If you cannot tell by the number of articles at 78p.tv this month, we love social media! In writing on these topics, sharing the eBooks on Mondays, and pitching ideas over at Google+ and Twitter, there have been lots of discussion on tips for youth ministry. So, we have four quick tips for your ministry as you get ready for the new season.
- Protect Yourself and Others
Use a photo release form when you post pictures online. If you do not have your own, use this one. The idea is that you protect your students. You do not know what is going on at home, ask for permission to post their images online. And while you protect them, you are also protecting your ministry from lawsuits or begrudging congregation members. - No Private Messages With Students
Whether you are directly working with students or have a strong volunteer group that is engaging with students, private messaging can get you into trouble quickly. So direct messages with students, using Snapchat, or any form of “secretive messaging” that should be just fine to talk about on Facebook should. And if it is so importnt to talk about, instead of having a secretive discussion, go meet with the student at a public forum or include the youth pastor in his office. - Think Outside-The-Box
Social media is all about engaging with the ministry. If all you are doing is posting one or two things in your status, you are limiting yourself. Think outside-the-box. Need some help with this? We are coming up with an ebook just for that that will release next month. - Be Effective, Know Your Limits
We want to see you succeed, but success looks differently with each ministry account. Do you have the personal bandwidth to do more that one social media account effectively? If not, focus on that one network and make it a priority.
What are one or two social media tips that you have learned as you have engaged on social media?
[…] 4 Social Media Tips For Your Ministry via 78P.tv Four quick pro tips from Jeremy Smith (video included!) that every youth minister should read. […]