Building Relationships with the Faithful: Examining Church Communicators Perceptions of Social Media Influencers in Their OPR Strategy
Journal of Public Relations Research, volume 33, issue 4 (2021), pp. 250-266
"The current study investigates how Church communicators perceive the role of social media platforms and influencers in their overall stakeholder engagement strategy. Building upon the Organization-Public Relationship (OPR) body of literature, we conducted 13 in-depth interviews with public relations professionals at megachurches throughout the United States. Findings reveal a reliance on one-way communication strategies to build relationships that shifted two-way communication as congregations prioritized digital connections due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We also found that Church communicators understand the concept of social media influencers differently than their corporate communicator peers to also include influence on another’s spiritual beliefs and well-being." (Abstract)