Blog

Connect with Facebook

Signing up for the Table just got easier. Our Facebook integration is finally available. Here's what the Table's new Facebook integration can do for you:

• Sign in using Facebook - When you log in you'll see the ‘Login with Facebook' option. After setting it up you can log in using your Facebook info and not need to remember your Table account info on a regular basis. Yay for fewer usernames and passwords to remember!
• Sign up using Facebook - When you first sign up you can 'Connect with Facebook' and we'll pre-populate your info from Facebook, including your profile pic! This will make signing up faster and easier, plus fewer strangers at the Table.
• Friends - Import your friends! Finding and connecting with your friends on a new social network is always a pain. But now when you connect with Facebook you can auto-friend. We'll find any Facebook friends you have on the Table and automatically connect you as friends. You can also choose to have friends suggested to you and approve them one at a time.
• Import status - You can also import your latest Facebook status to display on your profile (we're no longer limited to just Twitter).

We've always said that the Table doesn't replace Facebook, but that the two social networks both have their own place. With that idea in mind, it's important to integrate them where we can and save you time and energy. This is a big improvement and should make signing up for the Table quick and easy.

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Starting the Conversation

One of the fun things about the Table is seeing the conversations get started. When it comes down to it, the Table is just a platform to encourage conversation, connection and community:

Read more stories from churches using the Table or share your own story.

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Webinar: State of the Table

During last week's Round Table webinar we sat down and talked about the state of the Table. The Table leadership, including Executive Director Ken Finsaas and Vice President of Development (i.e. head geek) Josh Lewis, shared stories about how far the Table has come and talked about where we're going. They also answered questions submitted by the audience. It was a great chance to hear about the future of the Table.

Watch the State of the Table (38:24)

Some of the topics we covered:

• Why is the Table free and how will it remain free? Answer: Licensing the software to other industries and transactional revenue within the Table. We're strongly committed to never having ads. 
• How do we decide what gets developed when? Answer: Balance. We try to find that fine balance between fancy new features, system speed, monetization, etc.
• Why hasn't Google Calendar integration been developed yet? Answer: With each feature we're trying to benefit the most people as quickly as possible, and we see mobile strategy as being more important. We're a small shop and we can only do so much. We have to find a balance between being reactive to user needs and proactive to the changing landscape.
• Why not create a web app instead of a native app? Answer: Web apps work, but they're not as useful as a native app built specifically for iPhone/Android/etc.
• What's happening behind the scenes that we don't see? Answer: A lot of things are still in the works and not released yet. We're often working on performance upgrades that you don't see but make a big difference.
• What big changes are coming down the development pipeline? We can't commit to dates, but here's what's in the not-too-distant future: Facebook integration, Google Calendar integration, better email integration (be able to respond from an email within the Table) and opening up our API to third party developers.
• How do we make the Table more sticky? Answer: Help people see the potential in the Table. It's a different kind of interaction than most social media. It's more personal. Showing people those interactions can help them get it. Getting a handful of people to model that behavior can also help engage others.

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Table Stories at Speak Conference

A couple weeks ago we sponsored the Speak conference in Minneapolis. Our customer experience/marketing guy Kevin D. Hendricks (that's me!) spoke about sharing your church's story and our product VP Jason Wenell gave a short pitch for the Table. But more than just offering a commercial, Jason talked about how social networking is a chance for your church to live out your story.

Jason introduced the Table and shared our intro video, but then went on to give three real examples of people using the Table. There was a woman asking for prayer as she undergoes cancer treatment, a couple facing infertility that asked for prayer and people came up to them on Sunday to pray for them, and a blind man who needed help moving and people stepped in to help. All examples of people needing help and their church community reaching out to help them. All examples of people getting help without the church staff needing to waste time and resources passing things along or recruiting people. That's the power of social networking within your church.

