Twitter Gets a Religious Experience

With more than a billion members, the Catholic Church looks to His Holiness, the pope, for direction and guidance. Now those who wish to find a more intimate relationship with the church don't necessarily need to visit the Vatican City. They can communicate with the head of the church through a social media website they are already familiar with–Twitter.

The Church's acceptance and use of this new form of communication further proves the prevalence of social media in today's world. Consumers and parishioners alike are no longer reaching out to businesses and organizations the way they used to. They now expect those entities to come to them.

This presents several opportunities for the Catholic Church. It has the large opportunity of spreading the word of God and his teachings among their followers. It also may renew an interest in the church and attract new members. This move could renew the faith of those who have lost interest. It also serves as a direct line of communication between the Vatican and the world. Any news can immediately be relayed to the public.

However, the addition of a Twitter account could also pose several problems and threats for the Vatican. The Church faces many opponents and Twitter allows their comments to become much more public. However, as long as these negative comments are handled appropriately and quickly, the Vatican can spread its messages in face of adversity.

The success of the Vatican's new Twitter account will depend on how carefully and quickly representatives respond to questions, positive feedback and address negative comments. A designated staff member from the Catholic Church's communications department should manage this Twitter account full time to ensure vigilant monitoring. As we tell our clients, social media can work wonders for a business but only if it is handled well.

Do you have questions about how to manage your company's social media? Contact us today. We'd be happy to help you out.