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We're not about global connection, we're about local engagement.

Viewing entries tagged with 'social network'

You Wouldn't Do That on Facebook

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 27 February 2012 |

Tags: , ,

People often ask why the Table is necessary if we already have Facebook and other social media networks. It's a good question with a simple answer: The Table is a smaller, safer, more intimate community. It encourages a different kind of connection that you rarely find on a worldwide network.

Would you post the following on Facebook?

  • Your failures with [fill in the blank sin].
  • Your struggles with [fill in the blank hardship].
  • Your frustrations with [fill in the blank person].

Facebook lacks a certain sensitivity. Throwing out status updates and sharing pictures doesn't always accommodate confession, forgiveness or grace. Unfortunately, there's a lot of judgment out there. It can be scary to open up, and more often than not people won't. We worry about what friends, family and even employers might think.

But the smaller community of the Table offers an intimate space that's not scary, but safe. There's a sensitivity that you won't find on Facebook because the Table is rooted in real-life community.

It's also true with the more mundane. Would you be willing to share the following with the world on Facebook?

  • Your address.
  • Your stuff.
  • Your needs.

Once again, sometimes Facebook is a little too big. Maybe you're having a board game night and you want to invite lots of people, but posting your address on Facebook seems like a little much. Sharing it with a smaller group on the Table might feel more comfortable. Likewise, you might be willing to share your chainsaw, favorite DVD or a pie pan, but you're not going to post it to Facebook where half your friends live hundreds of miles away. And your needs? It's hard to ask for help, and on Facebook that can feel a little awkward. What happens when someone questions your need?

Not so on the Table. It's designed for sharing and helping. It's not awkward, it's welcome. The smaller, more intimate community also makes it comfortable. It's like gathering with your friends around, well, the kitchen table. Facebook, on the other hand, is more like standing around on the street corner. You can have great conversations and meet amazing people while walking down the street, but it's probably not the place you'd pick for a sensitive conversation.

Facebook simply isn't designed for these kinds of connections. But the Table is. Not only that, but most of these scenarios have actually happened on the Table (just read some of our stories). People have been more open than we expected, sharing intimate and private concerns with their church family and being lifted up in support, prayer and love.

As John Piper said when describing a woman who shared a difficult struggle on the Table, "This is not Facebook, this is our church." This isn't about embracing technology, it's about being the body of Christ.

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If you have a story about making these kinds of connections on the Table, share it in our Birthday Video Contest. You could win an iPad!

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It's Ministry Not Just Technology

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 30 January 2012 |

Tags: , ,

Peter Haas, pastor of Substance Church in Minneapolis and Table Project board member, says that the Table isn't just technology, it's ministry. It's a crucial tool to enhance your church's community:

"Church service experiences are going to become a devalued commodity. But you know what there's never going to be a substitute for? A shoulder to cry on. And really, that's what the Table is enhancing. It reinforces those relationships that are happening on Sunday morning."

Watch the video:

Watch Substance: Ministry Not Technology (1:14)

Watch the full webinar, How They Did It: Substance Church Case Study, for more on how Substance has utilized the Table.

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Case Study: Granger Community Church Part 1

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 23 January 2012 |

Tags: , , ,

Granger Community Church (GCC) is a leading congregation in Northern Indiana that launched the Table in the fall of 2011. Granger often draws national attention and helps other churches through their Wired Churches network of training and resources. With an average attendance close to 5,000, Granger put a lot of planning and effort into their launch, which was led by Communications Director Kem Meyer, author of Less Clutter. Less Noise.

We talked to Kem about their efforts, and her answers were so helpful and detailed that we're going to share them in a three part series. Here's part one:

 

 

Why did you feel that Granger needed its own private social network?

Kem Meyer: Actually, we didn't. As a matter of fact, we've always had a hard time justifying why we would want a "church version" of Facebook or Twitter. Why wouldn't we just use the networks where the "social" conversation is already flowing rather than try to create a separate track?

However, the growing gap between two extremes—all or nothing—couldn't be ignored. For quite some time, the people of GCC had been asking for a central tool to help them search for, share with and pray for people in their family of faith without going through a middleman. There was a growing connection gap between ALL life and CHURCH life and communication gap between CORPORATE-driven activity and MEMBER-driven activity.

That's the question we were looking for an answer to, the problem we were looking for help solving.

What made you pick the Table for Granger?

Kem: We created a working framework as a filter and evaluated several strong tools on the market (e.g., The Table, SoChurch, The Common, The City, Cobblestone, etc.) against that framework. At the end of the day (actually, we took six months investigating various options), The Table was the absolute best fit for our needs. Here's an overview of that framework:

Fill a void.
We need a 24/7, mobile space that isn't so much our front porch (that's what GCCwired.com is for) but more like our church living room where people live church together. Our primary goal is to create opportunities to enhance community—not to create another broadcast tool for "corporate" communication. And, to meet an un-met need—not to create our own version of something that already exists. We need an online hub that doesn't re-create the wheel, but provides a secure space for people to live out the important aspects of faith that aren't available with our current online environments (e.g., safe place to post things on the calendar, to pray and be prayed for, share resources, etc.)

