Pexels.com
How does the media landscape you help create enhance what a pastor is preaching? That's a designer's ultimate job when designing technology-heavy worship spaces.
It's not about creating a Christian-style rock concert (that may appeal to Boomers, but not to Millennials or GenZ, our expert sources report in the links provided below). The current church media landscape is about getting people to actively engage and connect, not passively watch a stage performance or speaker.
But with their own devices in their hands, are people inside and outside the church really paying attention?
Church.Design culled excerpts from a November 2018 interview with a seasoned church production director and journalist, Justin Firesheets, with Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Ala., to get his thoughts. Here's what Firesheets reports.
I think [the current media landscape] helps with retention, honestly. Instead of just listening to a pastor, now I can look on screen and see the points and verses, which makes it easier to write down and retain. Many churches then use social media to post snippets or snapshots of the weekend message throughout the week, helping their congregants stay engaged with key themes.
In our society, people now learn mostly on demand. When they have questions or need something, they Google or YouTube it. Everything is available in an instant, at your fingertips.
In our society, people now learn mostly on demand. When they have questions or need something, they Google or YouTube it. Everything is available in an instant, at your fingertips.
If you’re a pastor, you have to see this need and desire--and ensure that your ministry is making things just as readily available. If people can’t find something quickly or easily, they’ll often give up and move on to something else they deem more worth their time.
We just have to keep people engaged long enough for them to realize the power of the message.
... people live in an “on demand” culture, and churches owe it to themselves to deliver to the congregant a high quality experience at the click of a button....
[To sum up,] people live in an “on demand” culture, and churches owe it to themselves to deliver to the congregant a high quality experience at the click of a button; a sound system that is clean and intelligible, video technology that creates excitement, and an overall experience that is attractive and compelling.
The ability to capture audio and video enables the church to share programs that people cannot attend. The church must have a way to archive programs online, expanding the audience and enhancing spiritual discourse.
Find related reports here:
Design to Attract Millennials (https://church.design/cover_stories/design-to-attract-millennials/)
What Church Designers Need to Understand About Millennials and GenZ (https://church.design/cover_stories/what-church-designers-need-to-know-about-the-impact-of-mille/)
