The Burge Report: Who Is Really Attending Online Church?

Rainer on Leadership

More and more churches have a digital ministry, but who is really tuning in? Thom and Sam interview Ryan Burge to get to the facts of digital church services. The results will likely surprise you and run contrary to popular belief.

• • There is no evidence that a large segment of people are online only, which was just 12% of the total survey sample.
  • Only 6% of people who never attend in-person worship had watched online.
  • Among those attending religious services multiple times a week, 57% were also watching online church.
  • In-person attendance seems to drive watching online, not the other way around.
  • Virtual worship has little more than an add-on effect for people who are already religiously engaged. People who don’t attend that much aren’t filling that void with online services, at least not in huge numbers.
  • Your digital worship experiences are likely to be consumed by your highly engaged church members, not the community.
  • Your digital worship experiences are also good for those who cannot attend (e.g. the elderly).
  • The vast majority of people think that gathering in person is superior to joining an online stream, even younger generations.

Resources:

• Tithe.ly

• 2023 State of Church Giving

• “Who is Attending Online Church?” by Ryan Burge

• Ryan Burge

• The Everything Church Resource Directory

• The Hope Initiative

• Get your FREE tool! Attendance Growth Projector

Episode Sponsors:

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