It's a growing family.
It's hard enough to stay connected beyond a brief hello after a service. It gets even more problematic with six services across two campuses. Something that allows us to search and find each other by name, life stage, interests, etc., can help us stay connected as one church family even if we never go to the same service or campus. People who have been part of GCC for years, as well as people who are new to the congregation, should be able to access the same hub to connect and share opportunities with each other on their own—no bottleneck.

Freedom within a framework.
Anytime you give people the ability to add, edit and respond to content there will be some necessary coaching and course correction along the way. The win isn't a perfectly controlled environment where the staff team chooses what "users" can and can't see, but a real organic environment the staff team can nurture. We'll need guardrails to help free people to be themselves, personalize their own flow and connect with others authentically. At the same time, we'll need simple controls to minimize the potential for destructive rogue usage.

Stay agile.
As people start using this new tool, they'll use it in ways we hadn't imagined. Our implementation approach will be flexible so we can adapt as we gain insight from our people—not only about the features and functionality, but also about the language people are using around their experience. It will help shape our on-going communication and care plans.

Controlled chaos.
Just because we can doesn't mean we should. A strong temptation with technology is to use everything too fast all at once. We'll be strategic about what this is and isn't—who it's for and who it's not for—what it does and doesn't do. While this is a new space to interact, we won't make people create a new username, password or profile. The hub needs to integrate and share data with tools our people are already using (Facebook or Twitter and Fellowship One).

How did you go about getting leadership buy-in?

Kem: We have a mission and vision at Granger—it is what shapes our culture and drives our day-to-day. That mission and vision is something we all already buy in to; leadership, staff and volunteer teams alike. As a member of the GCC team, it's my job to help find ways to move our vision forward. As communications director, The Table was part of the answer to specific problems I was charged with solving.

I think people run into difficulty getting buy-in when they try to sell something new versus supporting something that's already in motion.

Glean more wisdom from Kem Meyer and Granger's launch: Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4

 

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Friends Matter

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 4 January 2012 |

Tags: , , ,

Churches go to great lengths to ensure that people enjoy and come back to church. We have charismatic leaders, contemporary music, great production values, intimate small groups, trained greeters, parking lot attendants and more. But none of it matters.

What does matter? Friendships with other Christians.

As Peter Haas, pastor of Substance Church in Minneapolis and Table Project board member, shared (PDF):

"One
 study 
found 
that 
98%
 of 
church 
satisfaction 
can 
be 
predicted
 simply 
by measuring 
how 
many 
intimate 
Christian 
friends 
our 
congregation 
members 
have 
at any 
given 
moment! 


Think 
about 
that 
for 
a 
second! ... more 
than 
tears
 cried
 in worship 
experiences ... 
more 
than 
'quantity 
of 
church 
services 
attended' ... 
more 
than the 
quality 
of 
the 
speaking ... 
more 
than 
the 
quality 
of 
the 
facility, 
the 
number 
one
 cause 
of 
church 
satisfaction 
was 
quantity 
of 
intimate 
Christian 
friends.
"

One way to encourage connection, community and friendship within your congregation is with the Table. People can be introduced through the directory and then get to know each other as they discuss, serve and pray together throughout the week.

Watch as Peter explains how the Table helps church members develop friendships:

Watch Substance: Church Friends (1:29)

Watch the full webinar, How They Did It: Substance Church Case Study, for more on how Substance has utilized the Table.

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Losing Control & Unleashing Organic Growth

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 27 December 2011 |

Tags: , , , ,

Churches are losing control. People start their own ministries without consulting the pastor. They talk about your church on Facebook using language you didn't approve. They can post to your Facebook wall for everybody to see. They post photos to Flickr and videos to YouTube.

And that's OK.

The social media revolution is taking control out of the hands of the few and giving it to the many. Instead of a lone spokesperson giving voice to a brand, the crowd is speaking up. Organizations no longer have total control. An organic voice is emerging that's made up of the official brand lingo but also incorporates the voice of the masses.

It can be a little overwhelming, especially for churches that have trouble letting go of control. But there's freedom in this movement. Instead of fighting change, churches should embrace it. Instead of micro-managing everything, churches should let it develop.

That's one of the advantages of the Table. It empowers your congregation to do ministry, to recruit volunteers and ultimately do church together. It's ministry, not management. It allows your church to be more organic, working from within as opposed to everything coming down from on high. Give your church leadership a break and instead of controlling everything, let ministry happen organically.

Let the Spirit move. Instead of chaos, you may be surprised to find beauty.

  • Let new ministries set up groups and spread their wings. You might be surprised at what gets traction and what doesn't.
  • Give people a voice: Encourage them to post on the discussion board and share their views. The pastor isn't the only one in your church with something to offer.
  • Watch as needs you never knew existed become voiced and met.
  • See new connections develop that never would have happened if the pastor asked the same old people.

Community doesn't happen with top-down mandates. It grows organically. Give up a little control and watch community sprout organically in your church.

