What objectives should a church have in using social technologies and social networking sites?

[James Nored]

Charlene Li, author of Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies, gives five primary objectives that successful companies have pursued in using social technologies:
1) listening to customers;

2) talking and spreading a company’s message;

3) energizing their customers;

4) helping customers support one another; and

5) embracing customers by inviting them into the company’s design process.

Social technologies are technologies like Blogging, Facebook, Twitter, the Missional Outreach Network - basically, interactive technologies that can spread through social networks.

As churches learn to use social technologies, which of these five objectives do you think is most important for them to concentrate on? And who are their "customers"--members or non-Christians?

[Nell Green]

I would say probably number 2, I base that simply on the fact that Jesus himself announced the good news and the kingdom of God. But the others are important as well and probably more the reason I use twitter for example.

[James Nored]

Nell, I appreciate you choosing number 2, "talking and spreading a company's message." Certainly social media is being used by Christians to support one another. I have gained tremendous support, knowledge, and insight from fellow Christians on social media.

But it may be easy to stay in this support mode, and not directly engage our "customers" (those who are seeking) or spread the message about Jesus. We need to do a better job of directly engaging non-Christians through social media.

[Mike Ellis]

The "customers" of the church is everyone outside the walls of the church. The church, at least in my area of Daytona Beach, FL, has totally missed the ball when it comes to using the power of Twitter. Very few are on twitter. If they are on Twitter they are doing it wrong. If they are on Twitter, they are NOT WATCHING, LISTENING AND ENGAGING. Twitter for some churches has become nothing more than a broadcast medium to share the pastor's latest podcast or Sunday's bulletin. Before any worship pastor is allowed on Twitter they should sign a document that makes them promise NOT to share anything about their new guitar strings or I-Phone. Church Tweets should never be about "me, me, me". They should be about looking for the hurting, following, connecting and engaging with them.