You’ve seen our case for why churches need Instagram. You’ve learned how to set up your profile, the vocabulary used, and the types of post you can try. Now we’re going to discuss HOW your church can use these posts and what types of content you can create with what you have available today.
Traditional posts
You’ll recall that Traditional Posts are the bulk of what you’ll see on Instagram. These are the still images and short videos that you scroll through as you browse your feed. The options are pretty endless, but we’ll share some of our favorite ideas below.
Still Image Post Ideas (These can be single images or Carousels* of multiple images):
- Scriptures
- Bible lessons
- Invitations to church
- Invitations to special events
- Prayer meetings
- Remembering those we love
- Concert invitations
- Photo highlights for events
*Some tips on Carousel posts:
- If you’re going to make a heavily text-based post, consider using a Carousel to convey the information in a friendlier way. Slide or image one would be a question. Slide two would be the answer. Slide three might be relevant scripture to support your answer. Repeat with a new question for slide four and keep going in this pattern.
- Use Carousels as a photo dump for special events. If you have multiple photos of an event or service, put them all in ONE Carousel post so fans can scroll through them like an album. You can upload them individually, of course, but this isn’t the style social media users prefer. By uploading them in one single post, you’re letting fans know that you understand the unspoken rules of Instagram.
Video Post Ideas:
- Give a brief introduction to this week's upcoming sermon
- Answer a question from the previous week's sermon
- Provide a welcome statement from your worship team for an upcoming event
REELS
Reels are your short video clips that people often see when browsing Instagram for fresh ideas. This is a great way to show the personality of your church and gain new followers.
Reel Ideas:
- Motion background quote reel
- Brief introductions to pastors, church members, volunteers, etc.
- Lists or educational content
- Short introductions to books of the Bible
- Story time (adult and youth!)
- Sharing powerful testimonies
- Short clips showcasing a church event
- Devotional material
- Sermon clips
Stories
Stories are only shown for 24 hours, so this is content that has a very short shelf-life. Don’t let this stop you from making stories: due to their short lifespan, people view them as “exclusive” and keep coming back for more.
Stories Ideas:
- Countdown to church or special event
- Quote from a sermon
- Worship set list
- Volunteer spotlight
- Recommended reading list
- Prayer requests
- Event announcement
- Bible study reminder
- Scripture images (people like to take a screenshot and use them as phone backgrounds)
- Asking for donations
Highlights
Remember: Highlights are just previously posted Stories that you want to save. Be sure to come up with clear Highlight categories and then feature your best content within these categories. An example might be, “Youth Group Mission Summer 2023,” and all your stories involving that trip will be filed under that Highlights folder. People can then rewatch and learn more about your church.
Highlights Ideas:
- Books (content featuring any books or print materials you like to use)
- Quotes
- Scriptures
- Inspirational memes
- Events
- Pastor profiles
- Sermon series
- Outreach efforts or programs
- Announcements (important information about your church)
- Holidays
- Your congregation (volunteer spotlights, get to know our members, testimonials)
instagram live
Going Live is when you film yourself live (often called a live stream) and engage with followers as their questions and comments come. Church leadership can do it from the pulpit (or anywhere!) and members can do it from the pews – the possibilities are broad. You can even go live during special events or outreach work.
Go Live Ideas:
- Start by collecting questions from your followers via Stories or comments on your posts, then respond to all of those questions during a live stream.
- Give an invitation to church and feature the topic of the sermon. Bonus points for sharing “behind the scenes” as you prep for the upcoming worship session.
- Go live for a quick praise story or update.
- Emergency prayer requests: Live allows you to get the request featured immediately without having to create or edit any posts.
- Give a live clip of church services featuring the praise and worship or clips of the pastor speaking.
Wrapping up
You’ve got some ideas now, right? Your next step is to highlight the ones that you can easily put together now. List out those post types and what kind of content you’ll feature. In our next article, “Instagram Strategy for Churches,” we’ll show you how to create that content, get it scheduled, and measure your impact.
Rethinking Evangelism®
Our team is passionate about helping churches grow. Our blog talks about ways to build and reinforce your community’s gut feelings about your church – so be sure to follow along for more tips, tricks, and advice. Subscribe so you don’t miss out!
If Instagram is something you’re interested in, but you don’t have the capacity to take this on yourself, we’re happy to work directly with your church. Simply contact us to start the conversation.