Watch the video from Speak as Jason shares these examples (feel free to skip past the intro video if you've seen it before):

Highlights from the talk:

• The Table is a nonprofit organization that was birthed from a missions organization and not a corporation. This is one of the favorite parts of our story and impacts our decision making. Point one in our manifesto is "Mission First."
• The Table is not as much about communicating your message but is more about writing a more impactful and authentic story as a church.
• Jason was the biggest skeptic. He met with 100 churches and pleaded with them to see if Facebook and Twitter would work. Instead it revealed a large gap between global networks and what the church needed.
• We are at over 1,800 churches now and thousands of people log in every day. Not to update their status, but to pray for a stranger and serve their neighbor.
• Story about a woman going through cancer treatment asking for prayer. Praying for each other in a moment of need: She didn't need to wait until Sunday to get support from her community.
• Story about a woman being prayed for at her church for infertility issues. The special thing about this story above and beyond 48 people praying for her need is that no fewer than 15 people came up to her at church and told her they were praying. Virtual communication turned into physical relationship.
• Story about blind man getting help moving: His friend saw the need and posted it to the Table. It wasn't from the church but from a member. Five people signed up and the need was met. This empowers the congregation to serve their community by mobilizing them in an easy way. 
• We've gotten the event down. Churches have great music, motion backgrounds and facilities. But are we missing the hundreds of opportunities between Sundays to write our story and to be the church. 
• A recent quote hit Jason hard this past week. Biz Stone said, "For Twitter to be successful, it cannot be a triumph of technology but instead a triumph of humanity." Jason would say the same for the Table: For it to be a success, it will be a success of Christianity not technology. The Table just acts as a catalyst to help us be a more connected and impactful faith community.

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And Conference: Don Reynolds - Utilizing Volunteers

Many churches are starting to see the power of mobilizing the community to help make church happen. Few do it better than Granger Community Church (GCC). GCC is always looking for ways to plug in people with capacity into roles that are generally taken by full-time staff.

This not only helps them do more with less overhead but also invites the community into the story.

During this session at the And Conference, Don Reynolds, who was a volunteer worship leader at GCC, mediated a panel of current and former volunteers from the Granger team.

There were three big questions during this session that struck me. I wanted to raise my hand and say "the Table can help with that!"

1) How do you find people?
Until now, finding volunteers has been a completely manual process. But the Table gives each ministry team a network to post volunteer opportunities to. It then notifies potential volunteers and even is smart enough to suggest opportunities to people based on their location, interests and skills.

2) How do you approach potential volunteers?
If they don't take initiative to commit to opportunities, the Table allows you to communicate with people, how they want to communicate. You can send them a quicknote, and they will receive that via the Table, text message or email. They choose how to get contacted.

3) How do you get to know the strengths and giftings of potential volunteers?
Use the Table directory to search for the strengths and gifts that you are looking for. Looking for help with graphic design? A search for graphic design pulls up everyone at your church who may be interested in helping.

Finding the right people, matching their giftedness to an opportunity and reaching out to them are keys to a successful volunteer strategy. The Table can help.

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"God Provided My Pefect Roomie!"

The Table's Serve App is an ideal way to meet needs. But don't believe us. Check out the stories:

Read more Table stories or share your own.

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And Conference: Kem Meyer

This week we are at the And Conference put on by Granger Community Church to interact with some of the thought leaders on "doing church in a complete and holistic way."

Kem Meyer, communications director at Granger and author of Less Clutter. Less Noise., discussed the essentials of communications and the barriers we have to overcome to communicate effectively.

One of the tools she shared is a communication "manifesto," if you will, that helped her focus Granger's communication efforts. As she went through it, I was amazed on how much it resembled some core foundational elements of the Table that we communicated in the promo video we made over a year ago.

Kem's three main points intersect with our communication philosophy:

1) Admit you don't have control - Many churches think that being the information funnel is one of their key roles. In today's world, people have access to that information 24/7 and it is more important to guide the conversation. The Table helps empower people to contribute their thoughts and information in the midst of your church communication.

2) Reduce the noise - Kem noted "show people you value their time and that you understand they are smart. Meet them where they are at and lead them into wanting more."  This has been our goal with giving each group and team their own platform to interact as much as they want, where they want. This leads away from mass emails and into a targeted messages that each individual controls.

3) Share the story - Kem said "We are all part of a larger story, so this means there is more than one mouthpiece. It's about conversation, think more tennis and less bowling." We couldn't say it any better. The Table helps pass around the microphone, and this two-way communication builds trust.

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Table at the And Conference

The And Conference is underway this week in South Bend, Ind., at Granger Community Church. We're sponsoring the conference and our own Jason Wenell is blogging the event, along with a crew of other bloggers (including Tim Schraeder of Outspoken).

Stay tuned for more updates and shared learning from And. Plus, you can glean your own wisdom by checking out the live stream.

