Category Archives: Ideas & Tips

Push Those Notifications

Administrators, Ideas & Tips

THE PROBLEM

We all know it’s hard to keep people engaged in parish programs. It’s a problem going back to the beginning of the Church. myParish App is a proven evangelization tool in parishes across the country, but people need to be engaged in the app to access the great faith help content. How do we keep them engaged?

THE SOLUTION

We have found that the most effective way to keep parishioners engaged in the app is by sending out 1-2 push notifications a week. This ensures that parishioners open the app and get connected to the parish. It also encourages them to view the faith help features of the app.

This may seem like a lot of messaging, but fear not. When your parishioners download the app they are giving you permission to message them. They want to hear from you. And the message feature couldn’t be easier to use. Watch the video below to learn more.

EXAMPLES OF GREAT MESSAGING

Try to always remember that the most effective messages are those that not only communicate, but also inspire. Speaking from your heart to the heart of the parishioner is a great way to let them know that you genuinely care. Below are some great example messages that present this model of inspiration and communication.

This week Father ____ wants us all to come together as a community in prayer. myParish App makes it easy. Simply set a prayer reminder on your phone to pray the "Glory Be" every day this week for our parish and community.
The Bishop's annual appeal is almost here. Just a reminder that the reason we donate to this important initiative is to support programs that help our community grow in faith and prayer. Don't we all want to support that mission? Go to our giving link in myParish App to donate easily and securely. Thank you!
Pope Francis is calling us to care for the poor. Don't we all want to care for and respect those around us? Join us today (give the date) at 5:00pm at the parish for a food drive to help our local community in need. Your donation will give food to those who go without.

As Diocesan Publications’ Solutions Evangelist, Shultz is committed to showing parish and diocesan staffs how to use our communication tools to their best advantage. Through his work in over ten years of ministry as well as serving as director of youth and young adult ministries for the Diocese of Baker, Shultz has learned what it takes to communicate effectively in parishes across the country. His passion is bringing others into a relationship with Jesus and he wants to help you accomplish this important mission. To bring Tommy to your parish or for further questions contact him at tshultz@diocesan.com. 

Help Your Parish Become A Parish Of Prayer

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, Pastors/Priests, Uncategorized, , ,

Do you want your parish to come together more frequently in prayer?

myParish App can help you accomplish this important mission.

 

Teresa of Avila once said, “We pay God a compliment by asking great things of him.”

Don’t be afraid to be bold with your prayer as a parish. God Bless!

Example Message:

Hey everyone! This is Father Bill and I would really like to help encourage our parish to pray more together. Simply go into myParish App and set a reminder for the act of hope prayer. We will be praying this prayer every day at noon. Click this link for more information.
https://myparishapp.com/parishofprayer/

Need help with any of the features of myParish App. Give us a call at 800-997-8805.

We would love to hear from you!

Free myParish App Webinar Series

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

“Well moderated, easy to understand, great topics with suggestions that can be applied immediately. The webinar renewed by enthusiasm to promote MyParish App! It was nice to learn that other parishes face the same issues of pastors/staff who don’t use smart phones.” -Webinar Attendee

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?

Now it’s easy!!!

Join Tommy Shultz for a brand new and free webinar series designed to explain the features of the app and get people excited about using it while also increasing engagement in your parish.

https://vimeo.com/220641862

If you have trouble viewing the video CLICK HERE.

SIGN UP NOW!!!!

We hope to see you there!

WEBINAR #1

myParish App Overview

8/9/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

REGISTER

WEBINAR #2

Get Excited About myParish App

7/12/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

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8/16/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

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WEBINAR #3

Steps to Successful Communication with myParish App

7/19/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

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8/23/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

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WEBINAR #4

Reaching Optimal Engagement with myParish App

7/25/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

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8/30/17 at 11:00 am (EDT)

REGISTER

Change LentAs Diocesan Publications’ Solutions Evangelist, Shultz is committed to showing parish and diocesan staffs how to use our communication tools to their best advantage.  As an experienced speaker on all things Catholic, he has addressed topics such as the Sacraments, chastity, and boldly living the Catholic faith.  Tommy Shultz also served as director of youth and young adult ministries for the Diocese of Baker, OR. 

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!