Category Archives: tips for success

Use Your Calendar to Stay Organized

Administrators, Calendars, Ideas & Tips, tips for success

It’s October! The months are coming and going quickly as we near the end of the year. We all know that our calendars start to fill up with many events in the next few months and especially in the Church.

Does your Church use the calendar button? Most often it is found on the first or second row of your app button layout. This button can be used to help ministry leaders and organizers set dates and keep up with Church and school events, so as not to miss out on important upcoming fall, Advent, and Christmas happenings. Adding dates to the calendar also prevents from double booking activities with other groups. And with this said, it’s always best to check the calendar prior to setting the date for your event.

If your parish has a digital calendar, let Marc see if it can be integrated into the app (not all can). After your calendar is in place, announce to your parishioners using app messaging and other tools of communication, that the calendar is updated, accurate, and ready to follow. There’s also a drop down feature where you could add another calendar for school specific scheduling.

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

Catholic Life Every Day

Back to School – Already?

Administrators, Back-to-School, Ideas & Tips, tips for success, Update

How can it be? Didn’t our summer just begin? Yes, it’s August and parents, teachers, and some children, are thinking about the coming weeks ahead. As the parish app admin, here are some ideas that you can share with your parishioners that might make the transition from summer fun to back to school smoother.

  1. Eat Dinner As a Family
    After busy schedules of vacations, summer camps. time with friends, dinner around the table as a family may have fallen by the wayside. Try to get this important event back in your routine at least twice a week.
  2. Pray As a Family
    This is something that you could combine with dinner or right after. Make a list of important prayer topics. Maybe world events, or maybe something requiring prayer right in your community, or special prayers for family members and friends. Get the children to suggest what they feel needs prayer.
  3. Attending Mass Together
    Just as with dinner, try to work towards getting your family back to Mass together. You might have to adjust to Saturday or Sunday options, whichever works best for the majority of the family.
  4. Religious Education
    As the app admin, reach out to parishioners whose children do not attend Catholic school. Remind them of Religious Education/Faith Formation classes and schedules for these meetings.
  5. Youth Groups
    Encourage children to become involved in youth groups activities. Make sure that parents and students know the schedules and location for their age group. You might consider adding a back-to-school group to the App to help organize this.

You probably have more ideas that are specific to your parish that you can share with parents. For more detail, or help with groups, call or email Marc for assistance. Text app to 55321 for parishioners not using the app. All of us at Diocesan hope that your parish community has a fun, safe, and healthy back to school season.

 

Catholic Life Every Day

Reinvigorate myParish App

Administrators, Ideas & Tips, tips for success, Update

Parishioners using the App count on information to be accurate and up to date. As an App Admin, it might be helpful to create a checklist of things to verify or change regularly. In addition to messaging, which we covered in last month’s blog post, here are a few things to consider reviewing often so that parishioners feel confident using the App:

Staff Directory – Check this often, and especially if you have a new Priest or clergy at the parish. Be sure that you have the correct details for roles in your parish such as bulletin editor, office admin, communications, web & IT staff, as well as other critical administrative contacts.

Parish Calendar – There are so many important events happening at parishes. Check your list of important dates, holiday programs, guests & speakers, along with other dates that are helpful for parishioners to know. Be sure to add this to your specific myParish App calendar.

Mass & ConfessionTimes – Having a guest try to attend your parish and Mass times are incorrect on the App would not be a welcoming. Check Mass and confession times often if they tend to change seasonally, and be sure to update.

Buttons – Buttons on the App help parishioners find the subject they are looking for, i.e., prayers, rosary, groups, etc. Are there too many unused buttons, or think you would like a new one? We are here to help with anything you want to add or delete. Email Marc for assistance and suggestions.

Volunteers or Part Time Staff – As an admin, we know how difficult it is to stay on top of these technical tasks with all the other daily to-dos. Maybe you’ve had offers from parishioners to volunteer for something. This could be a volunteer project for someone. Not being interupted by others, as staff often is, this would be the perfect project for them. The same for students, high school and college, if they have a little free time and want to work on something worthwhile for their church this should still allow them time for a summer or part time  job.

If you have any questions, simply reach out to Marc or Dana at Diocesan.

Catholic life every day

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.