Everyone needs to be reminded of editing tips. Why? Because the world is inundated with communication. And every person who creates the communication, believes their message is important. But that doesn’t mean the content will be consumed properly.
Communication noise is causing everyone to decide what’s important and what can be ignored. We can’t take it all in anymore! This is why the church needs editing tips. So that we give all of our communication a final edit to reduce noise. Calming messaging! And giving information without wasting people’s time.
Do you create church content? Here are 4 practical editing tips every church must practice regularly:
- Know who your communication is intended for. Always understand who needs your information. You may have to stereotype the group that’s receiving it. Or segment the group and communicate differently to each group. If “most” don’t need to hear it, it may be wise to communicate it differently. Or not at all. Decide why they need the content: What do they want? Are you fixing something? Giving them a new process? Avoid generalizations with content. Tell them as quickly as possible about the promise or intent of the content. And do it at the first (top) of the content. You probably also want to remind them a few times throughout the content (depending on length).
- Decide one thing you want them to do. After promising a solution, lead them quickly to the requirement: the call-to-action (CTA). The more you want them to do, the less likely they’ll do any. Try as much as possible to have one. If there are secondary things you must add, do it in a secondary way. Create the hierarchy for them: they need to know what you’d like them to do primarily, then alternatives.
- Remove details that aren’t part of the decision. Often people creating content are thinking about all the logistics they needed to produce the content: the room it’ll happen in, the number of times it’s recurring, who’s the contact, etc. Most of those details don’t help people decide if they’ll participate. Therefore, edit the content to “benefits” and a strong CTA. Get their attention by mentioning why they need the content and provide a solution. Keep it as short as possible.
- Direct interested people to a regular, trusted source for details. Your church needs to have that one spot everyone can discover all the details — when needed. It must be trusted and accurate or people will resist it. Many churches used to use a printed bulletin. But now, most prefer the website. Just make sure it’s well done, edited, proofed, and the information is easy-to-find. Social media channels are an alternative to direct people. Remember, everyone has access to a website quite easily, and only a small amount has your bulletin, an app, or are on your email list. A good piece of church content (following these editing tips) needs to be in the proper website area so it’s discoverable by your community and your congregation!
