I've mentioned this concept in the past, but it's time to deep-dive.

I'm calling it: The Long Conversation Method. Catchy, I know. Reply with better ideas, please. 😂

Let's start here. Think about all the ways the outside world can find you:

• Social media
• Your website
• Online ads
• A booth at festivals & farmer's markets
• Outreach events
• Print marketing: mailers, flyers, brochures, posters...

What do all these channels have in common? They're all momentary. Someone visits your website for 2 minutes. Someone looks at your postcard for 2 seconds. Someone stops at your booth for 15 minutes. Someone attends your event for 2 hours.

Imagine if even 15% of the people...

...who have stumbled across your socials, browsed your website, visited your festival booth, attended your pumpkin patch, or found your postcard in their mailbox gave you their phone number and permission to contact them 52 times per year.

You've been given an opportunity to continue the conversation—to share more Jesus and make every outreach dollar work harder.

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Here's what I'm getting at:

All of these channels should funnel attention into a singular lane of communication that you own—either phone numbers or email addresses—with a clear value proposition and a gospel onramp.

What that looks like depends on your community. Here are just a few examples:

• 📧The Conway Connection: Weekly guide to finding local fun & building stronger relationships (for a small-ish self-contained city with strong community identity)
• 📧The Everyday Sabbath: A daily scripture & journal prompt, perfect for your morning coffee or evening routine (for downtown corporate ladder climbers who need a minute to rest)
• 📧Real Faith. Real Life.: A faith-based parenting newsletter, "Biblical truths for busy families" (for a suburban area where kids' academics/sports/activities are the be-all-end-all)
• 📱Theology Thoughts: A weekly text with a bit of theology worth chewing on (for an urban area populated with some of the smartest people in the US)

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The idea:

Promote sign-ups everywhere: social media, your website footer, online ads, your festival booth, outreach events, print marketing, etc. Grow this list over months and years. Pour time, energy, and attention into creating consistent, gospel-centered value for your readers week in, week out.

(or day in, day out if you're really crazy)

If someone doesn't unsubscribe or go cold, you can assume at least some interest. People circle around in here for as long as they like. All the while, getting to know, like, and trust you more. As they keep receiving value from you, it's only a matter of time before they decide they want more of this gospel stuff and maybe want to meet the author, too.

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A case study I have witnessed personally:

A young man responded to one of our ads right before we launched our church. He opened my husband's Everyday Sabbath email every. day. for 3 months. He decided to come to worship for the first time because we were taking donations for a food drive. He has come every week since.

This young man isn't the only example of how this has worked for our church so far. Every single person who has visited IRL after reading Everyday Sabbath has said the same thing to Jacob, "I feel like I already know you."

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Worried about how much time this will take?

That's fair. But consider:

• You might already be writing something like this. You've just never thought about repurposing it.
• You might feel comfortable letting someone else ghostwrite some of it. (Could your admin assistant research events to highlight in the Conway Connection?)
• You can definitely have someone else format and schedule it. That's often what takes the most time, not the writing.
• Ask yourself what less effective internet tasks you could eliminate to free up time.

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Do you think you'd want to implement this idea in 2026? What ideas do you have for your communication channel? I'd love to hear!

Until next week,