The State Of Church Social Media In 2026

Churches have never published more content on more platforms. So why does everything feel harder? Today, we'll unpack the state of church social media in 2026 - what the latest reporting says, and what it means for your church online. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 1:03 - 1. We've Reached Peak Content 9:53 - 2. Short-Form Is for Discovery, Not Depth 13:13 - 3. Social Media Is Becoming Search 21:25 - 4. Your Follower Count Matters Less 22:58 - 5. YouTube Is Still the Main Event 25:53 - 6. God Is Not Dead - Neither Is Facebook? 31:36 - The Changing Landscape of Social Media 34:49 - What's Coming Next THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ALL CITATIONS METRICOOL - "2026 TikTok Study" — PRIMARY https://metricool.com/press-release-tiktok-study-2026/ - "2026 Social Media Study" — PRIMARY https://metricool.com/press-release-2026-social-media-study/ - "2026 YouTube Study" — PRIMARY https://metricool.com/press-release-youtube-study-2026/ SPROUT SOCIAL - "2026 Influencer Marketing Report" — PRIMARY https://sproutsocial.com/insights/press/new-research-finds-influencer-reach-is-no-longer-tied-to-follower-count/ - "Q2 2025 Pulse Survey" (2025) — PRIMARY https://investors.sproutsocial.com/news/news-details/2025/New-Research-from-Sprout-Social-Finds-Social-Media-is-the-Top-Place-Gen-Z-Turns-to-for-Search-Surpassing-Traditional-Search-Engines/default.aspx PEW RESEARCH CENTER - "Americans' Social Media Use 2025" (November 20, 2025) — PRIMARY https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2025/11/20/americans-social-media-use-2025/ ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

Smaller church, deeper discipleship - right? Lifeway surveyed 2,130 Protestant churchgoers, and both extremes came out on top. Today, we'll unpack the church-size discipleship paradox, and why being in a group matters more than church size. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 1:46 - The Methodology - 8 Signposts of Discipleship 3:38 - 1. Both Extremes Win 7:08 - 2. Small Churches Have Relational Gravity 7:53 - 3. Small Churches Still Have Blind Spots 13:27 - 4. Large Churches Build Discipleship Infrastructure 15:39 - 5. Groups Matter More Than Size 18:14 - The Seafood Boil - Deep Knowing Relationships 23:23 - 6. Different Sizes Need Different Mechanisms 27:37 - 7. Every Church Can Borrow From the Other Extreme 31:19 - 8. Size Is Context, Not Destiny THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com  JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer  🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ALL CITATIONS LIFEWAY RESEARCH - "Smallest, Largest Churches See Strongest Discipleship Scores" (August 2026, n=2,130) — PRIMARY https://research.lifeway.com/2026/08/25/smallest-largest-churches-see-strongest-discipleship-scores/ - "Discipleship Deficit Exists Among U.S. Churchgoers" (January 2026) — PRIMARY https://research.lifeway.com/2026/01/27/discipleship-deficit-exists-among-u-s-churchgoers/ BOOKS REFERENCED - Henri Nouwen, "The Return of the Prodigal Son" ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

7 in 10 American churches are under 100 people. Yet over half of churchgoers worship in churches of 500 or more. Today, we'll unpack American Christianity's two competing versions of "normal" - and what small, large, and mid-sized churches should do about it. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 2:04 - The Math Behind the Paradox 3:23 - Two Different Versions of Normal 10:25 - Trained Big, Hired Small 12:19 - Big Churches Set the Standard 19:47  - Growth Feeds Growth 21:26 - Scale Makes Room for Everyone 22:50 - Small Churches Win on Commitment 24:47  - The Middle Gets Squeezed 29:30 - Big Churches Control the Story 31:12 - Final Thoughts IMPORTANT LINKS Church Chaos Episode 4: https://youtu.be/ToD6BaY7ssk THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com  JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer  🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ALL CITATIONS LIFEWAY RESEARCH - "1 in 6 Protestant Churchgoers Attend Megachurches" (August 2026) — SECONDARY https://research.lifeway.com/2026/08/12/1-in-6-protestant-churchgoers-attend-megachurches/ - "Smallest, Largest Churches See Strongest Discipleship Scores" (August 2026, n=2,130) — PRIMARY https://research.lifeway.com/2026/08/25/smallest-largest-churches-see-strongest-discipleship-scores/ HARTFORD INSTITUTE FOR RELIGION RESEARCH - "Megachurch Resurgence" (June 2026) — PRIMARY https://hirr.hartfordinternational.edu/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Megachurch-Resurgence.pdf NATIONAL SURVEY OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS - "Clergy in America" (2025 report, n=1,600 clergy) — PRIMARY https://static1.squarespace.com/static/65417aab75d81771950d332f/t/67cb42e5cad1c1762527f317/1741374184941/NSRL-report-2025-clergy-in-america.pdf ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

