One of the simplest ways to build brand consistency and recognition is to ensure that all of your social media outlets have the same logo and design set for your profile and cover images. I come across this regularly, where churches and organizations have random images for each of their various pages and accounts. This is understandable because most churches rely on volunteers to manage their social media accounts.
PERFORM AN AUDIT
I encourage you to take a few minutes today and simply visit your social media accounts:
- Snap Chat
- Google My Business
Take note of the various profile images and cover photos. Are they the same? Are they all different? Are they reinforcing and supporting your churches brand?
MIKE’S DO’S & DONT’S FOR CHURCH SOCIAL MEDIA BRANDING
1) DO Make your profile picture your organizations Brand Mark/Logo. DON’T use a picture of your church services or even worse, your pastor as your profile picture
People are looking through hundreds if not thousands of profiles weekly. Using your official brand as your profile image is paramount for brand consistency and letting people searing online who you are. I am sure your gatherings look incredible, and sharing these images online is a good and powerful thing. I recommend posting pictures of your gatherings weekly if possible, however, put them in a post or an album, not as your profile picture. Then there are the most egregious offenders (in my opinion). Churches that use photos of their pastor(s) as a profile picture. This may seem ridiculous to you, but believe me, I have seen this before. This sends an entirely wrong message and is well… unbelievably cheesy. If your pastor has a teaching ministry, I recommend setting up a brand completely separate from the church/organizations brand. Here you will have more play and liberty to promote a single individual or couple.
2) DO change elements that surround your logo (colours, backgrounds) frequently. DON’T use your series graphic as your profile picture.
Series graphics work great for cover images, but you have to remember that the vast (and I mean VAST) majority of people looking at/for your social media accounts have no idea what your latest series is. I strongly recommend not using series graphics as profile images. Rather, keep your logo and add elements such as colours and backgrounds that tie in your series to the profile image. This reinforces your brands and lets people know who you are.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Social Media Prep Kit
Click the “Free Download” button above to download our Social Media Prep Kit. It is a photoshop file that is correctly sized for you to make profile images and cover photos for your social media accounts. They are set up as multiple art boards on a single screen so as you make them you can see that your profile and cover images have consistency.
If you need any help creating a plan, rebranding or implementing an existing brand, feel free to give us a call anytime! We would love to set up a free 1-hour consultation to explore your needs and share ideas.