All posts by Site Administrator

father

Your Best App Promoter? Your Pastor!

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Launch Kit, Pastors/Priests, , , , ,

Having the priest’s “blessing” of the use of myParish App is a terrific boost for a parish. Some priests are really impressed right from the start, and others may need a little more time. Either way, having the pastor endorse the use of the app means people will really take notice.

Here are a couple of tips for Father:

  • After Mass has concluded, have Father ask everyone to take out their cell phones. Yep, that right: Father said take out your cell phones! If folks don’t have the app, tell them to text “APP” to 88202. And you’ve just gained a bunch of app users. It would be a good idea to include information about the app in that week’s bulletin.
  • Don’t forget that Launch Kit! There is a t-shirt in there for Father. It would be great if Father could wear that t-shirt for refreshments after Mass, parish social events, etc. It’s a fun and effective way to let folks know that the app is important to parish communication.

The pastor doesn’t need to be the admin for the app (although some are!), but his visible and vocal support of the app carries influence. Let your parishioners know that Father says, “Use myParish App!”

launch

Always Launching!

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Launch Kit, , , , ,

You’ll often hear our team use the phrase, “Always be launching!” What we mean by that is don’t have one Launch Weekend, and then pack up the Launch Kit and stow it in that room in the rectory basement that no one ever goes in.

The Launch Kit is meant to be used all the time. For instance, your Launch Kit included a banner that is specific to your parish. Keep it up!

It’s a good idea to move the banner from time to time, since people get used to seeing it. You might put it in the narthex for a few weeks, and then move it to your parish hall. You might put it in the school or religious education entrance for awhile. The point is, you’ll always have new people who will see it for the first time, and you might have parishioners who’ll simply notice it for the first time. In any case, keeping that banner front and center is a great way to remind people to use myParish App.

We spent some time talking with Kathryn Mulderink at St. Isidore Catholic Church in Grand Rapids, MI. She shares some great “always launching” tips here:

 

dan do

Look What Our App Can Do!

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, , , ,

Promoting app features is a great way to keep people engaged in using the myParish App. Here are a couple of ideas:

  • Touch the windowpane (four boxes) icon in the top right of the app to get back to the main screen, where you can access all the features of that parish’s app.
  • It’s good to know how to access another parish’s app. Folks often need to attend Mass at a different time, find a Confession time that works for their schedule, etc. Knowing how to get to that information is great! Just tap the menu at the top left of the screen, then choose ‘change parish’ under the parish name. You can enter the city or zip code in the search box.
  • If  you or a parishioner would like to remove a message from your phone, swipe left to access the delete button. Press “delete” and the message is gone.
  • As an admin, it’s a good idea to check with your ministry team and ask if they would like any messages sent out via the app. Say something like: “I’d be happy to enter events/messages for your group in myParish App. Please email me at QWERTY@UIOP.com.“ You can also contact your ministry team through the app. Tap “Parish Info” on the main screen (the steeple), and then touch the “Directory” bar at the bottom and find the right person. Then, touch the icons to the right of their name to call or email directly from the app.

Letting app users know about these features means they are more likely to use the app consistently.

Remember, you can always watch and rewatch our admin videos for ideas, clarifications, and information about what myParish App can do.

successful

How Can We Make The App Successful In Our Parish? Two Easy Ways

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Message Ideas, tips for success

Maybe you’ve just launched myParish App. Maybe your parish launched awhile ago. If your parish chose to use this tool, you want it to be successful. You want people to use it again and again. You know it’s a great tool, but …

How do we make myParish App a successful communication tool for our church?

Two easy ways:

  1. Send out a message early in the week.
  2. Send out another message later in the week.

We know: that sounds ridiculously easy but it works! Parishes that have folks engaged and using the app are ones that send out two messages a week. (There are some other things too, but this is a good place to start!)

For instance, the admin at your parish might send out a Tuesday message with a push notification: “Don’t forget to purchase your tickets for the Knights of Columbus’ Polish Dinner on April 22. Tickets are available after all Masses this weekend.”

