Your visitors will encounter many things before they choose a seat and listen to your sermon this Easter Sunday. How is your church facility preparing the way for your guests and helping to draw them in? Seeing your facility through the eyes of your guests will help you create a more welcoming environment and give them a reason to return. The following five tips will help you shape a positive guest experience this Easter.
1. Create a Good First Impression Before Guests Even Enter the Building
Before guests enter your building, they’ll need to find it first. Make sure your road signage is clear and well-maintained. You may even want to add additional temporary signage at the street entrance for more visibility. Make sure you have adequate parking available, and think about staffing some parking attendants. Moving cars into the lot efficiently creates a good first impression and shows that you’re prepared to accept guests. Make sure it’s clear where to enter the building, and if the weather’s nice, consider propping the doors open to offer a welcoming vibe.
2. Offer Clear Interior Signage and Wayfinding
As you prepare for Easter, walk your church building and put yourself in your guests’ shoes. How will they maneuver the building as they arrive? Is there clear signage guiding them from point A to point B? Do you plan to have plenty of greeters positioned at key points to direct people to the kid’s check in, the café, the restrooms, and the worship venue? Feeling disoriented in a new space is one of the most uncomfortable things a guest can feel, so make sure you look at your space with new eyes. Provide clear signage and an efficient traffic pattern so people can move around your facility with confidence and have a positive experience.
3. Welcome Guests with an Inviting Lobby Space
Offering a bright, positive environment for newcomers helps them to feel less anxious when they enter your church lobby. Clean up any cluttered spaces, and make sure there are furniture groupings set up in a way that invite connection and communicate, “You belong here.” Sometimes newcomers need a spot to rest to get their bearings, so provide a variety of zones, such as soft lobby seating, café tables, or a quiet family room. Make sure your information desk is within view of the lobby space and staffed with people to assist guests and answer questions.
4. Extend Your Hospitality Outside
Nature plays a huge part in physical and emotional wellbeing, as well as in shaping your church’s culture and ongoing ministry. If you have a patio, open the doors and allow people to move between the indoors and the outdoors. Make sure you have enough patio seating, and try to offer variety—mix café tables with comfortable lounge chairs and couches. Add pots with greenery and colorful flowers. Even the simplest of outdoor spacesgives people a place to relax, enjoy each other’s company, and encounter God in nature.
5. Include a Space to Take the Next Step
People attending your service will be in varying stages of their spiritual walk and may have encountered God in very different ways during the Easter service. Whatever stage they’re in, they’re often left asking, What’s my next step? Make sure there’s a clearly visible action center located in the lobby or near the worship venue. People may be interested in connecting to a small group, learning about ministry programs for their children, or have questions about taking the next step in their faith journey. Make sure your action center is fully stocked with information and staffed with people who are eager to help, and make sure to follow up with guests who share contact information with you.
At Aspen, our mission is creating space for ministry impact. We’re lifting up churches in prayer this Easter, that all who hear the gospel may experience the significance of Christ’s death and resurrection, and the ultimate transforming power of salvation for every person.
This has been a sponsored post by Aspen Group. If your church is looking a building a new facility or reimagining existing space, I cannot recommend Aspen Group enough! Click HERE to start a conversation with them TODAY!
This specific article was written by Greg Snider. Greg joined Aspen Group in 1999 in the role of partnering with churches to discover how to maximize their facilities and create space for ministry impact. He has written and presented on the power of connecting space, building churches for community impact, and the hybrid “phygital” church experience.
