22 Easter Ideas for Church Outreach (events and online)

Easter is one of the best times of the year for churches to reach out to people in their communities. Not only do more people attend church services on Easter Sunday than any other Sunday of the year, but many people who are not Christian are open to Easter-related family events.

Before we get to some great ideas for promoting and sharing your Easter services and events online, here are…

11 Easter ideas for churches

1) Host an Easter Egg Hunt. An Easter egg hunt is a classic way to celebrate the season and bring families together. Consider hosting an Easter egg hunt on your church property, or partner with a local park to host the event. Be sure to have plenty of eggs and candy for all the children, and consider offering other activities like face painting or balloon animals.

If you host your Easter egg hunt the Saturday before Easter, you can invite families to join you for your Easter service(s) the next day.

2) Hold a Sunrise Service. A sunrise service is a beautiful way to start Easter Sunday. Hold the service outdoors to watch the sunrise together. Even better, gather in a public park (with permission) where passers-by can see and join you. Offer hot coffee and pastries to warm them up.

3) Offer Free Community Meals. Hosting a free community meal is a great way to reach out to those in need in your community. Consider offering breakfast on Easter, either immediately after your Sunrise Service or immediately before your regular Easter Sunday service. Be sure to promote the event to your community and partner with other local organizations to spread the word.

4) Create Easter Baskets for Those in Need Many families struggle to provide Easter baskets for their children. Consider creating Easter baskets for those in need in your community. Partner with local organizations to identify families who could benefit from this outreach.

5) Offer Easter Photos. Set up a photo booth in your church or at a community event and offer free Easter photos to attendees. This is a fun way to capture the spirit of the season and create lasting memories for families. You can also share those photos on your social media profiles. (Be sure to get permission and ask families to sign a photo release.)

6) Have a Palm Sunday Parade. A Palm Sunday parade is a great way to celebrate the start of Holy Week. Consider having your church members create their own palms and parade through your community.

7) Host an Easter Play. Hosting an Easter play is a creative way to bring the story of the resurrection to life. Include members of your congregation in the production to make it more personal.

8) Offer Free Car Washes. Offer free car washes to your community in the days leading up to Easter. This is a good way to reach out to your community and show them that your church cares about their needs. Alternatively, you could ask for donations with those donations going to a good cause.

9) Create an Easter Prayer Walk. A prayer walk is a great way to encourage prayer and reflection during the Easter season. Create a trail with stations for prayer and reflection, and encourage attendees to take their time and meditate on the meaning of Easter. Ideally, this would be available to people throughout Holy Week so they can do it on their own schedule and at their own pace.

10) Host a Concert. A concert is a great way to bring your community together in celebration of Easter. You don’t necessarily have to bring in a big name Christian artist. It could be your church’s worship team or choir. You could invite the choirs and worship team’s from other churches. Or you could put together a community orchestra and choir to perform something like Handel’s Messiah.

11) Host an Easter Craft Fair. An Easter craft fair is another fun opportunity to get people in your community on your church campus and make some connections. If you host it soon before Easter, you can invite people to your Easter services. You could also have your music ministry perform during the craft to get people into the spirit of the holiday and introduce them to your church’s style of music.

Hopefully, one or more of these Easter ideas for church will resonate with you and your church. Or maybe they will help spark a completely new and unique idea!

Once you and your church have discussed, prayed over, and decided which Easter outreach ideas you’re going to do this year, it’s time to think about how you’re going to get the word out. So, here are

11 Easter Online Outreach Ideas

1) Create a Landing Page. Create a dedicated landing page on your church website that provides all the details of your Easter services and events. This page should be easy to navigate, and the information should be displayed prominently.

2) Utilize Social Media. Social media is an effective way to reach out to your community and promote your Easter services and events. Utilize platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram to create posts and share information about your Easter services and events.

3) Ask Your Congregation to Utilize Social media. Posting info to the church’s social media profiles will only reach so many people. If you really want to maximize your social media reach, get the people of your church fired up and excited about sharing your church’s social media posts.

4) Use Hashtags. Utilize Easter-themed hashtags on social media to increase the visibility of your Easter services and events. Hashtags like #Easter, #EasterServices, and #EasterEvents can be used to reach a wider audience.

5) Share Testimonials. Share testimonies from members of your congregation about the impact that Easter has had on their lives. These testimonials can be shared on social media and on your website to help promote your Easter services and events.

6) Promote Early: Begin promoting your Easter services and events several weeks in advance. This will give your community ample time to plan to attend and make arrangements if necessary.

7) Utilize Email. Email is still one of the most effective ways to reach out to members of your congregation with info about your Easter services and events, especially people who may have fallen out of the habit of participating in Sunday services regularly. Send out regular emails leading up to Easter, and encourage your congregation to share the information with their friends and family.

8) Use Graphics and Videos. Create graphics and/or promotional videos for your Easter services and events. These visuals can be shared in your services, on your website, on social media and via email to catch the attention of your audience.

9) Use Online Advertising. Consider using online advertising to promote your Easter services and events. Platforms like Google Ads and Facebook Ads can be used to target specific audiences and promote your Easter services and events.

10) Partner with Local Organizations. Partner with local organizations to promote your Easter services and events. This could include partnering with local schools, community centers or the Chamber of Commerce to share information via email or on their social media channels.

11) Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Make sure people can find your church when the search online. For help with that check out The Ultimate Guide to Church SEO and How to Get Your Church Website to Rank for “Easter Service Near Me”

And if you’d like some help with church web design and church SEO from our team that’s been doing it for more than 25 years, click or fill out the form below to schedule a call.

*BONUS* Perhaps the best Easter outreach idea doesn’t involve a church event at all… Maybe the best way to reach the people in your community is to equip and encourage every follower of Jesus in your church to be able to share their faith, their testimony, and the love of Jesus with the people they already know in their neighborhoods, workplaces, schools, and community organizations!

Easter is the time to share the love and hope we can only experience in Jesus.