When a church first launches, they look for all the ways they can be cost-efficient. This involves finding different areas in your church you can keep in-house and other areas you can outsource. Before you decide which to do, it’s important to take a look at both your and your staff’s capabilities. You might be the most creative person on your team and excel at using Adobe Creative Suite, but your immediate tasks might take up your entire workday leaving you no time to work on creative church advertisements.
Once you examine all the capabilities and time restraints of your staff, you can make a sound decision on what needs to go and what needs to stay. If you realized your staff has very little time on your hands to do anything extra, here is a good list of things you can outsource without jeopardizing the heart of your church.
Areas to Outsource
Marketing Campaigns
One of the biggest ways to grow your church is getting your name out there. How do you do this? One way is through marketing. Strategic marketing campaigns can be game changers when it comes to growing your congregation. The goal of a marketing campaign is to reach out to the public, let them know you exist, and inspire people to walk through your front doors. If it’s this important, it’s vital not to push it aside and hope someone gets to it. Outsourcing this indispensable task could be key to the success of your church launch.
Video Production
Finding a group of people who are good at capturing video and allowing them to work their magic can help spread the word of your church launch, too. Videoing, editing, and uploading can be timely, so outsourcing this task could make a huge impact on your church. Plus, the amount of equipment needed to produce a weekly video can be thousands of dollars. By outsourcing this task, you don’t have to purchase the equipment needed, which means you can save money to use elsewhere.
Accounting and Bookkeeping
Keeping track of all your expenses is important enough, let alone to burden someone with the hours it takes to make sure your church is moving in the right direction. Finding a local accountant who is trustworthy can alleviate this burden off your staff’s shoulders and allow you to get back to what really matters — the mission of your church.
Graphic Artists
To remain up-to-date with the styles and designs, it’s important to have stylish graphics for your church content. From your church website to printed materials to social media, you’ll find yourself in need of a visual image that captures people’s attention. This is where a graphic artist is helpful. Find a graphic artist who can provide you with the best quality work for the price you’re willing to pay, and use their talent to promote your church.
Bonus: Graphic Artists can also help create your branding as a church. What is “branding?” Branding for a church consists of established colors, fonts, and designs that allow people to know who you are when they see your brand. Outsourcing this vital task can be a major success as you launch your church. Learn more church branding tips here.
Website Design
Outsourcing your website design allows you to focus on other things that can improve your church, rather than where a link should go on your homepage. Find a company with experienced professionals who are excited to help you get your church website where it should be. One company we suggest is Ekklesia360. They specialize in working with churches so they’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. They can take your ideas and help you create the perfect online space for your community.
Areas to Keep In-House
Now that we’ve discussed strategic areas to outsource, what should you keep in-house? The foremost area you should hold dearly is the mission and vision of your church. By keeping the plans and strategic planning of your church in-house, you’ll be able to stay on track and ensure each team member understands the heart of your church. You want your team to be on the same page. Keeping the mission and vision of your church in-house will aid in that progress.
Other areas that you could outsource or keep in-house are fluid. Is it a bad idea to outsource a task to trained professionals who have the time and are capable to accomplish the task? Absolutely not. Do you have volunteers, internal team members, or other people in your church who would excel at accomplishing the tasks at hand? If yes, then keep it in-house.
Deciding between outsourcing and keeping tasks in-house requires constant monitoring of what your church has to offer. People come and people go. People get trained and people leave professions. Before you jump into something you think you can handle, see if there’s someone in your church who can master the task. Encouraging people to volunteer is a key aspect in any church, let alone a church plant.
Samantha Decker has worked as a content marketer and the church communications director for a local church. Samantha brings both experience and a passion to equip the church by providing resources to help them live out their mission for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus. She’s always up for some (good) coffee, travel, and intentional conversation. Samantha enjoys living in Oklahoma City with her husband, Dustin, and their two sons Eli and Caden.
