications Training Day with the two foremost authorities on Episcopal church communications, Canticle Communications co-founders Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson. Find out more about Jim and Rebecca.

This day will be helpful for any church leader – clergy or lay member, experienced communicator or novice. Churches will benefit most if they send two or three participants as a team.

Cost: $15 per participant, which includes morning coffee and refreshments, a light lunch and a copy of the book Speaking Faithfully: Communications as Evangelism in a Noisy World.

Registration & Payment

The registration deadline is Monday, June 3. The registration form may be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

The total number of participants is limited to 50, based on the order in which registration is received.

Please mail registrations forms to: Diocese of Newark, Attn: Nina Nicholson, 31 Mulberry Street, Newark, NJ 07102.

Payment by check (payable to Diocese of Newark with Church Communications Training Day in the memo line) may be sent with this form, or brought to the training day.

In order to estimate workshop size for space planning purposes, we ask that participants’ preferred workshops be selected in the registration form, but these selections are not binding and may be changed the day of the training.

Training Day Schedule

Morning Plenary

Evangelism by Communications (with Jim Naughton and Rebecca Wilson)

In the 21^st century, Sunday morning worship competes with youth soccer, the Sunday paper and bagels, and the allure of being “spiritual but not religious.” To build the church and sustain it for our children and grandchildren, we must reach beyond the walls of our parishes and the boundaries of our own communities as evangelists and advocates for Gospel values in the world. In this plenary, we will discuss how to identify your congregation’s key messages and primary audiences and discuss media relations, social media and other strategies and techniques to increase your parish’s visibility and make it more compelling to people in your community.

Afternoon Workshops

Pulling It All Together (12:30 - 1:45 p.m. with Rebecca Wilson)

You know what you want to tell the world and the tools you have to do the job. How do you create a communications plan that brings to life the stories of God’s work in your congregation? And how do you sustain the commitment to communications over the long haul? In this workshop, we’ll work on the nuts and bolts of a parish communications plan and discuss strategies for getting the job done over the long haul.

Stewardship of Websites (12:30 - 1:45 p.m. with Jim Naughton)

You know that your parish website is essential for congregational communication, church growth and spiritual enrichment. But what content does your website need to serve your congregation and reach out to the community beyond your doors? In this workshop, we’ll translate web-speak to plain English and help you understand how to develop the website you need – on your own or in partnership with the Diocese of Newark’s Church Website Project –and how to integrate it with social media and email communications.

Social Media Matters. Really. (2:00 - 3:15 p.m. with Rebecca Wilson)

Willie Sutton robbed banks because that’s where the money was. Like him, 21^st century evangelists need to use social media – because that’s where the people are. This workshop will explore Facebook and Twitter, two of the most common social media platforms, as tools for ministry and community building. We’ll discuss how to create and sustain a social media team in your congregation, how to balance your personal and professional use of social media, and how to get started in simple ways.

A Church Made Visible (2:00 - 3:15 p.m. with Jim Naughton)

Consider the possibility that most people in your community have never heard of your church. Don’t know where it is. Don’t know what it does. Wouldn’t miss it if it weren’t there. We need to introduce ourselves to those people by finding ways to get politely in their way. In this workshop, we’ll take a good long look at how your church is seen and how to improve your chances of being seen by more people.