Many churches are borrowing the same trends: 360 stages, LED walls, AI artwork, sermon series rebrands. Some push mission forward. Most just recycle. Today, we'll put each one on trial and deliver a verdict: keep it, kill it, or reinvent it. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 1:12 - The 360-Degree Stage 10:01 - The Pyramid Projector 16:19 - Cinematic Sermon Reels 21:49 - The Rage Bait Interview Trend 26:04 - A New Visual Identity for Every Sermon Series 31:25 - LED Walls as the Stage Centerpiece 34:23 - AI-Generated Artwork 39:31 - Trendy Typefaces That Sacrifice Readability THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/4bSjIZf Ask how to sign up for an event and you'll get five different answers. Fewer options equals more action. Today, we'll unpack the series capstone - one destination for every next step - and the steps to launch yours. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 2:53 - The 7 Building Blocks 6:20 - Where This Philosophy Came From 9:20 - Building Block #7: Launch Your Central Hub 17:03 - Testimonies From Real Churches 20:38 - How Movie Theaters Get This Right 24:28 - The Three Rules Of The Central Hub 33:27 - The Physical On-ramp 40:06 - Final Thoughts IMPORTANT LINKS GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/4bSjIZf The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks The Church Communications Masterclass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aETNv9BoDzQ The Launcher: https://www.nucleus.church/the-launcher THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/3U2rdXm   If your announcements are just dates, times, locations, logistics, the room quietly tunes out. Information doesn't move people; inspiration does. Today, we'll unpack the formula that fixes church announcements for good - one story, one next step - then rewrite real ones live. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 1:08 - 7 Building Blocks Recap 6:53 - Building Block #6: The Church Announcements Formula 10:20 - Why Lead With One Story? 19:29 - One Next Step 22:07 - Different Types of Stories 23:36 - Example #1 33:44 - Example #2 45:22 - Example #3 52:11 - Final Thoughts IMPORTANT LINKS - Get Your Chaos Score: https://prochur.ch/3U2rdXm - The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks - The Church Communications Masterclass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aETNv9BoDzQ CITATIONS Robert H. Stein - "The Method and Message of Jesus' Teachings" (35% of Jesus' teaching in the synoptic Gospels uses story) National Library of Medicine - "Why Inspiring Stories Make Us React: The Neuroscience of Narrative"  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4445577/ THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com  JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/3T8zQzz The more you announce, the less they listen. But every ministry you turn down walks away feeling like their event doesn't matter. Today, we'll unpack the weekly bulletin - one place where everything gets seen without stealing a second of Sunday. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 3:11 - The 7 Building Blocks 4:30 - Building Block #5: Create the Weekly Bulletin 7:04 - Why Did The "Old" Weekly Bulletin Fail? 10:34 - Setting Up The Digital Bulletin 17:58 - The Reason The Bulletin Works 24:23 - How To Promote The Digital Bulletin 28:21 - Final Thoughts IMPORTANT LINKS - Get Your Chaos Score: https://prochur.ch/3T8zQzz - The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks - The Church Communications Masterclass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aETNv9BoDzQ THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com  JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/3TNrMnO Your biggest event gets under-promoted. A tiny ministry floods the feed - because one passionate leader pushed hard. Today, we'll unpack the playbooks that answer "how will my event get promoted?" before anyone asks - what channels, what timing, what assets. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 1:27 - The 7 Building Blocks 4:00 - Building Block #4: Supply Promotions Playbooks 7:50 - Step 1 - Take Inventory of Every Channel 14:14 - Step 2 - Define Your Promo Formats 14:44 - Sprinkle Promos 16:43 - Sprint Promos 17:52 - Smuggle Promos 20:38 - Equipping Leaders With the Promotions Playbooks 26:52 - Example Promotional Playbook for Level 1 41:27 - Final Thoughts IMPORTANT LINKS - Get Your Chaos Score: https://prochur.ch/3TNrMnO - The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks - The Church Communications Masterclass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aETNv9BoDzQ THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com  JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer  🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/4ylExWR Announce everything, and people tune out. Cut back, and entire ministries vanish. Today, we'll unpack Building Block #3 - giving every ministry a home so visibility no longer depends on stage time - with real examples from churches already running it. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 6:25 - Building Block #3: Give Each Ministry A Home 9:11 - Real Church Testimony 10:36 - What is a Post Collection? 20:20 - The SEO benefit of Post Collections in an AI-Search world 22:30 - Examples from outside the church world 23:49 - Organizing your communications 25:26 - Alex's Post Collections 27:07 - Small Group Post Collections 29:42 - How this play into The 7 Building Blocks? 31:40 - Why are we doing Free Church Communications Makeovers? 37:04 - Do Post Collections work outside of Nucleus? 38:06 - The Secret Post Collection You'll Love IMPORTANT LINKS - Get Your Chaos Score: https://prochur.ch/4ylExWR - Free Communications Makeover: https://www.makeover.church - The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks - The Church Communications Masterclass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aETNv9BoDzQ - Life Abundant Post Hub: https://www.lifeabundant.info/posts - Nucleus Posts Demo: https://life-demo.nucleus.church/posts THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.

GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/4fyiowP   More announcements. More stage time. More reminders. That's how most churches try to get people to listen - but across the audits we've run, the average service crams in 7 announcements and points people to 8.7 different destinations, and the more we say, the less they hear. Today, we'll install Building Block #2: a six-part publish policy that decides what your church says from stage, where every promo points, and how to move people from awareness to action. ============================= Table of Contents: ============================= 0:00 - Intro 5:01 - Recap of Building Block #1 5:57 - Building Block #2: Publish Policy 8:24 - Policy Item #1: Awareness Is Not Interest 16:35 - Policy Item #2: Sunday Is Not Your Savior 18:48 - Policy Item #3: The More You Announce, the Less They Listen 25:35 - Policy Item #4: Inspiration Over Information 38:49 - Policy Item #5: One Destination for Every Promo 43:26 - Policy Item #6: Values Dictate Voice   IMPORTANT LINKS - GET YOUR CHAOS SCORE: https://prochur.ch/4fyiowP - The 7 Building Blocks PDF: https://prochur.ch/building-blocks - The Church Communications Masterclass: https://youtu.be/aETNv9BoDzQ   THE 167 NEWSLETTER 📫 62,646+ churches read our free newsletter to figure out the 167 hours beyond Sunday service every week. Sign up: https://167.prochurchtools.com   GET IN TOUCH 🌍 The Company: https://prochurchtools.com 🖥️ Nucleus, The Church Website Builder:  https://www.nucleus.church 📱 SocialSermons, The Social Media Agency For Churches: https://socialsermons.com    JOIN THE COMMUNITY 📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bradyshearer/ 🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bradyshearer 🐦 Twitter: https://twitter.com/bradyshearer ABOUT ME Well hey there! I'm Brady Shearer, the creator and director of Pro Church Tools. I started this channel more than 10 years ago. Today our company is a team of 30+ creatives dedicated to helping your church navigate the biggest communication shift in 500 years.