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New in Town

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 15 December 2011 |

Tags: , , ,

The Table can be a great way for new people to get connected. It's hard to meet new people and find things like babysitters. It can be even harder at the holidays. But a connected social network can help ease those fears and enable people to serve one another.

Just ask Jamie:

 

How has the Table impacted you? Read more stories or share your own.

 

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The Table Makes Big Feel Small & Small Feel Big

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 13 December 2011 |

Tags: , , , , , ,

"Our church is too big."

"Our church is too small."

"Our church doesn't even have a building."

If your church is struggling with size issues, the Table can help. The Table helps big churches feel more intimate and connected, while small churches find a wealth of untapped volunteers and resources.

 

 

Big Feel Small
The Table can help big churches feel small. The Table helps create community and intimacy that can help your big church overcome the anonymity that happens on Sunday morning. Instead of being overwhelmed by the masses of people, you can find small groups to join, figure out who lives in your neighborhood and discover who shares your interests. Suddenly your church goes from a crowd of strangers to a bunch of connections.

Small Feel Big
The Table can also help small churches feel big. The Table can boost your communication efforts and help you work more efficiently. It's the kind of innovation you normally associate with bigger churches. Your people can connect and are empowered to do ministry without tapping your overworked staff. You can even recruit volunteers more efficiently and share resources. You'll discover a depth of potential you never knew your church had.

Building-less
The Table can also help house churches, church plants and churches without a building. The Table can offer a sense of place and unity for the church that doesn't have the traditional sign out front. Whether it's just a temporary phase or a core value, the Table can help you build the cohesive community that often centers around a building. Mapping functionality can help you pick a central location and posting volunteer needs can help you organize those Sunday morning set up and tear down times.

Size Doesn't Matter
Community doesn't just happen. You have to work to build it. And the Table can make it easier, no matter the size of your church.

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Offer Your Missionaries a Chair

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 29 November 2011 |

Tags: , , , , ,

The Table is a great way for missionaries to connect with their home church. Many missionaries struggle with posting sensitive details of their work online and often can't share their true struggles on public sites like Facebook. Being away for several years can also mean they lose touch. People come and go and pretty soon their home church doesn't feel like home.

But the privacy and community-building power of the Table can be just what missionaries need. Invite your church's missionaries to join the Table:

  • Encourage them to post prayer requests and keep your congregation updated.
  • Use groups to support your missionaries. Maybe you create a single group for all your missions work and encourage missionaries around the world to connect and share packing tips and visa woes. Or you could create a group for each missionary and encourage church members to rally around each one and give them individual attention, prayer and support.
  • The Serve App could be a great way to meet needs when missionaries are home on furlough. A place to stay, a car to borrow and babysitting are just a few of the needs they might have.

Since your missionaries are likely overseas (duh), they've understandably missed all your Table promotion. Make a special effort to invite them to the Table. Make a quick pitch of the benefits for them and let them know you're available to answer any questions.

Establishing these kinds of connections can be lifesavers for your missionaries and give your congregation a broader understanding of the world. Pakistan, Haiti or Sudan don't seem so far away when you're praying and interacting with your missionaries.

 

 

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"A Place of Refuge & Peace"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 10 November 2011 |

Tags: , , ,

People often wonder why a church needs a private social network. Here's why:

The Table offers a private space for people to connect and grow.

We love stories like this. Share your own story of how the Table has impacted you or read more stories.

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The Why & How of Flagging Content

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on 10 October 2011 |

Tags: , , , , , ,

One of the flaws of social networks is people. They're notoriously troublesome. Of course that's also what puts the social in social networks and makes them so wonderfully fun. Social networks give power to the people and that can create some delightful results: a new ministry launched, volunteers recruited and people lifted up in prayer in their time of need. Of course it can also create some not-so-delightful results: gossip, rudeness and spam.

That's why you have the ability to flag content on the Table.

Every piece of user-submitted content on the Table, including prayers, Serve items, discussion topics, photos and comments, can all be flagged. If you see something that shouldn't be there, you can flag it.

Here's what happens when something gets flagged:

  • It's automatically removed. No questions asked.
  • It goes into the content queue for an Admin at your church to review it.
  • The Admin will review the content and decide whether or not it should stay removed. This is a decision made by your church based on their own parameters, not us here at the Table. We let local churches do the content policing.
  • If they opt to keep the content removed, it can be deleted. If they decide the content is actually OK, they can restore it to the Table.

Content flagging is an added level of security that keeps the conversations, interactions and community safe for everyone. Churches can also choose to require that any content posted is approved by an Admin before it goes live, but that often creates a lot of work and slows down the community interaction. Flagging is a way to keep the content flowing and the community happening, but still have a way to police inappropriate content if it pops up.

How do I flag content?

  • Click the "Flag" text or the flag icon next to any piece of content.
  • Explain why you think something needs to be flagged. It might be as simple as "This is gossip," or "This is an item for sale."
  • Click ‘flag' and your church's Admin will take care of it.

People are the heart of your church and the heart of any social network. That means things can get a little messy, but that's OK. Features like content flagging are designed to keep it from getting out of hand. That means less of the troublesome downside, and more of the wonderfully fun upside.

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