Last updated: October 2026
Short answer: Every church markets itself. The real question is whether your message is reaching the people it is meant for. Start with a clear church marketing plan, a practical path that defines what, how, and when you will market your church. Then use owned, earned, shared, and paid content so your resources go further.
Every church markets itself. Whether this comes from subconscious word-of-mouth marketing, elaborate online initiatives, or anything in between, church leaders are always happy to get the word out about what their churches are doing.
Is your church communicating effectively right now, though? Is your message reaching its intended recipients or is it falling on deaf ears? Do you have a plan?
Let’s go over some practical and effective tips to help with marketing your church, starting with the foundational need for a plan.
Create a Clear Church Marketing Plan
There are many communication channels and strategies to market a church. The key is turning all of those techniques and ideas into a clear path forward that serves your church’s needs.
This is where a church marketing plan comes into the picture. If the marketing lingo is confusing, we get it. Let’s break the terms down:
Communication channels are the ways you can reach your audience with your message: things like emails, social media, and even traditional methods like church mailers.
Marketing strategies are big-picture in scope. They align goals with resources and set the stage for long-term success.
Marketing plans are more specific, actionable roadmaps that define what, how, and when you will market your church.
So, when we say do you have a ministry marketing plan in place, we mean do you have a practical path forward to help your church meet its present marketing goals? If not, the next two tips can help you flesh out an effective plan to orient your ministry’s marketing efforts.
Understand the Different Kinds of Content
You’ve probably heard the phrase “content is king.” It’s true. But just because content is one of the most important church promotional items doesn’t mean it always works.
A good marketing plan contains content with purpose. This starts by understanding the different kinds of content you can use to market an organization:
Owned content is content you retain the rights over when published. An article on a church website and an archived sermon are good examples of owned content.
Earned content comes from content that originates outside of your company. In essence, this is public relations (PR) and could look like a press release pick-up or a news outlet interviewing a staff member during an event.
Shared content is similar to earned content, except it originates with you. In most cases, this takes place on social media platforms where others distribute, comment on, and engage with posts by your church.
Paid content is content that, well, you pay for, like buying a digital ad to promote an upcoming Easter service or summer community outreach event.
Together, these forms of content create the acronym PESO. Make sure you’re at least considering the full PESO experience as you plan different kinds of content. This will optimize the impact of your resources and create marketing and communications synergy.
Create a Marketing Timeline: Follow the “Four D’s”
Structure and organization are critical pieces of effective marketing, especially in church. Ministries have different short and long-term goals driven by mission statements and prayerful, God-led leadership. As you navigate these different focal points, a marketing plan can help you communicate with the right people at the right time.
At digifora, our team has worked with many churches, and over time, we’ve developed what we call the “Four D’s.” This is a four-step approach to church marketing that brings everything into focus:
Discover: Reevaluate goals, mission, and vision.
Develop: Create a strategic plan.
Deploy: Execute that plan.
Dissect: Analyze the results and plan for the future.
Your church marketing plan takes shape in the Develop stage. This is where we take all of the information regarding resources and objectives and form them into a clear vision for where you want your church marketing and communications to take you in the future. Deploy is much easier and more effective when you have that plan in place, too.
How You Market Your Church Matters
Churches market themselves by:
Getting their numbers listed in the phonebook and online directories.
Making sure the exterior of their building is impressive and alluring.
Choosing geographic locations that are near an optimal number of potential attendees.
Branding their bulletins, videos, and other announcements.
Using social media to engage with their congregants and surrounding communities.
It’s tempting to write off many of these activities as necessities and “the way we’ve always done things,” but that doesn’t change the fact that they’re still marketing.
In an interview with Christianity Today, we talked about any time you serve your community or invite someone to church, you’re marketing. Even something as simple as refining the overall experience of a service, things like cleaning up music and lighting, are also key marketing activities.
In essence, if you’re doing anything to get more people in your building, you’re marketing your church, and you know what? That’s okay. In fact, it’s more than okay. It’s how the church has attracted people for thousands of years.
The more important question to ask isn’t whether or not you should market your church, but rather how you should do so. A key element here is finding ways to promote your church (and by extension, the Church as a whole) without it coming across as a purely fiscal matter. If you’re just trying to get butts in the pews and checks in the offering plate (or digital giving app, at this point) you’re going to come across as an organization that is “productizing” your faith.
At their core, churches are communities. They’re relational. And as such, they need to be more human. That means your marketing efforts can’t hide behind a professional logo and fancy videos.
This makes word-of-mouth marketing one of the most important ways to market a church in a healthy manner. Empower your staff, volunteers and members to authentically step into the community and represent your church’s brand. This comes through high-level things like a clearly understood mission statement, as well as day-to-day items like running a quality children’s church program that genuinely serves the kids in your congregation.
Designate Resources
Assess the resources you have available and consider what you can designate for marketing. This starts with money, but it shouldn’t stop there. Can you get volunteers? Do people in your congregation have marketing skills they’re willing to donate?
Consider Available Marketing Channels
This can include things like signs out front and bulletin boards downtown. At the end of the day, though, a lot of your channels are going to be online. Set up effective social media profiles (remember to stay consistent with things like the kinds of content you create and posting frequency). You should also tend to things like your Google Business and Yelp profiles to ensure that you’re responding to reviews and cultivating a good online reputation. And don’t forget your website. You want your site to be mobile-friendly and SEO-optimized.
Clarifying Your Church Marketing
Churches market themselves by communicating the right message at the right time to the right people. If your ministry is struggling to do that effectively, you want to clarify your marketing. Use these ideas to create a plan that brings all of your marketing and communication elements together.
If you need help with that process, try working with a veteran marketing team like digifora. Our church-specific marketing consulting and support can help you create a strategic church marketing plan tailored to your ministry's goals, needs, and capabilities.
Let’s talk. No matter what size or stage your ministry is in, we can help you build a digital marketing strategy that fits your needs and then create an effective marketing plan to set that strategy in motion.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a church marketing strategy and a marketing plan?
Marketing strategies are big-picture in scope. They align goals with resources and set the stage for long-term success. Marketing plans are more specific, actionable roadmaps that define what, how, and when you will market your church. A plan turns all of your channels and ideas into a clear path forward that serves your church’s needs.
What are communication channels for a church?
Communication channels are the ways you can reach your audience with your message. That includes emails and social media, and it also includes traditional methods like church mailers. Your marketing plan decides which of these channels you use, when you use them, and what message each one carries.
What is the PESO model in church marketing?
PESO stands for paid, earned, shared, and owned content. Owned content is what you control, like an article on your website or an archived sermon. Earned content is PR, like a news interview. Shared content spreads on social media. Paid content is what you buy, like an ad for Easter. Considering all 4 helps you get more impact from your resources.
What are the Four D’s of church marketing?
The Four D’s are a 4-step approach digifora developed working with churches: Discover (reevaluate goals, mission, and vision), Develop (create a strategic plan), Deploy (execute that plan), and Dissect (analyze the results and plan for the future). Your church marketing plan takes shape in the Develop stage, and Deploy is easier and more effective once that plan is in place.
Why does a church need a marketing plan?
Churches market themselves by communicating the right message at the right time to the right people. Without a plan, your message can fall on deaf ears. A plan gives you a practical path forward to meet your present marketing goals and brings all of your marketing and communication elements together, so your team knows what to do and when.
Related reading: 9 Channels for Church Marketing and Communications, Church Marketing and Communications: What Is It and Why Does Your Ministry Need It?, Church Marketing
