Running an online course: your say
We recently surveyed you about your experience of online evangelism using CEM materials over the lockdown period.
Thank you so much to everyone who responded. We wanted to share some of the results with you, and answer some common questions that were raised in the comments.
Some observations
At least 300 churches in the UK told us they have run a CEM course online over the last few months.
Based on your comments, we noticed a few trends.
It was humbling to be reminded that not all churches are in a position to run an online course and that, for many, church life has been extremely challenging. Almost a third of you found that due to lack of uptake, manpower or technology, on top of the stress of moving church services online, running a course during this time was not feasible.
With those who did run a course, you found that relationships can be harder to cultivate online, and you felt the absence of the shared meal, body language cues and 121 conversations.
However, many respondents shared the view that online courses serve an audience that otherwise would not be inclined or able to attend an evangelistic course - those who wouldn’t want to go to a church building, parents who would struggle with childcare, those who would have to travel, friends and family who live further away, people who prefer an element of anonymity.
In general, you found there were similar numbers at online courses to in-person courses before lockdown. However, several churches saw a sharp increase in attendance for their online courses, and many commented on more consistent attendance online.
For these reasons, 70% of survey respondents said that they are keen to continue offering an online version of their courses in the future as a normal part of their outreach.
Responding to your queries
Will we still be able to watch and share the videos when they are no longer available on Youtube (after 31 August)?
Yes, you can access all of our videos to watch and share on our Leader’s Area. You can click through to the sessions from the Leader’s Area landing pages:
You can’t share the link to the landing page (as log-in is required), but you can share the links to the individual pages that host the films.
Do you have any training for running a course online?
We published a range of blogs and videos to help you take your courses online:
View all Covid-19 related articles and webinars
Are online versions of the course materials available (guest handbooks and leader’s guides)?
You can buy PDF/eBook versions of the materials from The Good Book Company website
Simply click into the resource you want a PDF for, and choose the eBook version. Please note these are single user licenses.
Do you have any promotional videos we can use to advertise our online courses?
Yes!
You can download course trailers from our Leader’s Area.
Ninefootone are able to tailor this advert they created for Christ Church Fulwood for your church for £50-60 plus VAT depending on the personalisation you need. Email Jon for more information about this: jon@ninefootone.co.uk
GoChatter have custom trailers for Life Explored set up on their site, which you can personalise for £5.
Will you be updating the Christianity Explored films soon?
We refresh each of our resources regularly, and have already started to look at the next iteration of Christianity Explored.
We’d find a three or four week version of Christianity Explored very useful.
We’re currently working on a three-week evangelistic course called Hope Explored, based in Luke’s Gospel. Watch this space.