<\/p>\n
Easter is the second most attended service of the year after Christmas Eve.<\/p>\n
Most churches recognize this and put extra effort into reaching people in their community and inviting them to their Easter service.<\/p>\n
Most people start their search for a church online, so one of the best ways a church can connect with people looking for a church to worship with on Easter is through search engines like Google. So\u2026<\/p>\n
And how does that differ from what a church needs to do to show up in the search results for \u201cChurch near me?\u201d<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a screenshot of the search results I\u2019m shown for \u201cChurch near me\u201d<\/p>\n
You see Anchor, Bayside, and Holy Spirit Old Catholic churches get the top 3 spots.<\/p>\n
Now let\u2019s look at the results for \u201cEaster service near me\u201d<\/p>\n
Notice Bayside is the only one in the top 3 for both searches. Harborside and Heritage UMC get in Google\u2019s \u201clocal 3 pack\u201d for \u201cEaster services near me.\u201d<\/p>\n
First, notice in the \u201cchurch near me\u201d results that Google displays a review below the name of each church that has the word \u201cchurch\u201d in it. In the \u201cEaster services near me\u201d results that Google displays an excerpt from a \u201cpost\u201d below the Bayside listing.<\/p>\n
Reviews are posted to Google Business Profiles by visitors and members. This highlights the importance for a church to get members and visitors to post reviews.<\/p>\n
Posts are articles the church itself has posted to their Google Business Profile. In this case Bayside posted a post to their GBP encouraging people to invite their friends to an Easter service.<\/p>\n
Second, Anchor Church and Holy Spirit Old Catholic Church are both in the local 3 pack for \u201cchurch near me\u201d but not for \u201cEaster services near me\u201d and neither church mentions Easter on their website at all.<\/p>\n
Based on these observations, here are some recommendations.<\/p>\n
Preferably more than once.\u00a0 The bigger the heading the better. Include the times for your Easter worship services and any other Easter events you have planned.<\/p>\n
If you are using one or more images to promote your Easter services, make sure the images are optimized for search by giving them a filename and alt attribute with \u201cEaster service\u201d in them.<\/p>\n
Google cannot know your church website is connected to your Google Business Profile \/ Google Maps search listing \u2013 and thus will not see the Easter content on your website \u2013 unless you claim and verify it.\u00a0 Verify My Google Business Profile<\/p>\n
If you have a page on your website about your Easter services and events, a GPB post can be as simple as the title of that page and a link to the page.<\/p>\n
As we see with Harborside Church, having Easter mentioned in the Google Reviews people post can have a huge impact. It\u2019s probably too late to have people post reviews and for those reviews to have an impact this year, but you could ask people during or after the service to post a review.<\/p>\n
The bottom line is\u2026<\/p>\n
Most people start their search for a church online. Will people find your church when they Google \u201cEaster service near me?\u201d<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Click to share this image on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or Instagram <\/p>\n If you and your church would like some help with your church SEO so you can reach more people in your community, we\u2019d love to talk with you.<\/p>\n Complete the form below (mobile) or to the right (desktop) to request a free consultation.<\/strong><\/p>\n May God bless you as you celebrate the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus, and seek to introduce the people of your community to Him and his kingdom!<\/p>\n Discussion:<\/strong><\/p>\n Read more articles about preparing your website, SEO, and online communications for Easter.<\/p>\n Co-founder & CEO, OurChurch.Com<\/strong><\/p>\n Paul has been the CEO of OurChurch.Com since its founding in 1996, combining his passion for faith and technology to lead the organization.<\/span><\/p>\n An accomplished writer, Paul has authored over 2,000 articles on faith and technology, featured on platforms like <\/span>ChurchLeaders.com<\/span>, <\/span>The JoyFM<\/span>, and his personal blog, <\/span>LiveIntentionally.org<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n Beyond his professional achievements, Paul serves as an elder at <\/span>Journey Community Church<\/span> and is deeply engaged in his community through his involvement with the Florida Sheriffs Youth Ranch and the Safety Harbor Chamber of Commerce. He is a contributing author of the book Outspoken! Conversations on Church Communication.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nGet Help Ranking for \u201cEaster Service near me\u201d (and more!)<\/h4>\n
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