Back on August 19, the ChSocM chat topics were centered around the rising use of videos on social media and websites, and during gatherings. Here are the questions that guided that conversation

Q1: Why should we use video in social media?

Q2: What’s a way you’ve seen video work really well in various ministry settings?

Q3: Where have you found good video for #ChSocM purposes? 

Q4: For those who’ve created videos - any learnings, tips, tricks?

      Q4A: How about good software/apps for managing and editing video?

Q5: Quick. Name a biblical story that could work really well (not corny) through the medium of video.

In response to Q1, the social cues and statistical evidence for using video are quite compelling.

• We upload 100 hours of video to YouTube every minute, and watch 6 billion hours of video monthly just on that platform
• Visual content is posted more, and shared more, that any other type of content. http://www.socialmediaexa ... -research/
• Pinterest, Vine, and Instagram (three new fast-growing entries into SM that focus on visual content) all allow posting of videos. Vine is video only (albeit, each video is limited to 6 seconds)

Are those reason enough to foray into video for your ministry? Consider these points from traditional media studies continue reading ...

"It wasn't like this when I was growing up."

Times change - instead of a single phone wired to the wall, we each now have cell phones. Instead of walking over to the television to change the channel or adjust the antenna, we use remote controls and cable TV. Our cars can give us directions without us having to figure out how to fold the map back up again or which way is north. Instead of going to a movie theater or drive-in, we queue up movies on Netflix and Hulu to watch on multiple  devices. Instead of handwriting letters, we type out emails or tap out text messages.

The point in our life we get introduced to new technologies greatly impacts our reaction to them and our adoption of them, as does who introduces them to us and how. When is a phone not a phone? When it's a 'smart' phone in the hands of a digital native. When is a smart phone just a phone? In the hands of a digital refugee. It's not the technology, it's our view and use of technology.

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Are you using email to communicate with your audience? You probably should be. One of the most effective ways of communicating with a group of people is with an email list, even in today's Twitter and Facebook culture. In order for your list to be effective, it first needs to exist, and then you'd like for it to grow. Just how do you let people know about it and get more email subscribers?

Typically, you'll have a sign up form somewhere on your website, possibly on your Facebook page and you might get some referrals from current subscribers. In order to get more attention for their email list, there are plenty of folks employing pop-ups and overlays to get people to sign up for their list. You may even already subscribe to this site's email updates, but you get the pop-up, just the same. I'm not sure this method is the best way to do that.

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Saturday is the one day I don't have anything else dictating my schedule: Monday through Friday is dominated with work, Sunday is dedicated to church and family. On Saturdays, I tend to spend a lot of time sifting through all the social media updates for the past week. I don't look at volume, or engagement, or other metrics commonly used. Instead, I look at the posts and how they relate to the stated mission of the account (the bio should reflect this). I also look at what hasn't been posted - what is missing?

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I have had several conversations with a friend of mine about the practice of silence (kind of ironic, right?) The practice of silence, as it relates to our digital lives, came more to the forefront as we dug deeper.

As communicators, we often fret over our next post - what will we say next? If you've disciplined yourself, you probably have developed an editorial calendar to keep track of upcoming events, deadlines and who will write the pieces.

We also get trapped into treating our online communication channels as soapboxes and stages to cast our net even farther, which heightens our anxiety over silence. Some have such an anxiety over silence, they begin to talking over other people. Pretty soon, they're the only ones talking. And no one is listening.

Do you incorporate silence into your schedule? Not just an absence of items to be written and posted, but scheduled blocks of time for listening.