Church Communications Handbook: A Complete Guide to Developing a Strategy Using Technology Writing Effectively Reaching the Unchurched

Rating:
Summary: It's filled with splendid ideas and suggestions.
Review: Although this paperback has a modest price, its 300 pages add up to a valuable resource -- a pearl of great value -- for ministers, staff members, and other persons with varied leadership roles in local churches. The book shows how to develop an overall plan and provides ample examples of ways farsighted churches are communicating effectively with their members and ways they are reaching the unchurched. It gives solid advice on advertising, media relations, and use of websites, e-mail and other offspring of electronic technology. Contributing to the five-star quality of this book are its checklists and forms to keep track of progress.

Rating:
Summary: Computers/Internet coverage a disappointment
Review: This review will seem unnecessarily critical, but I want to do what I can to help churches avoid wasting money -- there are too many folks with no scruples about charging a church whatever they will pay. I do some pro bono computer consulting for my parish (Trinity, Lime Rock, CT), and bought this book in hopes it would get me current with specific uses churches were making of the Internet. Sad to say, the book's coverage of computers and the Internet was minimal. The chapter entitled "Computers -- An Effective Tool in Ministry" covered pages 203 - 210 inclusive -- out of a total of 287 pages. Of these seven pages, two were glossary. Although I did like one metaphor -- "E-mail is the FAX machine of the '90s" -- and will probably use it elsewhere in my practice -- there was little other information of use to me. I noted a piece of misinformation. On page 204, the average cost to have a web site hosted was identified as $100 - $150 per month. Last evening, while looking for web hosting for a commercial client of mine, I found at least 50 companies who would host a site of some sophistication for $10 or less per month. Indeed, I found very few that charged more than $75 per month! I also noted the description of the church with its own server and eight modems (each with a phone line) to accomodate an on-line prayer circle. While this may have been both innovative and cost-effective when set up, the same functionality (on-line conferencing) is available today via any of the "Instant Messenger" services on the Internet for FREE -- no server, no modem pool, only the Internet connection for each participant. To move away from defects, I suspect this book will be of much use to people involved otherwise in church communications. Even the short chapter on computers may be of some use in introducing a non-computer-literate rector or pastor to computers and the Internet in a non-threatening context. But be aware: computer/Internet costs can be FAR lower than the book suggests. And, if you're already computer-literate and looking for specifics on how to apply computers and the Internet to communications in your parish, you can safely drop the price of this book in the collection plate instead of buying the book.