Ministry Best Practices in Written Communication

You may be effective with short digital communication channels such as texting and social media posting, but wouldn’t you like to improve your ability and take your written communication skills to a whole new level? You can develop a skillset that will allow you to narrate a story in colorful detail, or to write a persuasive blog, or prepare a permanent document that describes a policy change with clarity.

Written communication has been evolving for the past decade or more. Digital forms such as texting or posting allow us to send brief messages in real time. This has been a transformative development, because we have dramatically decreased communication response times. In doing so, we have increased some efficiencies, yet there is evidence that we have gradually deemphasized the need to write effectively in both new and conventional writing genres. We still need well-written instructional books, scholarly articles, and persuasive blogs to communicate our experience and spread the good news of Jesus.

The curious fact is that fewer people are able to write in a professional, engaging manner. In this digital age, much of what we write is permanent. This makes it even more critical that our people are trained to write effectively and professionally. Your writing now has a paper trail, whether the writing is good or bad.

In this series, we examine the variety of ways that we communicate as church leaders; verbal, non-verbal, and in written form. In this third video, you are encouraged to actively seek to become a better writer. We give you eight best practices in written communication to help you set yourself apart.