On Friday, the admin’s message might be: “We look forward to seeing you at Mass this weekend.  With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption. Mass times are Saturday at 5 p.m. and Sunday at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m.”

This way to keep people engaged and looking at the app on a regular basis is not only easy, it takes almost no time! Commit to sending out two messages a week, and see what happens with activity on your parish’s app.

manage myparish app

It’s Almost Easter! 4 Ways to Manage With myParish App

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Lent & Easter, , , , , , , , , ,

Folks outside the parish office don’t know that Easter planning begins right after the last verse of “Joy to the World” at the Christmas recessional. As joyous as Easter is, it can be tough on parish staffs.

Using myParish App can help.

  1. Use messaging. Often. Your parish has a lot going on – study groups, missions, special services, extra confession times. Taking 5 minutes a day to send out a message can help keep folks informed.
  2. Keep important app information updated. This is the time you’ll really want to make sure bulletins are up-to-date on the app, as are Father’s homilies. Also, make sure basic parish information is current. People travel a lot this time of year and look for a church – you don’t want them to show up for 10 a.m. Mass on Sunday when you changed the schedule 8 months ago.
  3. Tell people about the app. Keep the Launch Kit banner up in the parish hall. Have teens pass out information during coffee after Mass. Run information on how to download the app in the bulletin. Remember, this is the time of year when folks who often don’t go to church will be there – giving them the app is a wonderful gift!
  4. Use the app yourself. First, you’ll know for sure if something isn’t right! But use the app for your own spiritual enrichment. Too often, parish workers set aside their own spiritual life for everyone else’s. You can’t give what you don’t have, so dig into the readings of the day, set prayer reminders to go off to  help you stay on track, and enjoy one of the other features such as “Living the Good News” or “Real Life Catholic.”

Enjoy the rest of Lent, and have a wonderful Easter!

homlies

Hey, Father: Great Homily!

Administrators, Homilies, Ideas & Tips, , , , ,

myParish App allows you to post your pastor’s homilies using our “Homilies” button. Admins can post homilies by simply cutting and pasting an already existing URL to the myParish App admin page. (If you need a refresher, or there is someone new to being an admin for your parish, watch our short “Adding Homilies & Uploading Bulletins” video. Look for video #5.)

If your pastor does not publish his homilies, we may have other options for your parish. Our team members would be happy to talk to you about other ways you can use the “Homilies” button.

Also, this feature is a great way to keep your homebound and “snow bird” parishioners connected to parish life.

Using the “Homilies” button in myParish App means giving all your parishioners a great message to  ponder and pray about throughout the week.

featured events

A Notable Feature

Administrators, Featured Events, Ideas & Tips, , , , ,

Learn to use Featured Events to promote parish activities.

Today, let’s focus on using the “Events” feature to promote parish activities, while at the same time promoting the use of myParish App more fully.

First, create your event: you can do that by going to your admin page. Click on the “Events” tab at the top. Then, under the “English/Spanish” tab on the left side, you’ll see “Add  event” with the calendar icon. Click on that, and fill in the applicable information. Don’t forget to click “Add” when you’re done to save the event.

You won’t want to use the Events feature for everything that is going on in the parish. This is really for Featured Events. For instance, if your parish is planning special study groups and/or activities during Lent, this is the use for Featured Events! Set Ash Wednesday on March 1, and then add in Bible Studies, Stations of the Cross, youth activities, fish dinners, etc.

In addition, tell your parishioners about the Featured Events in at least two different places outside the app.

A sample bulletin announcement might be: “Be sure to check out our Lenten Featured Events using myParish App. It’s a quick way to see what is happening during Lent here at St. Meinrad’s. Don’t have the App? Aren’t sure how to use it? Please ask a parish staff member or call the parish office at xxx-xxx-xxxx.”

You can also put a similar message on your parish Facebook page: “Don’t miss any of St. Meinrad’s Featured Events during Lent. As we grow in holiness, we also want to grow in communication! Use the myParish App to stay in touch during this holy season. Don’t have the App or not sure how to use it? Talk to a parish staff person or call the parish office.”

