Church Attendance Surging, Pushing HOW Market Growth
New research on the church market revealed a stunning stat that will further increase sales of AVL gear: Nearly 14,000 churches now average between 500 and 1,800 attendees each weekend. That is in addition to another 3,000 churches that average over 2,000 in weekly attendance. With more attendance comes more services, more venues, and even more campuses, all of which need new or upgraded technology.
This. Is. Huge. Considering that half of weekend attendance at churches in the US happens at only 10 percent of the overall church market (30,000 churches out of 300,000), this new research by noted church expert Dr. Scott Thumma reveals a major shift and increase in the number of people attending a mid-size church. As I explain in detail in this month’s article, the data also shows exponential growth in video projection and significant opportunities in the growth of multi-site churches.
Many of you have lamented that the overall House of Worship market is comprised of tiny churches. You’re right about the difficulty of selling to very small churches, but this new study demonstrates what I’ve been saying here anecdotally here on rAVe for three years: the mid-size church market is the place to be, not to mention the more obvious opportunity represented by the largest mega- and giga-churches.
Looking ahead towards the future, I first look back to a prediction I made back in 2002 about churches upgrading to widescreen projection. I was right — well, almost right. I did not foresee beyond the shift in aspect ratio and resolution from 4:3 Standard Definition video to 16:9 High Definition video, and boy have churches made some leaps in more elaborate and creative display technologies! The upgrade option alone is worth display and video signal processing manufacturers diving in with both feet, not to mention the systems integrator’s massive opportunity to serve this market with a slew of new solutions.
Finally, the stats are in and they’re even more impressive and promising than even the bright picture I’ve been describing here on rAVe. Manufacturers and systems integrators: Are you finally convinced? The HOW market is bigger than you thought and more open to your solutions than you’ve believed. Go serve them.
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