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Ministry Fairs: Planning – How to Plan Them

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Ministry FairsIf you are going to do it … do it well.  People need to see that serving in the church is something honorable and something about which to get excited.  Presentation communicates worth so do it well.

A ministry fair doesn’t have to be big.  Just do whatever you do, well.  If you only set up a table or two then that table or two must well represent.

Elements Needed When Planning a Ministry Fair

Carefully consider the suggestions in the following elements of your planning efforts so you do whatever you do, well:

Planning Team:

  • Involve representatives from the various ministries, preferably ministry leaders.  Their involvement will help bring coordination, ownership, and hence a greater cooperation.
  • Assign responsibilities based on gifting and interests.

Planning Process:

  • Pray throughout the entire process.  Consider recruiting a prayer team.  As in anything you plan, you must trust God from start to finish to guide and use it to His glory.
  • After a time of prayer for God’s guidance, begin with a season of brainstorming regarding the theme of the ministry fair and then the various aspects of the fair.  You do not have to be locked in to the way you have done it before or have seen others do it.  Brainstorming ideas will help you get beyond tradition to what will work best for your current situation and people.
  • After more prayer, evaluate the ideas in light of their feasibility and usefulness toward achieving your goals, staying open to God should He want to stretch you, and then choose the best approach.

Planning Calendar:

  • Strategically plan the date.  Schedule it a year in advance to avoid conflicts with other church events.  The date of the fair should benefit the recruitment process but provide sufficient time to recruit without putting pressure on people to make immediate decisions. Recruitment should be an on-going process and not a one shot effort.
  • Strategically plan the time to have it on that date.  Will you piggyback on times people are already there?  Will people come early, stay late, or can it be a part of the normally scheduled meeting/program?
  • Strategically plan what should precede the fair (i.e., teaching or preaching series).
  • Strategically plan when to implement details and who will be responsible … a timeline for when tasks must be completed.

Planning Budget:

  • Talk with your church’s leadership to learn how much money can be designated for it.
  • Brainstorm ideas for how to do the fair first and then allocate funds to the various expenses.  Guard against boxing yourself in by funding.
  • Look for alternative ways of securing funds or resources needed if the budget is not sufficient or non-existent.

Planning Agenda:

  • Pick a theme that will be used in promotion, decoration, on handouts, nametags, etc.  — A theme is what will distinguish one fair from another and help build excitement for yet another ministry fair.
  • Choose the best location based on the number of people expected to attend, how you need to set up, where people can easily be directed to it.  Use maps, signage, and greeters to guide people.
  • Determine how to decorate to help build atmosphere but also provide logistical attention to flow.  Decorations should be bright, cheery, and geared around the theme.
  • Decide if you will have refreshments and what they should be or other fun events to peak interest  (door prizes, games, etc.).
  • Begin promotion of the ministry fair early enough, often enough, and in a variety of creative ways to build interest.
  • Make sure ministry descriptions are up-to-date for all positions, or develop them if not currently available.
  • Have a plan for how to help people know if their spiritual gifting fits a position. (class/testing prior to or perhaps a means of testing at the fair and also a means of listing spiritual gifts used to accomplish the various ministries)
  • Plan how to best facilitate people making connections. (i.e., name tags for ministry leaders or better yet, for everyone; those whose primary responsibility is to greet people and guide them to find whom/what they need; way for people leave contact info that guards privacy – i.e., box to put interest card into or immediately enter into a computer database)
  • Set up a strategy for following up potential recruits.  Initial follow-up should happen soon after the fair.  Do not wait until the interest wanes.
  • Determine how you will thank ministry leaders & other who helped plan and set up the ministry fair.
  • Build in a time of evaluation after the fair … not just how well the fair went at the time but also the results it engendered in terms of connections and recruitment.

If you are going to do a ministry fair, do it well.  Adequately plan so it communicates the value in serving an Almighty God.

More:  Recruiting Volunteers for Christian Ministries

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2 Replies to “Ministry Fairs: Planning – How to Plan Them”

    • Great! I pray God uses it to spur people on to serving our wonderful Lord there in His church.

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