In 1450, Johannes Gutenberg changed the world by inventing the printing press. While printing existed years before Gutenberg, he adapted existing technologies and created his invention, thus forever becoming known as the creator of the printing press.
The Museum of the Bible says this about the Gutenberg press. “Thanks to Johannes Gutenberg, today’s high-speed commercial printing presses can produce up to 15,000 sheets an hour! His invention of metal movable type in 1450 has accurately been called ‘an invention that changed the world.’ And the first major book he printed was the Bible! It’s estimated there were about 30,000 books in all of Europe before Gutenberg’s press. Less than fifty years later, there were as many as twelve million books, and the book that was printed was often the Bible.” 1.
The Gutenberg press changed how society communicated. Today’s Internet changed our dependence on paper, from how we read books to how we give to our local church while at the beach. Another revolution started in June 2007, when Apple released the first iPhone. It was immediately hailed as a Gutenberg press moment. It is among the top inventions of all time, depending on which list you look at. Other firms soon replicated the iPhone, producing a worldwide market for smart devices.
A few years after the iPhone launched, a pastor asked me, “What trends do you see impacting the church in the future?” I held up my iPhone and said, “This.” The pastor was aghast at the answer. Does anyone doubt now the impact of mobile devices? Then consider this:
- 85% of U.S. adults own a smartphone as of 2022.
- The average American spends 5 hours and 24 minutes daily on their mobile device.
- On average, Americans check their phones at least 96 times per day, or once every ten minutes.
- As of 2022, there are roughly 6.65 billion smartphone users worldwide. That’s 86% of the global population.
- As of 2022, 62.06% of website traffic comes from mobile devices.2.
- All of the above stats are outdated because smartphone growth is exploding!
Reading the above stats is a convincing argument that we live in a day of instant communication. The question for churches is how can we use this tool much like the Church utilized the Gutenberg press?
With the power now held in the palm of our hand, we have instant access to anyone anywhere. And people like their news and information in short bursts they can quickly digest. Now often, a short text exchange takes the place of talking on the phone. And your phone is always with you. So, it is no surprise that churches realized the potential of using this tool to connect with members and guests. The question was how to accomplish this with automation.
We have helped our church partners communicate immediately and effectively using our Church Chatbot. Chatbots are used for online conversations (chats) via text. Using our Church Chatbot, you can engage with guests, connect with the congregation, and grow your church. Our church partners can use this feature for text-based Christ acceptance, baptism sign-ups, connection cards, and more. See how Seacoast Community used this tool to follow up on 527 salvations on Easter.
https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/how-todays-tech-advances-a-2000-year-old-story
Seacoast’s story is one of many. Scroll back through our past posts, and you’ll see how our church partners creatively use this tool to enhance their ministry. They will also show how we love to collaborate with our church partners. Our church partners often reach out to us with a goal we can help achieve through our platform. When a church’s goal inspires a new feature, that feature is made available to all our church partners. As our co-founder, Stephen Ballard, likes to say, “no is not our first answer.”
We are a leader in adapting existing technology to enhance a church’s ability to reach their communities with The Gospel and to shepherd their flocks, digitally and spontaneously. We have one of the highest retention rates in our industry, and one reason why is our creativity and innovation. We’re not just a transaction processing company!
Why not take a tour of our platform? We can set one up for you today. Contact us today at support@onlinegiving.org or (615) 206-4000, and we will show you how our tools can help you unleash the power of instant communication with our Church chatbot!
The Stewardship Coach
Because our phones are always with us, churches have realized the potential of using this tool to connect with members and guests. What's even better? Automation via our Church Chatbot. https://t.co/EEbV9sh7TQ pic.twitter.com/axvPXHOvvI
— Online Giving (@onlinegivingorg) April 3, 2023
1. https://www.museumofthebible.org/book-minute/the-gutenberg-press-an-invention-that-changed-the-world
2. https://www.zippia.com/advice/smartphone-usage-statistics/
