The Key to Digital Connections
by Yoram Samets

The speed with which communications has changed is almost beyond comprehension. If we just look at the last 100 years, we see a steady rise in the ways in which we are communicating with one another. I for one look back with nostalgia at the simplicity of the past. Even the word we use for communicating with one another is now being described as connecting.  

Still, at the core of our connections strategies for synagogues, we find a strategy that is reminiscent of the way we used to communicate at the grocery store, the kitchen table, or at shul on Shabbos. In fact, we have come full circle with our communications. Over the last 50 years, I believe we've gone from a one-to-one communications strategy to a less personal “push” communication strategy (think TV commercials, or even your synagogue newsletter) and back again. The tools we are using may have changed, but the goal of reaching each other on a personal level to enhance community involvement hasn't.

More sophisticated technology has enabled us to reach hundreds (or thousands) of “friends” and effectively communicate -- one to one -- with the click of the button. As we live this increased personalization, we are becoming more and more select with those we are letting through our gated message barriers -- our phone, our computer, our iPad, etc.  

Synagogues and other Jewish organizations have an advantage over many other "personal" messages we get. By and large, a synagogue connects with a group of people who have opted in, making them predisposed to their messages. The challenge for synagogues is to make sure the communication is relevant and has a mechanism to create further engagement or action.

For most synagogues, their primary communication/connection tools are a printed newsletter, an email newsletter, a website, and Facebook. One of the biggest challenges a synagogue faces is using these four tools generically. Take the email newsletter for example, most still list every event and every holiday in a very linear fashion. They are communicating from their perspective, not from their members’ perspective.  

How would a parent of a religious school student be captured by your email newsletter, or one of your elder congregants, etc? The complexity of membership and membership needs should be reflected in all your communications. For example, change your email newsletter to open with a variety of featured content that is relevant to your different members, and let them find the full content -- preferably on your website -- that links directly to an online event registration or donation form. The same holds true for your website. Mix it up. Put fresh content on daily (or at least, weekly). Drive that content out to a segmented group of your membership, and then link them back to your website.

Successful communication has always been about content -- the right content reaching the right people at the right time. The more you make your content relevant to your audience, both online and off, the more likely they are to respond. If you think about it, things haven’t changed all that much after all.