Millennials and Meaningful Experiences

Millennials have a digital worldview. They interact with the world by telling stories across multiple platforms, shaping, molding, and creating. Churches have an opportunity to help millennials find their place in God’s Story when they offer meaningful experiences outside the walls of the institution. 

SacredSpace and CommonPrayer are interactive prayer sites, available all day and everyday, providing Scripture and guidance in prayer and devotional thought. What would it look like if you led your church through 30 Days of Prayer, following along with one of these prayer sites or one of your own design?

“According to eMarketer, personalized customer experiences ranked as the leading marketing priority for 46 percent of worldwide marketing execs in November 2014,” said Mullin. Disney personalizes customer experiences through Magic Bands. Amazon, Facebook, and other retailers track cookies and “personalize” online shopping. 

Personalizing worship experiences is difficult. Some churches wear nametags, which can only serve to make visitors stand out all the more. Churches that have multiple worship services with different musical styles are trying to speak faith in a language where it will be heard. However, these same churches also express a tension felt between those in different services, as the “traditional” service pays the bills for the “contemporary” service. 

Mullin writes, “80 percent of respondents said they prefer brands that ‘do more to interact’ with them over those that ‘just advertise’ to them. With that in mind, there is great potential to increase engagement, foster brand loyalty, and boost donations through customized experiences instead of just asking for money.” 

Here is an idea to try… Create space within the service where individuals can pray, possibly guided by images and Scriptures on the screen, with soft music in the background personalizes the experience. Giving those in the congregation opportunities to write, draw, or create something tangible also personalizes the experience.