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3 Features To Look For In Texting Services For Your Church

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What to Look for in a Church Texting Service

Text messaging has become one of the most popular ways for churches to communicate with their members. It’s fast, efficient, and cost-effective. But not all church texting services are created equal. To get the most out of your church texting service, you need to make sure it offers certain features that are essential for churches.

volunteers reading texts from a church leader


There are many features that can increase the strategic nature of your communications work. Not all texting platforms are the same today, and so if you're serious about guest follow-up or other growth-oriented activities, then considering what any given texting platform can provide is important. There a many great church texting services today. Here's a short list of things you should definitely consider:


Sample Features Of Church Texting Services Today


1. A intuitive and mobile-friendly user interface to make texting easy to use in the office or on the go.

2. Ability to send bulk messages quickly and efficiently for ad-hoc mass texting.

3. Automation of follow-up responses, such as appointment reminders or prayer requests.

4. Ability to segment contacts into groups for targeted messaging and communication tracking purposes.

5. Accessible customer support team who can troubleshoot any problems that arise during the use of the service.

6. Integration with other software programs such as church management systems, CRMs, or email marketing providers, to streamline communication flows and automate processes throughout your ministry’s operation.

7. Option for two-way conversations between pastors and their attendees for direct engagement.

8. Comprehensive analytics dashboard providing useful insights into how well the texts are being received by their target audiences, how many people are responding, or what type of feedback they're receiving back from recipients

Core Features You Should Demand From A Church Texting Service

1. Group Or Mass Messaging

Group messaging is important for churches because it allows them to send messages to multiple people at once. This is especially helpful when sending out announcements or reminders about upcoming events or services. The key here is to make sure that the group messaging feature is easy to use and can accommodate large numbers of recipients. This way, you won’t have to spend time manually entering each person’s phone number into the system each time you want to send out a message. There are many scenarios where group texting makes sense:

Scenario 1: A pastor may want to use group texting messages to coordinate volunteers for an upcoming event. Those who indicate they are interested in volunteering for a team can be added to a group chat, This is where the church leaders can communicate with the group of volunteers and send further updates on the schedule, expectations, etc. This will help ensure that every volunteer is on the same page regarding how to best assist at the event.

Scenario 2: A pastor might also want to use group texting messages for regular church staff meetings. By sending out messages about upcoming meetings, pastors can easily get their staff members on the same page about what needs to be discussed or decided during their meeting. Additionally, this method allows them to quickly receive feedback or suggestions from their staff members before and after meetings.

Scenario 3: Finally, a pastor could use group texting messages when running events within their church community. They could send out notifications regarding upcoming events with relevant information such as date, time, location and purpose of the gathering. This will make sure that everyone in the community is aware of when events are happening and what they involve so that they can decide if they would like to attend or not. Weather is always a variable for outdoor events, and having a text list allows you to broadcast last-minute changes or cancellations. Furthermore, pastors could also send reminders before each event as well as thank you notes afterward which will help foster meaningful relationships between members of the church community.

2. Automated Messages

Churches often need to send out automated messages such as confirmations or reminders about upcoming events or services. An automated message feature will allow you to set up messages in advance so they go out on a regular basis without any extra work on your part. This saves you time and eliminates the need for manual entry each time you want to send out an announcement or reminder about an event or service. Here are 3 simple scenarios:

Scenario 1: A church leader or pastor would use automated text messaging to send out weekly prayer requests to their congregation. This would allow members of the congregation to receive a reminder every week with specific prayers easily they can offer up for those in need. Additionally, it could include links to forms where members can submit additional prayer requests anonymously if needed.

Scenario 2: Automated text message sequences could also be useful for appointment reminders. For example, when there is a counseling meeting, a volunteer training meeting, or small group leaders' meeting, automated sequences can be triggered, so you don't have to reinvent the wheel every time – They could include instructions on how to prepare and what to bring.

Scenario 3: Automated text message sequences could also come in handy for event planning. Guests can be sent personalized invitations through an automated sequence, then receive text reminders of the event date and time closer to the day of the event. Plan your visit campaigns can take full advantage of automated text messaging. And the one of the best scenarios is guest follow-up.

3. Data Collection & Analysis

A good church texting service should also provide data collection and analysis capabilities so that you can track who is responding to your messages and how they respond. This information can be invaluable when it comes time to make decisions about which messages are working best and which ones aren’t resonating with your audience as well as expected.

Scenario 1: A pastor can use a text messaging platform's data collection and analysis features to get feedback from attendees on sermon topics. People can give their opinions on what topics they would like the pastor to cover in upcoming sermons, and the pastor can track trends in feedback to form sermon outlines for maximum engagement.

Scenario 2: You could use a text messaging platform's data collection and analysis features to track attendance at events and services held by the church. This will allow the pastor to measure the impact of ministry efforts, identify underrepresented groups, and adjust ministry programming accordingly. And it doesn't have to be a “text your attendance” call to action. Strategically baking in texting call-to-action prompts would allow you to measure how many individuals participated in any given texting CTA during an event to get a sense of headcount and the number of active participants.

Scenario 3: All church leaders can use a text messaging platform's data collection and analysis features to better target outreach efforts during special campaigns or seasons of the year. By analyzing responses from members of the congregation or local community, pastors can craft messages tailored towards specific demographics or interests which are most likely to respond positively to their message.

women texting


Text messaging has become one of the most effective ways for churches to communicate with their members quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. However, it’s important that churches select a texting service that offers essential features such as group messaging, automated messages, and data collection & analysis capabilities so they can get the most out of their church texting experience. With these features in place, churches will have everything they need to ensure their members stay informed without breaking the bank!

CTT Staff
CTT Staffhttps://churchtechtoday.com
ChurchTechToday is the #1 church technology website for pastors, communicators, and leaders. With the goal to provide insight into a variety of topics including social media, websites, worship, media, mobile, and software, ChurchTechToday aims to shed light on how church technology can empower and position churches for impact and growth.

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