If  you’re going to be using the App heavily (during Lent, for instance), the Sunday before Ash Wednesday would be an excellent time to host a “Redownload Sunday.” Break out the t-shirts from your Launch Kit, and round up volunteers for each Mass to help those who don’t yet have the app, or need a quick tutorial.

Happy event planning!

changes

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Update, , , , , ,

Make sure your app is up-to-date for Ordinary Time.

Note as of 1.9.17: This blog post is causing some confusion; our apologies. Here is an updated version regarding re-loading:

The app updates automatically. The different platforms (iOS-Apple, Android) handle updates differently. Androids do a complete update weekly in the early morning hours on Saturday (midnight-1:00 a.m. or so). Apple also does a complete weekly update, but it’s scheduled according to when the app was loaded to the device, so we can’t be specific as to when it is. 

Additionally, different parts of the app check for updates for their content regularly. For example, if you tap on messages, the app goes to the server to check and see if there are new messages.
You only need to do a re-load if you’ve made a change that’s not showing up, and you don’t want to wait out the week.
Again, our apologies for any misunderstanding and/or confusion.
______________________________________________________

As we leave the Christmas season behind and enter into Ordinary Time, you’ll notice some changes to the look of your myParish App. You’ll also see some content changes, as we’ll be removing the Advent and Christmas reflections.

One thing to remember: you (and your parishioners) will need to “re-load” the app on whatever device you’re using. That means you open the app and click on the Menu (the three bars in the upper right corner.) Once there, tap “change parish,” and select your parish. (You may need to search for your parish, then select, as the app gives suggestions based on your location.) This will update all the content you and your parishioners see.

It’s a good idea to run a little note in the bulletin for a few weeks; that way, your parishioners won’t be stuck in Advent when Lent rolls around!

Thanks to all the parishes who took part in our Advent and Christmas reflections and backgrounds. We enjoyed hearing from many of you during the holiday season.

May your New Year be blessed and peaceful!

message

Message Me!

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Message Ideas, , , ,

Craft great messages for the best results.

Sending messages via myParish App is a terrific way to keep your parishioners informed. However, there are a few tips to create great messages, making them more effective.

  • Include most relevant at beginning of message because that’s what shows in a push notification.
  • Send your message now, and then add as an event to remain on calendar.
  • Use messaging and events together to keep information available on the calendar.

Here is an example of a “weak” message:

“We need volunteers! There are many volunteer opportunities here at St. Ann’s. This week, we are cleaning the church. Call the church office if interested. “

This message is really unclear. It doesn’t tell parishioners when they would be needed, and there is no phone or email included so that they can easily contact the office if interested. They would have to hunt around to find the contact information.

Here is an example of a “stronger” message:

“Help clean the church for Christmas! Wednesday, December 21 at noon, volunteers are needed to clean and decorate the church for Christmas. Snacks and drinks provided and all ages welcome. Please call Patty in the church office at 616-555-5555 for more information or to volunteer.”

Then, make sure you put this event on the app calendar.

A few simple tweaks to a message can make a big difference!

remind

Remind ‘Em Again … And Again

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, , ,

Remind your parishioners frequently about myParish App.

Now that you’ve got myParish App up and running, you can just sit back and watch your Analytics improve, right?

Sadly, no. We humans are a forgetful bunch. You’ve launched myParish App, you’ve had Download Sunday … and there are still lots of parishioners who don’t know about the App. How can you improve this?

Here are just a couple of ideas:

  • Bulletin announcements – add them in once a month
  • Use banners, bulletin, bring the t-shirts out from your Launch Kit
  • Download Sunday again – “Redownload” or “myParish App Reminder Sunday”
  • Make myParish a presence at parish events and/or group gatherings. 

Doing just one or two of these will help in the long run. Remember, myParish App – with just a few minutes of your time each week – will help keep your parishioners informed and connected to their faith.