On last week’s blog, “The Year of Faith on the Internet—a Slow Start, ” I asked readers to share their online resources for the Year of Faith. Several readers were kind enough to post websites (mostly diocesan) that listed resources and events related to the Year of Faith. Jean Soto, a faculty member at the Tepeyac Institute in El Paso, Texas, raised this question: Glad to hear that resources are…
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Six Ways to Tweet for Ministry
Twitter seems to be a mystery or considered a “waste of time” by many people in ministry. Why add Twitter to your social media platforms? In previous posts this summer, I presented how Twitter can be a great source of information on just about any topic. All you have to do is follow people who are in your niche—read their tweets and click on links that interest you. I have…
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7 Twitter Sources for Church News and Commentary
Congratulations to everyone who got started on Twitter last week and to all who are already using Twitter for ministry. The point of last week’s post was that Twitter is an excellent source of real time information in short, concise doses with links to articles and websites with the details. If you follow the right tweeters, you will be up to date in whatever area you are interested in, including…
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Using Social Media in Ministry is About Loving Your People
Valerie Deveza, a blogger and in-bound marketing guru, stresses in her writings the importance of falling in love with the people you serve and using the best tools to reach them. She is talking to business people about social media, but this is also true for people in ministry. In using social media for business and for mission, we must remember that it is about building relationships and providing content…
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HHS Debate Finds Catholics on the Internet
The current debate over the HHS mandate requiring insurance coverage of sterilization and contraception has been widely covered over the Internet and social media. Fortunately, Church leaders and many Catholics are also there to present our case for the right to religious freedom directly to the public as well.
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Website Traffic, Part II: Interaction is Important
Once you have determined the audiences for your website (see Part I of this series), you need to think through how you want to interact with them. Website interaction is one of the most important elements of the Web 2.0 era. If a website is static, the likelihood of attracting new or returning visits decreases.