Check your church voice mail today

(Posted by Linda Lovell)

Here's a question for all good Lutherans today: What's currently on your church answering machine or voice mail system? Today is a good time to call (once the church office closes) and listen. Try to listen as if you were someone planning to visit for the first time. Here are some questions to ask yourself as you listen.

+ Does the message include the church name, location and website address?
+ Is the message presented slowly enough that someone could write down information?
+ Is the information about worship services and events current?
+ Is the message clear, concise and friendly?
+ What overall impression of the congregation was created by your encounter with the voice mail system/answering machine? Is that the impression you want to convey?
+ How could your answering machine encounter have been improved?

A true, cautionary tale about church answering machines: Once upon a Saturday, Lutherans visiting from another state called a congregation and listened carefully to the phone message, which listed several worship opportunities. The next day, the visitors showed up at one of the appointed hours only to discover that the service they selected had been cancelled for the summer.

Make that call today, folks! As you saw in the story above, people do listen to what's on the church voice mail/answering machine and assume that the info is accurate. Keep your info current, especially as Advent progresses. Once you've advertised an event in the local newspaper, be sure that your answering machine message reflects that event information.