Update: Here are a few of our And Conference blog posts:

• Kem Meyer: Less Clutter, Less Noise
• Don Reynolds: Utilizing Volunteers

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Outspoken: Tell Your Church's Story

One of the reasons I like working for the Table is because social networking is a prime way for your church to tell its story (I'm Kevin D. Hendricks and I do customer service and marketing here at the Table—I write blog posts like this one). The Table gives your church a place to live out its story online, in a way that's different than Facebook and Twitter. We love hearing those stories and we share them every week.

Unfortunately churches aren't always very good at telling their story and they need some help (in some cases, lots of help). That's the idea behind another blog I write for, Church Marketing Sucks. Last week Church Marketing Sucks released a new book that can help your church tell its story better. It's called Outspoken: Conversations on Church Communication. It gathers more than 60 experts and dispenses advice on marketing, outreach, design, leadership, technology, creativity and more. It's been featured in the Christian Post, Rick Warren's Pastors.com, the Willow Creek Association, Catalyst and more. I edited the book and contributed two chapters (you can read one of them here and download a free preview of Outspoken).

If you're a church using the Table, you get that communication is important. Outspoken can help you do it better. We hope you'll check it out and tell your story, both through the Table and your other communication channels.

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How to Create a Bulletin Insert

Talking about the Table in your church's bulletin is an important component to your launch. A separate bulletin insert is the best way to draw attention to the Table, but depending on your church's bulletin set up you might be stuck with a text blurb. However you do it, be sure you're communicating about the Table in your bulletin. Below are some recommendations for how to do it and some sample text you can customize.

What should you cover?

• Why? - One of the most important things to explain is why your church is going to use the Table. This is an opportunity to cast a vision for the Table. Don't just announce that you're using it, explain why. What benefit does it offer to your church? We have a number of blog posts that can help you with this rationale.
• What is it? - It helps to offer a brief explanation of what the Table actually is. Maybe you've been talking about the Table in staff meetings for months, but to the rest of your church the Table Project sounds like some new woodworking ministry.
• Help! - No matter what format you use for your bulletin insert you're going to run out of space. Be sure to include something that tells people where they can get help. Maybe you'll have a help desk set up on launch Sunday or you have a go-to person ready to answer questions. If all else fails, send them to our help section. Just make sure they know where to go for help.
• How do I get started? - This one seems obvious, but don't forget to make it clear how your congregation can get started on the Table. Should they wait for an invite? Should they sign up? Will they need to be approved before they can get on? Are you using the secret code option?
• What do I do now? - Another great strategy is to give people suggestions for what to do on the Table. Encourage them to complete their profile, upload a profile picture, pray for someone and join some groups.

Sample Text: Blurb
If you're limited to a paragraph of text in your bulletin, here's a sample to get you started:

Church doesn't end just because the worship service is over. "Church" is the body of Christ seeking God's kingdom, not just an event on Sunday morning. Prayer, service, study and fellowship are important aspects of faith that shouldn't be restricted to the hour we sit in a pew. That's what the Table is all about. It's a private social network, just for our church, that enables us to connect 24/7, not just on Sunday.

Join the Table today: http://yourchurch.tableproject.org

Need help? Look for our genius Table helpers in the lobby after the service.

Sample Text: Insert
If you can do an entire insert in your bulletin, here's some sample text to get you started:

Church doesn't end just because the worship service is over. "Church" is the body of Christ seeking God's kingdom, not just an event on Sunday morning. Prayer, service, study and fellowship are important aspects of faith that shouldn't be restricted to the hour we sit in a pew. That's what the Table is all about. It's a private social network, just for our church, that enables us to connect 24/7, not just on Sunday.

The Table is our new online community at [Church Name]. Pull up a chair!

How do I join?
You can sign up for the Table here: http://yourchurch.tableproject.org

What's next?
Now that you're on the Table, here are five things you can do to get started:

1. Get rid of that default photo and upload your own profile pic. This will help people learn who you are.
2. Fill out the ‘About Me' section of your profile with your interests, gifts and skills. This will help connect you with others at church.
3. Browse ‘People' and click over to the map view to find other people from church who live near you.
4. Go to the ‘Prayer Wall' and pray for a few of the prayer requests. When you click ‘pray now' the person can be notified that you prayed for them--instant encouragement!
5. Browse ‘Groups' and join a few. If you don't see a group for your ministry or interest, go ahead and start one.

Need help?
If you need help with the Table we have three ways we can help you out:

1. Look for our genius Table helpers in the lobby after the service.
2. Throughout the week you can contact one of our Table admins by emailing table@yourchurch.org.
3. You can also check out the Table's help section: http://www.tableproject.org/help

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