If I had to pick the #1 day that your bulletin actually gets read, I would pick Christmas.

(I don't have any statistical data to back that up, but since I doubt CARA is going to be taking that one on any time soon, we'll go with it.)

But think about it: One of the busiest days of the year, combined with lots of waiting for Mass to begin if they arrived early to get seats.

They're bound to flip through your bulletin while they wait.

Now here's the question:

Do you think your bulletin as it is right now would convince them to come back the following Sunday?

➡️ Is the design intriguing and uncluttered to keep them flipping through?

➡️ Would they get a strong sense of your parish's community and mission?

➡️ Is the language welcoming, and do you have things in it that would be right for this audience (seeker-type events, receiving sacraments, convalidation, explanations of why we go to Mass or confession)?

If you answered no...that's okay! There's still time to refresh your bulletin in time for the Christmas spike in readership.

There are five weeks between now and the beginning of December, when early bulletin deadlines will start to pop up.

So if I were you, here is how I would focus my refresh:

1. Week One: Decide your mission and purpose of the bulletin and rework where things go in the bulletin to match those priorities.
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2. Week Two: Redesign the bulletin, especially the most important pages (the cover and pages 2 and 3 - each have a specific role and importance especially for the Christmas-only crowd).
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3. Week Three: Set up systems and policies to make creating the bulletin easier and faster.
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4. Week Four: Redesign your email newsletter to complement your print bulletin and keep people engaged throughout the week.
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5. Week Five: Come up with a bulletin distribution plan and create a few Christmas-only audience content pieces for the bulletin that will encourage them to engage more deeply in the parish post-Christmas.

That way, in just five weeks, you can have a Christmas-ready redesigned bulletin that people will actually take, read, and do what it says!

Easier said than done, though, right?

I can't come and refresh your bulletin for you, unfortunately.

But if you need some help figuring out how to do redesign your bulletin and creation process (and someone walking you through the process step-by-step + tools to make it easier) - now that I can help with!

Over the summer, nearly 50 parishes joined me in Bulletin Bootcamp, where we worked through this exact refresh process in just 5 weeks!

​And the recordings from Bulletin Bootcamp are now available so you can do this at your own parish!​

When you sign up, you'll receive three months of access to:​

→ 5 training call recordings where I walk you through your refresh step-by-step and talk about everything from design to strategy to processes for how to get people to actually send things in on time

→ "Grab & Go" tools to make the bulletin creation process way easier, like a parish branding guide, bulletin layout planner, and bulletin submission guidelines and form template​

→ New bulletin audit from me to make sure you're on the right track and get any feedback or suggestions

Here's what one communications coordinator had to say about it:

Others said they felt less overwhelmed.

Another reported the bulletin was taking less time.

And still others remarked that parishioners have noticed and commented on the changes positively.

But the biggest thing for me is seeing parishes who have finally figured out how to use their bulletins as tools for engaging parishioners and evangelizing.

Which is especially important at Christmas, when there are so many people in our pews who aren't normally there!

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Trying to refresh your bulletin during Advent as you're navigating early submission deadlines is going to be too hectic.

So right now is the time to do this!

You have to do the bulletin anyway.

Why not make it a tool that actually works, that draws hearts closer to Christ and your parish this Christmas?

​I'd love to show your parish how in Bulletin Bootcamp - now available to take on demand!

For His greater glory,

Emily

P.S. The recordings from this summer's Bulletin Bootcamp are now available! If you missed it over the summer, now is the perfect time to refresh your bulletin ahead of the Christmas rush. Learn more and get your parish's access here.​

P.P.S. Have questions about Bulletin Bootcamp? Feel free to reply, I'm happy to help you figure out if this will be helpful for your parish!