Get Your Message Out
Running an event?
Got some news?
Want to send a message to the HCC community?
As a busy church, there’s a huge amount of information buzzing around. If you’ve got something to say, please feed it through this central process. This will give you, and everybody else, the best chance of getting messages out to impact the right people at the right time.
To get started, please fill out our form.
Once we receive your form, we’ll get to work. We’ll try to choose the most appropriate communication channels and timings, depending on the content, urgency and audience for your message.
We all hate information overload, and at HCC we want to communicate events and news in the best way possible. Balancing the many needs in this area is a really difficult task - not everything can be top priority! We’ll do the best we can to get all messages out in the best way, whilst making sure that our key messages at any one time are always heard.
Here's some advice on how you can do your bit...
PLEASE DO
- Fill out the form.
- Give us as much info as you can. We may not use everything, but it all helps build the picture.
- Come to us as early as possible, don’t wait. We need time to plan and make things happen. Bear in mind the deadlines below.
- Be prepared to do your bit and respond if we ask you to provide more info etc
- Generate content: write articles, send photos, upload videos to YouTube and send us links
- Do your own legwork and spread the word. There is no substitute for a personal conversation, phone call, word of mouth etc.
- Follow up after events etc with reports or news
PLEASE DON’T
- Come to us at the last minute
- Bypass this process and go it alone
- Bulk email the whole church
- Photocopy tons of leaflets unless we’ve asked you to
- Leave things in the foyer unless we’ve asked you to
Timescales
Always get info to us as soon as you can. The HCC team will choose which communication channel(s) is most appropriate for you. To be considered for a particular channel, these deadlines will need to be met:
- Monthly notice sheet: Info in by 14th of each month for publishing following month
- Weekly eNewsletter: Info in by 12pm Monday
- Sunday announcements: Info in 2 weeks ahead
- Foyer screen: Info in 2 weeks prior to going live
- Website: Info in 2 weeks prior to going live
- Facebook: Please add your own stuff at www.facebook.com/hitchinchristiancentre
Volunteers
A special note about requests for volunteers.
Our experience is that you won’t get a huge response from an announcement at church on Sunday, so don’t rely on that to work for you. In fact, constant, ever more desperate requests for volunteers for different stuff announced from the front of the church can actually have a negative effect.
In our experience, when you need volunteers to do stuff, people respond best to a personal chat or phone call. Plan your needs and start the ball rolling well in advance (think months, not days); grow your team over a period of time through personal contact.
Here’s a possible plan of action:
With a few months to go, contact everyone who helped at your last event and see if they are willing to help again. Contact a targeted group of new people who you feel would be a good fit for your need. Follow up people who don’t respond to your request. If necessary, widen your net and repeat. Remember, face to face conversations are best, then phone calls, then email as a poor third. After the event, follow up and thank those who helped as soon as you can.
Prayer
News, messages or requests for the whole church to pray should go through the prayer chain.
Go the the "Get Your Message Out" form
For more information, please contact the church office.