In today’s digital age, the power of digital strategies to impact society and drive meaningful change cannot be underestimated. And digital is not just for “techies.” We have seen great success by harnessing the influence of social media influencers.
My team recently partnered with one of the largest denominations in Ethiopia. They have 12 million members in Ethiopia and 205 churches in the capital city of Addis Ababa. The denomination approached our team with the goal of mobilizing and spreading the message of love and hope
To that end, we launched a 10-day digital mission campaign called I Am a Witness. We invited 50 Christian influencers to take part in the campaign. The influencers all played a part in creating the content, which people then shared on their platforms.
In this digital era, trust is a valuable commodity we exchange to capture people’s attention.
In this digital era, trust is a valuable commodity we exchange to capture people’s attention. Each of these social media influencers has built a following from people who have come to trust them and their content. We estimated that, based on the following of each influencer, we could see up to one million people view our gospel campaigns. But God did even more than that. By forming partnerships with influencers from diverse niches, we witnessed a remarkable amplification of our gospel. Our gospel campaign has achieved an unprecedented reach, generating millions of impressions and sparking conversations among people from different walks of life. This success serves as a testament to the immense potential of social media influencers to ignite real-world impact.
Over 1.7 million people saw our content over the course, with more than 41,000 interactions. Of those who interacted with the content, 1,700 individuals have connected with online mentors, who are walking with them on their spiritual journeys.
We have gained invaluable insights that we believe can guide and uplift other followers of Christ who want to share the gospel on social media:
1. The Power of Authenticity:
Influencers who genuinely connect with our sacred cause and carry forth the eternal message of God have proven to have the most impact in uniting their followers and fostering engagement. Our purpose is not to simply utilize these messengers of faith for our campaign, but to invite them to join a flourishing community of Christian influencers committed to expanding the boundaries of God’s kingdom. Their influence extends far beyond the promotion of our content or app!
“Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
2. Divine Direction:
Discerning influencers aligned with the divine purpose of our campaign resulted in unmatched resonance and influence. Despite having many followers, other influencers failed to bring about significant impact due to the specific niche audience we were prepared by God to reach. As it is written, “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
3. Collaboration and Co-creation:
Involving influencers in the campaign’s ideation and execution fostered a sense of ownership and passion. This resulted in more effective and organic original content and broader dissemination.
4. Stickiness:
Making your message sticky enough makes your campaign reach more people. The fact that we asked people to share their stories and change their profiles on social media made it a personal campaign.
Our experience serves as a testament to the boundless potential of digital strategies and their impact on a global scale. By embracing innovative approaches and collaborating with influential individuals, we can transcend boundaries, amplify messages and ignite change. Let us come together, for in each of us lies the power to shape a better future.
As the Scriptures say, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-6). With faith and conviction, we shall continue on this righteous journey, guided by the power of our Lord.
Try this
- Use your favorite social media platform to share the gospel. Plan out content for a week, try it, and see what God does.
- Share your results in our Facebook group.