That's where we all are with social media. Learning as we are going, rethinking, relearning as new ideas come around that work or don't work.

Paul, Apologies for the delay in commenting. Its been a BIG week and I havent been online that much.

Just be sure not to plan too much before jumping in. A lot of social media you learn as you go, and often you won't know the best strategies for your church or ministry until you try them and measure the results.

I'd like to suggest another tip.

*Form a steering team to develop and oversee an Internet outreach plan along with expected needs and results. You wouldn't devote substantial human or financial resources to any outreach endeavor without careful research and understanding of what you're doing.

For example, there's still ongoing debate about what it means to be the church online (see Paul's "10 Things I learned From The Online Church Blog Series" on this site). This is a hurdle that must be overcome in any plan for more intentional use of the Net. The steering team, in conjunction with pastoral staff can help formulate a position.

The pace of change on the Internet is dizzying. The steering team would be tasked with keeping track of trends, technology and what other churches are doing.

Social media is changing the rules, again. No one knows where all this is going. But this is where we are and you have to experiment for the gospel to see what works. We can't let our fears drown out our faith.

As you plan and pray, God will reveal which digital outreach strategies are best aligned with His vision for your church.