Summer is coming to an end and fall is nipping at our heels. Churches have reopened and parishioners are wanting to be more involved again. As the app administrator, you can help your ministry leaders promote and engage parishioners through myParish App messaging.

The Groups feature is an excellent tool for ministry leaders. Start by creating a group for each ministry, then assign a moderator/group leader. Be sure to include a thorough description of the ministry. This is a good way to spark interest from potential new members. Parishioners can find out what your ministries are about and tap the join button to learn more and get involved. Do this before your Parish ministry fair. As people visit the ministry booths, they can open myParish app, tap on the ministry and join instantly!

Another tool for engaging parishioners is parish wide messaging. Messaging can be used to highlight buttons and resources in your app or put emphasis on specific ministries. A fun idea would be to highlight a “Ministry of the Month” Here is an example of a message for The Knights of Columbus:

“Have you considered Joining the Knights of Columbus? Through charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism we support and encourage our fellow brothers to work to make life better in our parish and community. To learn more about what we do, tap HERE. To join the Knights, tap on the groups button and find our group!”

We can link to your resources in the myParish App. Through existing buttons and custom buttons we can add all of the great content you have created for your community! If your youth group or Knights of Columbus has a YouTube or Facebook page for something they are doing, a link can be added and possibly a button can be created for your app that connects you directly with those resources. We are always open to conversation about your communication ideas.

In addition, here is a reminder of group features and benefits for App Admin‘s to share:

Join Access – CLOSED / OPEN – Choose join access open and anyone can join, no approval needed. Choose join access closed and all new join requests must be approved by moderators.

Visibility – PRIVATE / PUBLIC – Choose private and your active group will be visible only to those in the group. Choose public and the group will be visible to all.

Commenting – OFF / ON – Choose off and you have one-way communication. Choose on for group discussions.

Activation – DEACTIVATED / ACTIVATED – Choose deactivate for groups that are seasonal. Choose reactivate when you are ready to get going again.

As a myParish App administrator you can send and delete a message right from your phone to your entire community!

All these aspects of Catholic life and more can be found in your myParish app. Share with your parishioners. They will appreciate it. May it allow them an experience of our faith, just a touch away. Catholic life every day.

Ahh, it’s finally summer! After a pandemic, shutdowns, and restrictions, life is loosening up and becoming somewhat normal. Late June/early July is a time to relax, refresh and renew both personally and spiritually. Help your parishioners stay connected to their faith community this summer. Faith formation does not always have to take place within the parish. While they’re at a picnic with friends, a day at the beach, riding bikes in the park, or waiting for an appointment, the myParish app gives your parishioners quick access to many aspects of Catholic life every day. Encourage them to give it a try!

One-touch takes them to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) readings of the day. Another and they will find prayers in the Prayer button. Catching up on the news is a snap for them by touching the News button. There are interesting articles that they will find from the Catholic News Agency. If they are looking for someone to share a rosary,  they can tap the Rosary button and hear the soothing voice of Fr. John Riccardo. And, they can take a moment for a quick read by clicking the Inspire Daily light bulb and finding daily blogs from Catholic writers based on the day’s readings.

There are many button options to choose from. Is there a topic or link that you would like to expand on for your parishioners? Give us a call to see if a custom button would work for your parish.

Communicate to them if they need to find a church while traveling this summer, the myParish App is the perfect tool to turn to. Tap the three lines in the upper left-hand corner while on the myParish app. Then type in the zip code of your destination where it says Find a Parish. In seconds they will see the closest 10 parishes to that location using the app. If they don’t know the zip code, have them touch the Discover Mass button and enter a city name and state. When you send more messages, highlight one of these many great ways to utilize myParish App.

All these aspects of Catholic life and more can be found in your myParish app. Share with your parishioners. They will appreciate it. May it allow them an experience of our faith, just a touch away. Catholic life every day.

Join us, Thursday, July 1 at 1:00 pm to discuss practical ways to evangelize over the summer. Interaction, personalization, and experience matter.

myParish App has been serving the communication needs of many Catholic churches for quite some time. Mobility is a must, and approximately 85% of the consumer market has indicated a preference for apps over mobile websites. It is interesting to consider where these technologies are going, but one certainty is that they are here to stay.

Over time we continue to make enhancements that offer better usability. Last year, with churches closed, the app experienced extremely high usage. Since then we have been compiling a list of suggestions from you. Check out some of our new features for both you, the admin, and your parishioners.

• Text Size – With this popular feature, you can now change the text size from small to medium, to large all within the menu of the app.
• Language – You can change the language from English to Spanish from the menu of the app. No longer do you need to go to the phone settings to change the app language.
• Admin Analytics – We recently introduced our new analytics platform. And we are already making changes and updates to make it even more valuable.  We are adding the ability to view the number of clicks on a given button by day, week, or month.

Great news! Join Marc Wadaga with the Diocesan Customer Care team on Thursday, May 20 at 1:00 pm EST for a webinar. He will cover and answer questions about these new features.

