Getting Started Online - training for churches

Getting Started Online is a new course from the Methodist Church exploring our place in the digital world and is designed to help churches and communities begin using online tools and platforms as a place for mission while building confidence in individuals. It’s made up of 24 short videos with some activities to help you respond and reflect on your experiences and plan for how you can make use of the online world. We are excited about the opportunity that the online world provides for us as a Church seeking to grow and reach out to all people. The digital world is a mission-field like any other and we are looking forward to discovering more about it with you over these sessions.

1. Exploring our place on the internet
2. The digital human
3. Doing digital evangelism
4. Developing a digital strategy
5. An Introduction to social media
6. Why should you claim your place online?
7. Who are we online?
8. Who should you be talking to online?
9. Encouraging engagement - comments, likes, shares and follows
10. Doing a few things well
11. Community versus content
12. Scheduling - building a content plan
13. Roles and responsibilities - building a digital team
14. Engagement and analytics
15. Branding, visual identity and design
16. How to take and use good photos
17. Policies and procedures - building a safe and trusting place online
18. Getting started with a Facebook Page
19. Getting started with a Facebook Group
20. Getting started with Instagram
21. Getting started with Twitter
22. Getting started with WhatsApp
23. Getting started with YouTube
24. Getting started with Canva

If you're interested in any of these topics it is free to take the course so please click 'Enrol' for it to be added to your dashboard. You can work through the whole course or just complete the sections that most interest you at this point in your ministries. You will be able to come back to the course at any time. Once enrolled you will be able to watch the videos, follow links, and deepen your own learning or learn together alongside colleagues or as a circuit. The individual training videos from the course can be viewed with BSL translation. See the BSL Getting Started Online YouTube playlist here.  The entire course will be available with BSL translation shortly. You can also join our Facebook Group Getting Started Online which is designed for those of you who want to learn more and deepen your skills. It’s a safe place for conversation and questions, especially if the digital world is not your natural home and you’re not sure how or where to start! Website: https://www.methodist.org.uk/GettingStartedOnline