How to Improve Church Announcements from Stage

As church leaders, our role is to help attenders take the next step in their relationship with Christ. One of the most effective ways to connect with everyone in attendance is through church announcements on stage—or, more appropriately—”casting vision” from stage.

And, when huge events like Christmas or Easter are coming up, it’s even more crucial to be at the top of your communication game.

One of the ways we practice public communication here at Life.Church is through stage time drills.

During stage time drills, our leaders practice their communication piece for the weekend on stage—in our context, it’s usually a three minute piece. Then, their peers provide helpful feedback to make the communication more polished and effective.

Why Do Stage Time Drills?

Watch our full stage time drills training series to see stage time drills in action, and see the tips below for areas where we really focus our feedback so you can learn to improve your own stage presence.

How to Improve Church Announcements from Stage

1. Pace and Body Language

The words you say are important, but how you deliver them is equally important. Are you communicating something exciting? Your face and your tone should match the expression you’re hoping to impart. Are you going very vulnerable and hoping to draw the listener in? Lower your voice and add a pause.

“A well-timed pause is just as important as a well-crafted statement.”

Engaging people isn’t just about finding the right pace. Instead, it’s about varying your pace at the right times. There’s no such thing as fast unless there’s slow. Keep the audience in tune with your flow by ramping up when generating excitement and slowing down to invoke poignance.

Likewise, the audience will hear what you’re saying, but they will also see it through your body language. When providing feedback, encourage body language that matches the pace and pauses. If a particular point feels rushed, for example, have the communicator try pulling up a stool to the front of the stage and taking a seat. This will key-in the audience that something significant is about to be said.

2. Clarity

Simple, straightforward communication creates clarity. When too many storylines or options are presented, clarity is lost, which results in your attenders not taking action. The same is true if not enough detail is given.

If you encourage people to fill out a first-time attender card, make sure they know what to do with it. Or when directing people where to find information about small groups, don’t simply say, “Visit the lobby after the service.” Specify that they should go to the north side of the lobby and find the leaders in the green T-shirts.

Stage time drills are a great place to help your speaker iron out details that enhance clarity. Be sure to listen for insider language that a new attender or new Christian wouldn’t understand and encourage the speaker to come up with more universal language.

3. Authenticity

It’s helpful to watch and learn from great communicators, but the best way to improve your church announcements is to find your unique perspective and voice.  Finding your own communication style is not only going to make you seem more authentic, it’s also going to make you feel more comfortable.

When watching a peer practice, pay attention to whether their spirit and personality is shining through their words and stage presence. As a communicator, you don’t want people to feel like you’re a different person on stage from who you are in the lobby.

 

If you’ve never tried it, gather your staff for a session of stage time drills. The more effective you become at casting vision and leading people to action, the more effectively you’ll lead people to Christ!