Partnering under a shared goal to empower Seventh-day Adventist churches, schools, and ministries to capitalize on the growth opportunities in online ministry, the North American Division (NAD)’s Social Media and Big Data Services department (SMBD) and the Center for Online Evangelism (COE) are distributing Search Engine Optimization as Evangelism: A Guide for Seventh-day Adventist Ministries to denominational organizations worldwide
This one-of a kind resource is a comprehensive digital manual designed to equip ministries to truly “meet people where they are”—online. It can be used as a beginner’s handbook to search engine optimization (SEO), a key facet of digital marketing that focuses on creating or strengthening online content in ways that help it appear more prominently in Google search results for related search terms. SEO as Evangelismis geared toward webmasters, communication directors, social media managers and web content managers that want to tap into the evangelistic potential of online outreach.
According to international research group Internet Live Stats, most of the world spends hours online each day, conducting “over 40,000 Google search queries every second on average.” Many people have become addicted to research, “googling” anything they have questions about. They look for maps and location information, check product reviews, read articles, watch videos, post comments, check in with old friends, and they’ll even ask Google the questions that they don’t feel comfortable asking friends or family.
Specifically, 74,000 people google “Bible study” each month. The name “Jesus” is googled 1,500,000 times per month, and “Adventist” 18,000 times per month.
This internet search behavior reveals a significant ministry opportunity—if Adventist websites can rank higher in the search results Google displays for these search terms, which they currently do not. That is the primary reason this resource was created.
“By being intentional and strategic in this area, we can improve our churches’ digital curb appeal and encourage more people to encounter—and possibly embrace—our message,” said Jamie Domm, Digital Strategist for the North American Division (NAD)’s Social Media and Big Data Services department (SMBD).
The content of SEO as Evangelismis written by the Center for Online Evangelism (COE), a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization of digital marketing professionals that provides industry-level training and resources exclusively to the Adventist church, and edited by the NAD’s SMBD.
“I am excited that COE can provide this resource to help our churches and ministry organizations reach more people throughout the digital mission field,” said Ed Wagner, executive director of the Center for Online Evangelism. “That’s what our organization’s primary initiative, Project Caleb, is all about: Promoting Adventist content so it can be found by the millions of people searching for spiritual content on the internet each day.”
Search Engine Optimization as Evangelismis being released digitally in series form at sdadata.org/seo, and the full PDF version can be requested by contacting Jamie Domm, SMBDS Digital Strategist, atjamiedomm(at)nadadventist.org. The full version will be updated each year, if not more often, due to the ever-evolving nature of the digital marketing industry.