2. Bad Production
In addition to sub-par music, many churches settle for bad production…poor sound, poor lighting and a mediocre team running it all.
Often this is a case of trying to do too much.
You’re better off to have a few good tech things (like a great set of speakers or a few good lights) than to try to do many things poorly. Most churches overshoot their ability here, trying to get as much as possible for very little money.
When faced with limited resources (and we ALL have limited resources) investing in a few quality pieces always beats buying a lot of cheap pieces.
It’s also important to find people who know how to run what you’ve bought, or even to invest a little in bringing in an expert who can train your team on how to run it. Having a decent soundboard and excellent speakers don’t help much if your team has no idea how to run it.
When it comes to production, doing a few things well always beats doing many things poorly.
3. School Play Quality Live Streams
It’s great to see many churches go online…and many churches big and small are now streaming their services.
It’s so easy to do with Facebook Live, other streaming services and a simple camera.
But as you go online, ask yourself: Would you watch you?
Honestly, I’ll bet the answer a lot of the time is no.
Many churches suffer from what I call ‘school play’ syndrome. Their services look like an elementary school play. Not great lighting, not great production, not great sound and a lot of sincere people who really don’t know what they’re doing.
Let’s be honest. The ONLY reason you watch a school play is because your kid is in it. And the number one question you’re asking the entire time is “when will this be over?”
So question: If your church service looks like a school play online, why are you broadcasting it?
If you’re going to be online, audio and video quality matter.
Again, you don’t need a six or seven figure solution here to make it better. Making sure your online sound is captured through a good set of mics and mixer, a few well-placed lights and a decent camera will help immensely.
If you can’t get to the point where you can broadcast the music with decent quality, maybe just broadcast the message.
The question worth asking is: Am I helping people come to Christ by sharing this, or am I keeping people from Christ by sharing this?
Maybe ask a few unchurched people who will tell you the truth to evaluate your stream.
And don’t get discouraged, you may be a few tweaks or simple purchases away from being school-play quality.
All of this should help you accomplish the mission, not hinder the mission. And I’m just not sure school play quality broadcasts help much in most cases.
