Creative

The Bulletin

The purpose of the bulletin is to:

  • Support the all-church vision and reinforce core values.
  • Provide guests with information that will make their visit to City First Church more relaxed.
  • Give guests relevant information about City First Church and how to take the next steps beyond the auditorium.
  • Provide outreach knowledge and tools for City First Church attendees. (i.e., information on outreach events, inserts or invites that can be given to friends.
  • Provide insider information “at a glance” and direct to cityfirst.church for more details (if applicable).

The purpose of this bulletin is not to:

  • Be the events calendar for City First Church.
  • Be internally focused on attendees.
  • Provide reading material during communion.

Bulletin Requirements

Bulletin submissions must meet certain criteria to be accepted:

  • Submissions should be entered on time.
  • Submissions should announce a specific event or announcement. General announcements (i.e.,“ Stay tuned for upcoming classes”) will not be included in the bulletin. Submissions should not be repetitive. In an effort to keep the bulletin fresh, reoccurring submissions will not be announced week after week.
  • Submissions must have a call to action, i.e., every submission must tell the reader what to do next. If a submission is about registration for a class, encourage the reader to sign-up online or at the Information Center.

Planning for Announcements

To keep the bulletin fresh, the same event announcements cannot be printed over and over. How many times an announcement can be run in the bulletin depends upon the type of event. Below are some guidelines for the number of times an announcement may appear in the bulletin.

A Event: 4-5 announcements (with possible spotlight).
B Event: 2-3 announcements
C Event: 0-2 announcements

Please note that guidelines may flex due to:

  • Importance of the event (event tier)
  • Target of the event
  • Bulletin space (some weeks may have more room than others)

Since the number of announcements for an event is limited, ministries should plan the dates wisely. For example, a “B” event may want to run their announcements five weeks ahead, two weeks ahead, and the week before the event. Be careful not to run all of your announcements too far ahead and then request additional announcements right before the event. Due to limited space and/or the need to keep the program fresh, requests may not be approved.

Writing for the Bulletin

Normal Bulletin Announcement Guidelines:

  • 200-300 characters total
  • Require ministry e-mail, not a personal email
  • Require website reference when available

Keep your readers in mind when writing for the bulletin and remember that you are competing for their time. Look at the information through the eyes of your target, and make sure you answer these questions:

  • Who: Who’s coming or who’s invited?
  • What: What’s going on (include details of the event, e.g., cost, attire, etc.)
  • When: Date and time
  • Where: Place (on or off campus)
  • Why: What value will I receive from participating?
  • Call to action: The next step to getting involved

Keep these points in mind as well:

  • Assume your reader knows very little about your ministry/event:
  • Spell out abbreviations the first time you use them.
    • Define ministry names the first time you use them.
      • Example: Akolooland by itself doesn’t mean anything to a visitor. Say “Akolooland- A City First Church Kid’s Ministry for birth-5 years old.
  • Titles matter – pull your reader into your announcement.
  • Be creative and funny if appropriate.
  • Don’t use too many clichés or buzz words.
  • Mix it up a little – change your announcement from week-to-week to keep it interesting.

Examples:

Boring: Join us for our Car, Truck, and Motorcycle Show. Sign up at the Information Center and get involved today.

Exciting: Our Annual Car, Truck and Motorcycle Show is only two weeks away! We need your help to make this event an amazing experience for the thousands of guests that will participate! Register online at cityfirst.church!

Please see Appendix A: Bulletin Conventions, Grammar, and Spelling Guidelines, and Common Mistakes for additional writing guidelines.