PROMOTIONAL AND ANNOUNCEMENT IDEAS FOR YOUTH MINISTRY
By: Bill Goetz
Through experience in several different churches, we have discovered that basic to an effective youth publicity program is planning over a period of time –at east a quarter. “Spur-of-the-moment’ publicity is
seldom as effective as when it is part of a creative projected plan.
Follow these pre-requisites: Appoint a responsible individual who knows his job. He should consider carefully different methods of publicity, and select those which would be feasible for your group.
Consider these publicity methods: Telephone brigade, special announcements in youth meetings and church, a program of direct mail, a youth newspaper, printed or mimeographed handout items, local
newspaper releases, radio, a special youth fellowship bulletin board or kiosk, poster and other contests.
In a planned publicity program these specific ideas have proved helpful:
Planned interruption announcement. Have two young people prepare to spend several minutes discussing the announcement in an informal conversational way. All the pertinent information on time, place, and
date should be woven into their conversation. During the regular announcement time in your meeting these two should “unexpectedly” walk to the front of the room and break in on the master of ceremonies with their announcement-conversation.
Newsboy. Improvise a newspaper by using a local news sheet and pasting several accounts of the announcement, written in journalistic style, in several spots throughout the paper.
Equip on of the teens with a canvas newsboy’s bag, a cap, a quantity of papers and the special copy. He may enter during announcement time, declaring that he has noticed an item about the group in the paper. He
reads it loudly. After this outburst, he “discovers” a second item which he insists upon reading aloud. A third news release may be read if desired before he is ushered out.
Radio broadcast. The use of a tape recorder and a bit of imagination can lead to an effective announcement. One fellow may record a humorous commercial. This is followed by a second voice: “Now for our news with a difference. Through the amazing worldwide facilities of Radio Youth Fellowship we bring you the news BEFORE IT HAPPENS.” The announcement, in newscaster style, follows.
Poetry. Ask the group poet to put a special announcement into verse form. For a unique announcement embellish it with some background music and an effective rendition.
“Roadside” signs. Letter a line or portion of your announcement (in Burma-Shave fashion) on three or four placards which are then posted at intervals on the way to your meeting room.
“Protest” march. Put the announcement on a number of large placards, staple them to sticks and let a number of the teens march around the room carrying these during announcement time.
Town crier. Ask a teen with a bell to enter the meeting at several appropriate times. He may cry out, “Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye! An announcement will be made here in ____________ minutes.” His final
entry should be to say, “Hear ye! Here’s that announcement you’ve all been waiting to hear.”
Newspaper and radio. Don’t hesitate to send news releases on special events to local newspapers and radio stations. Your items may not be used every time, but often the news media are looking for news of keen
young people. Very often items have been published and broadcast which would never have received notice had they not been taken or sent to the proper place. Note, however, that only really newsworthy items
should be used in such attempts at wider publicity.
A combination of several methods of publicity for extra special events is effective. Handout items, a mail release and a telephone canvass, for example, could be combined in a cone-week effort. We have discovered that in a combination like this it is important that the two or three items be different, and not just a three-fold duplication of a single announcement. A workable idea is to have each publicity item add some new piece of information.
The possibilities of publicizing a youth group are nearly endless. The important thing is to plan which schemes you will utilize and then follow through on your plan.
(The source for the above material is unknown.)
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