Why Disney’s Move Should be a Wake Up Call for Churches

Last week Disney made a MAJOR move. The pandemic continues to make an impact on businesses all over the world. One of those hit in a huge way has been the theatrical business. It is basically non-existent with some theaters shutting down completely. That is why Disney has decided to shift focus on their streaming platform, Disney+.

People are not going to movie theaters. They are not going to amusement parks. Both of those are a HUGE part of Disney’s revenue each year. Disney saw the writing on the wall. They saw that theaters aren’t opening to major capacity anytime soon so they had to figure out a way to get their content out. Hence the move to focus more on distribution to Disney+. Disney has now shifted to getting content out via their new streaming platform rather than work on trying to get people to see their content and go to their amazing experiences in person, the way they used to do it. It’s a major shift.

Why is this a wake up call for Churches?

While Churches may be “open” to in person gatherings, they are not at full capacity (at least most of them are not). And, they won’t be at full capacity for the foreseeable future. So, how do you reach people if you can’t do  more in person Church gatherings? You have to invest more on digital and more on smaller in person gatherings. That why investing in a Digital Pastor and creating Neighborhood “Micro-Churches” could be a great, new strategic move for your Church.

The old way Churches used to operate is to get as many people as possible in the Church buildings on Sunday. Butts in seats. However you can do that, do it.

The onset of Covid changed things. People are not going out as much as they used to. They are staying inside and consuming more content online via streaming services. They are protecting themselves, some more than others. It is time for Churches to shift their focus from butts in seats on Sunday morning to something else. And the great thing is that there are so many other options you can do. As mentioned above, you can do smaller, in person gatherings if you prefer. But, you can also invest more time and energy into creating more engaging digital content for others to experience. Each Church can choose what is best for them and their congregation, but if big businesses like Disney are changing the way they reach people, Churches should be thinking this way too.

Conclusion

The reality is things are not going back to “normal”. You can choose to wait and see if they do or you can take a proactive approach like Disney did and invest in what is working now and see how God uses that to help you reach your community for Christ. What will you do?

What do you think? How do you think Churches can duplicate what Disney is doing? Share your experiences below or on social media using #ymsidekick as you share. 

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