Does Your Community Have patch.com?
If so, use it!
Patch.com is an innovative news source, operated by AOL (America OnLine), headquartered in New York, but very specifically neighborhood-based.
Here is their corporate site explaining their philosophy and introducing their key officials.
Note their “mission” list (to use church terminology).
Patch.com allows people in their neighborhoods to:
- Keep up with news and events
- Check out photos and videos from around town
- Learn more about local businesses and the people behind them
- Participate in discussions
- Share your perspectives via our Local Voices blogging platform
- Submit your own announcements, photos, and reviews
Go to patch.com. You will see a box asking you to identify your state. Once you submit your state, a list of neighborhoods with their own Patch comes up. See if your neighborhood has a Patch. Large cities will have neighborhood-specific sites. Smaller towns might have their own Patch or be linked with a nearby town or township.
Patch is the most accessible news source for churches and charities. You can submit your events to a neighborhood calendar. You can post your news stories, photos, and even videos. You can start your own patch blog and comment on things that are going on in your neighborhood from your congregation’s point of view. You can respond to dialog on neighborhood topics. You can publicize your response to local needs. You can find out about your neighborhood schools and businesses. You can reach your neighborhoods EVERY DAY!
If your neighborhood has a patch.com, you are no longer beholding to the daily or weekly print media that must pick and choose news to fit their publishing budget and space. This is GOOD NEWS for every church. You don’t have to be mindful of deadlines a week in advance!
Use it wisely! Remember social media works best when we emphasize others. You can write about yourself, but don’t upload all your photos from the last pot luck dinner. Choose one good photo from an event that impacts the community and write a newsy caption. Take 30-second videos from participants in worthy events (charity runs, neighborhood projects). Your time on Patch will be best spent responding to what others publish. Using patch.com will help churches better understand and serve their communities.