You see them everywhere. People with their heads down looking at their phone, sitting at coffee shops with their laptops, and scrolling through tablets to catch up on the latest news. So how do you become relevant in a noisy world? How do you speak to your community? How can you be heard amidst the many videos, memes, and personality quizzes? The key to promoting your church or ministry through social media is developing a strategy and consistently following the plan.

The scenarios may differ, but the question is the same almost every time. If there is no law, no rule and no written reason not to do something, why not pursue the easiest path? In the world of marketing, this becomes even more relevant with tight deadlines, constrained budgets and goals that are not as clear-cut as they once were. The typical idea of marketing has completely changed, and functioning ethically becomes even more critical in this environment.

On the first day of my “Introduction to Marketing” class, I ask my students to market themselves in three words. I have students that react by looking shyly to the side and providing generic answers such as “I’m nice” or “I’m quiet.” I have students that take the opportunity to make the class laugh with a creative answer. Occasionally, I will have a student push the boundaries and ask if they can use more than three words. My response is always, “Yes!”

Due to technological advances, working remotely has quickly become a trend in business.

In today’s society, almost everyone has been a part of a remote team at some point, even if they didn't realize it. Remote teams are when one or more of the members are not completing their work in the same physical location. If you have ever taken an online class, been part of a multi-church ministry or even worked on something with family located in another state, then you were a remote team member.

So what is the difference between leading a traditional and remote team? Does physical location change the game? Here are 3 requirements that make managing a remote team possible.