You’re preparing to launch a new church or campus in the coming days. You have so much to think about during the pre-launch phase. Where will we meet? Who will lead worship? Where do we get a trailer to haul our equipment? Has our nonprofit status been approved yet?

But one of the biggest needs during that time is growing your launch team so you can run every ministry needed after launch without burning people out. Many churches will host Interest Parties (aka Interest Meetings or Vision Nights) to get to know potential launch team members while casting the vision for what this church will be.

One great way to set the tone for what they can expect at your church is to utilize great signage that is functional and well designed. Of course, the added benefit is that you can convert whatever space in which you are meeting into something that more resembles what you want your church to be. 

What items should you consider for your Interest Parties? 

1. A backdrop behind the main speakers. Whether you’re meeting in a local coffee shop or in a room in the local YMCA, you’ll want to convert the space into something resembling your church’s aesthetic. Utilizing something as simple as a backdrop of some type (a fabric popup display or stretch tension display), you can change that generic space and start to familiarize your launch team with your brand. Plus, this makes the pictures sooo much better. Check out this example from @storychurchsc!
2. Flags for outside. If you’re meeting in a public place that is well known in your community (which you should), you’ll want to do something on the outside to let people know something out of the norm is happening. Flags with your church’s colors and branding do just this, plus they let those who came for your meeting know they are in the right place. 
3. A sidewalk sign with more information. The flags are great because they are visible from across the parking lot, but they lack the ability to communicate how to find more information. A simple sidewalk sign near the entrance can do just this. Put your social media handles and launch date on the sidewalk sign so anyone who passes by starts to become familiar with your church in the community.  
4. Greeting signs. Set the tone for the evening by getting some of the brightest smiles on the launch team out in front of the building holding greeting signs. Opening the doors for people as they come and go and letting them know they are seen and appreciated is a great way to give a warm welcome. 
5. A table cover for registration/reception. As people walk in, have snacks and drinks available on a 6’ table that is decorated with your logo and colors on the table cloth.
6. Connection cards. Do NOT – and I repeat – Do NOT miss the opportunity to collect information from anyone who comes. Yeah, you can have people sign up online or at a front table, but using a connection card at their seat is an even better method for collecting information from them. With a single card, you can capture their name, contact information, level of interest in joining your launch team, and possibly areas of interest (what teams they might want to be a part of, etc.). It is best to collect this information AFTER you’ve cast the vision. Not at the beginning of the meeting. 
7. Invitations. The best advertising you’ll do is getting your launch team excited and motivated to invite their friends to check out your church. Equip them with great invitations that are small enough to fit inside a wallet or purse and point interested parties toward your online presence where they can find out more.  

Radiant Printing offers a pre-launch bundle with just these items. You can go here to see that and place an order. If you’d like to customize the bundle to something that better fits your needs, reach out to someone on our sales team to find out how to do that by emailing us at [email protected]

Pro Tip: Keep items like flags and backdrops generic so they can be used AFTER launch as well. In other words, don’t make them specific to the pre-launch phase because you won’t get as much use out of them if you do that. However, your connection cards should be specific to pre-launch needs and then you can redesign them for launch.