Congratulations! You’ve done something very admirable—you’ve made a wonderful commitment to serve God by leading a small group. Of course, you can’t minister to empty chairs. The good news is that there are people who would love to learn about your small group and fill those chairs. So how do you let people know that there’s a seat saved for each of them? And what do you do once you get people in those seats?

Six Questions to Help You Promote Your Group

Answering the following questions about your group can help you do a bang-up job of promoting your small group.

1. Who’s your audience?

The first key to effective communication is having a good picture of who your audience is. Who do you want to let know your group exists? Is your small group for couples, men only, women only, individuals of a certain age? Is your group service-oriented, or focused on issues? Perhaps your group is for seekers or new Christians, for people of all ages and stages, or for people who are mature in their faith. Looking at what kind of people your group is for will help you determine who your audience is.

Once you have a clear idea of the people you’d like to invite to your group, you’re off to a good start for publicizing this opportunity.

2. What do you want them to do?

Next, think through what you’d like the people who learn of the opportunity to do. Certainly, you want them to investigate the possibility that this is an opportunity (among many) that’s right for them. You want them to attend your small group, give it a go, and see if it’s what they’re looking for.

In light of this, whenever and wherever you have an opportunity to promote your group, make sure you reflect, as applicable, the following considerations:

• We’re open to new members.

• You can drop in anytime; you’re always welcome.

• If you sense the Lord leading you to become a member of our group, wonderful!

• Know that we won’t pressure you into “signing on the dotted line.”

• This might not merely be a group that God uses to work in you, but, because of how God has uniquely designed and gifted the body of Christ, it will most certainly be a group that God uses to work through you in the lives of others in the group as well.

• The “5 W’s and H”—that is, anticipate the prospective participant’s questions by thinking through the who, what, when, where, why, and how of your small group.

3. Why should they join your group?

Your promotional efforts will strike the bull’s-eye of your target audience when you plan your promotion with the particular audience in mind and “go” to where they’re located. In addition, potential group members will consider taking advantage of the opportunity when they hear that your group is addressing needs that hit home for them.

As people attempt to balance competing time demands, they often ask, “What’s in it for me?” For example, some people have a desire to pray with others. What place will prayer have in your group? Are you planning to regularly set aside time to pray every meeting? Will the group sometimes spend the entire meeting in prayer? Others want extended times of praise and worship singing. Is your group going to have a concentrated time of praise and worship singing? And still others are primarily looking for ways to grow deep in the Lord, to focus on the “meat” rather than the “milk” of God’s Word. Is your group going to focus on in-depth Bible study, or is it a group designed to help people get to know each other or to introduce people to basic Christian principles? Be clear in your promotion what your group is, and by so doing you’ll also reflect what it is not.

Prospective members will consider getting involved in your group when they hear your first-person story of how God has used the group in your life, or when they hear the stories of others (especially if they know you and/or the other members of your group and have seen the effects of the group with their own eyes!). It’s still true: The best form of advertising is word of mouth.

Finally, most people will consider trying out your group when they know that they’re welcome, that they can “take it for a test-drive,” and that attending one meeting doesn’t constitute being an official member of the group just yet!

4. Where and how should you promote your group?

Of course, it’s natural that you’ll promote your group in your church, and a variety of ways exist to do this. Again, the most effective form of promotion is word of mouth. Make people you know aware of your small group.

• Tell others you meet at church.

• Encourage group members to tell people in their relational network.

• Let your pastoral staff know about your group and see if you can make an announcement from the pulpit—whether for small groups in general or your group in particular.

How else can you let prospective group members in your church know about your small group? Consider these communication opportunities:

• Brochure/listing of all small groups in the church

• Periodic small group “open house” meetings

• Creating and staffing a small group table in the church foyer

• Web site article

• Bulletin insert or announcement

• Strategically distributed fliers

• Print or electronic church newsletter

Beyond your church walls, you may want to promote your small group in the greater community where you live. Maybe you have a small group that simply meets regularly to read the Bible together. Such a group is ideal for non-Christians or nominal believers in your neighborhood, but they don’t know that it exists until you tell them. Some of your neighbors might love to know that you’re reading the Bible and talking about whatever comes to mind in response to what you’re reading—perhaps they’ve always wanted to read the Bible, but when they tried on their own, they simply didn’t understand what they were reading.

So how do you get word out in your community?

• Go door to door.

• Create a flier and put it in a centrally located place (a community meeting room, a neighborhood mailbox, and so forth).

• Develop relationships with your neighbors (host a neighborhood Christmas party, or have neighbors in for dinner, dessert, and/or a movie), and let them know in the natural course of conversation that you’re hosting a group. If they’re interested, they can give it a try just once or twice without committing long-term.

5. What should we do if someone expresses an interest in joining the group?

Make it a priority to follow up with each person who expresses an interest in and/or attends your group. You can do this in person, by phone, or via e-mail. On behalf of the others in your group, let individuals who have participated in the group know

• We’re glad you came.

• We’re glad to answer any questions you may have.

• No pressure, but we’d like to have you visit again.

• If for any reason you’re thinking this isn’t the group for you, that’s OK too! If you can briefly describe what it is you’re looking for, perhaps we can connect you with another small group that may be a better fit.

6. Are you praying?

As you promote your group in your church and community, keep in mind the love that led Jesus to weep as he overlooked Jerusalem (Luke 19:41).

There are helpless, hopeless, and hurting people in your church and community who need to hear about Jesus and the needs you’re helping meet in your small group. Pray that Jesus’ heart is yours, and that this is reflected not only in how you serve as a small group leader but in every aspect of your promotional efforts as well. Pray that God will connect people in need with the opportunity that exists in your group.

Finally, don’t think of promotion as a one-time event. As long as you have room to grow—and this should always be the case for small groups, with the goal of “birthing” a new group when yours becomes too large—consider promotion an ongoing process.