The beginning of Lent is only a few weeks away and Ash Wednesday is February 17 this year. Here at Diocesan, we are planning to focus on the Year of St. Joseph.

Maybe you’re already having dialogue and making plans in your parish. We are excited to offer the following selection of Year of St. Joseph resources for you:

After many of us have struggled through the difficulties and uncertainties of 2020, I believe that we are all ready to move forward with a fresh outlook and even resolutions that we’ve been reluctant to make in the past. In our church community, it’s important to channel messaging and resolutions based on what parishioners have available to them – the bulletin, email, myParish App, Evangelus, social media, or all of these. Resolutions and effective communication can work hand in hand.

If one of your resolutions would be to improve the timeliness and quality of the information to your parishioners, then how is the current communication process in your parish? In your role as the App administrator, try sharing meaningful messages with your parishioners that keep them engaged, strengthen their faith, give newfound ways to use the app, and share it with others. Keep resolutions concise and attainable. Here are a few you might want to share:

As we looked forward to 2020, I believe many of us were filled with hope and enthusiasm. Early into the year, we learned that we needed to adjust our lives due to Covid-19. As difficult as that has been, can you imagine how much more difficult it would have been if we had not started with hope?

With the beginning of Advent just days away, the gifts of hope, peace, joy, and love are once again on our minds as we prepare for Christmas. In your role as the App administrator, you have an opportunity to foster these gifts in the lives of your parishioners. Try sending meaningful messages that will keep them engaged, strengthen their faith, give newfound ways to use the app, and share it with others. Starting November 29, 2020, the first Sunday of Advent, there will be Advent Reflections that can be accessed by tapping the ‘Advent’ button in the app.  

In the time before Lent, many of us start thinking about what we and our family members are going to “give up for Lent” Many bad habits are put on hold during that six week period, while other habits are given up completely. As the years have passed and I don’t have small children to guide through the process, I find myself looking for a balance. Not only do I focus on something I can give up, but something I can change about myself to help me be more in touch with the beauty of the Lenten and Easter Season. 

Lent is a special time of grace in the Church and as parish communicators, we can support and foster our visitors in their desire to grow in holiness through inspiring and welcoming images, thoughtful reflections and links to meaningful content. Preplan your Lenten online communications. Ash Wednesday is February 26th.  

Churches do not need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to communicating with their parishioners or guests.

Think about building relationships in your personal life and what makes them successful. How did you earn trust, build rapport, and make people feel important? Thriving churches communicate using the same key themes needed to build lasting relationships in our personal lives. If you’re eager to improve as a parish communicator in 2020, it helps to have a plan—or at least a few goals to shoot for.  As an App Administrator, you have the unique ability to reach a wide range of your community at one time.  Here are four relevant resolutions for communication pros to commit to and keep:

1. Asking Questions – People tend to tune out if they are always asked for things or told to do something. Conversations are enhanced by asking good questions and truly listening.
2. Keeping it Short – Give people options to learn more and ways to find additional information so they can digest it in their own time. Try not to overwhelm people with too much at one time.
3. From the Heart – All communications from your church, whether written or spoken, need to feel like a one-on-one conversation with the other person.
4. Say ‘Thank You’ – Showing gratitude, even for the little things, goes a long way toward building trust and cultivating an atmosphere of appreciation.

Resolutions. To many, a dreaded word in December. But after listening to the homily on Sunday morning, the First Sunday of Advent, I’m finding it easier to list my New Year resolutions. Communication. I have always considered myself a communicator. I was a marketing communications major in college and it was the goal of our cohort to communicate continuously. Through careers and years, I have learned that while communication is important, choosing the right medium and message is key. In our church community it’s important to channel the messaging based on what parishioners have available to them – the bulletin, email, myParish App, and social media.  Why resolutions and communications in the same message, you asked? Maybe one of your resolutions would be to improve the timeliness and quality of the information to your parishioners. How is the current communication process in your parish? Everyone knows what’s going on? No one does? Most probably fall somewhere in between. 

In your role as the App administrator, try sharing meaningful messages with your parishioners that will keep them engaged, strengthen their faith, give newfound ways to use the app, and share it with others. Keep resolutions concise and attainable. Here are a few you might want to share:

Read Scripture – Too few Christians have actually followed through with and read the Bible. What kind of reading plan is best? Of course, the one you’re going to finish is. Get friends together and commit to a plan. Daily readings are available on myParish App or at usccb.org.

Spend a Holy Hour in Adoration – Quotes of our Popes and Saints concerning Holy Hours show we can see how much importance they placed on adoration for a healthy spiritual life. These writings tell us that our Holy Hour is more powerful than anything in this world outside of Mass. Check out Our Catholic Prayer website to learn more about the value of a holy hour.

Journey with a Saint – Use this fun Saint generator to learn about a new Saint and include them in your journey of faith throughout the year. http://saintsnamegenerator.com/

Increase Your Bulletin Readership – Try making it a routine to read your bulletin each week. Be informed.  

Merry Christmas Blessings to you and may you close the year in peace and look forward to 2020 with joy.