TRAINING NEW AUDIO VISUAL CHURCH VOLUNTEERS [10 TIPS]

Training new audio visual church volunteers can be daunting. But it doesn’t have to be. Check out these 10 training tips from our Gear Gurus.

We’ve been in the church world for years and trained volunteers ourselves. These are the principles that have helped us the most and we know they’ll serve you well.

1. Stay High Level at First

They’ll eventually find the little intricacies and the functions of every single nob and button once they’ve used the gear awhile. At the beginning, start with the simplest training they need so they aren’t overwhelmed or scared off. 

2. Create a Culture they want to belong to

What swag can you give your crew? Shirts and mugs go a long way. Anything you can do to reinforce that this is a team will go a long way. We all want to belong to a group and your crew can provide that for your volunteers.

3. Train New Audio Visual Volunteers in Small Groups

Training volunteers one on one will allow you to match your teaching pace to each volunteer. Training in smaller groups or even one on one will allow you to adjust to their pace. This prevents slow learners from getting left behind and will allow faster learners to move through the information quicker.

4. Set realistic expectations

Having an experienced, former tech person volunteer is the dream. But this isn’t the majority of volunteers. It typically takes 6-12 months to fully train new audio visual volunteers. If you start out with the correct expectations with them, they won’t be discouraged early when they think they aren’t picking it up quick enough.

5. Get a MxU Teams Account for your New Audio Visual Volunteers

MxU is the premier church tech training company. Your volunteers can leverage their videos to learn more skills, hone their craft and organize your communication. We’re big fans of them. Check their training resources out here.

6. Create Training Videos

People won’t read a giant manual, but they’ll definitely watch some videos. Making your own training videos will take time, but they you’ll have this resource for all future volunteers. If they have a library of videos, this will help them learn before they come in on their first Sunday. It’ll also give them something to check out Saturday night if something is feeling foggy. Plus, this is a giant time saver for you. In the modern era with video, we have a way to clone ourselves and save time. It also makes your in person training easier because you won’t have to worry if there was a skill they missed. They’ll be able to review anytime they want to after. 

7. Update your Production Gear so it’s easy to use

Old production gear is going to be more difficult for them to pick up. Broken gear or gear that is on its last leg is going to be even tougher. Make sure you have up to date gear that’s easy to use. This is a great point to use if you need to pitch your board on the idea of an upgrade. And getting great gear doesn’t have to be expensive if you buy used. Check out our Top 10 Platforms to buy Used Production Gear here for the best breakdown on platforms to buy gear for your new audio visual church volunteers

8. Pair New Audio Visual Volunteers Strategically

If you have enough existing volunteers to pair them with a new volunteer, that’ll help as you integrate your new volunteers. Have your new people sit next to an existing volunteer for a month or two so they can soak up those skills. This will also get the new volunteers comfortable to being in the booth. However, this method is merely an additional tactic in training new audio visual church volunteers. They’ll need more training than just watching another, experienced volunteer.

9. Be Patient Training New Audio Visual Volunteers

While so much of the church tech director life is technology, a big component to onboarding new audio visual church volunteers is the human side of things. They will appreciate and feel your patience as they progress through their skills and will stay because of this patience.

10. Avoid Volunteer Burnout

Having a consistent schedule that allows for Sundays off is crucial in preventing burnout. These new audio visual volunteers are here to serve their church, but they are still a member of the church. They’re volunteering their time and can’t be expected to be here all the time as if this was their day job. Be willing to step in and make sure they have the chance to go sit with their family. Be willing to tell them “I got it today. Go be with your family.”

Struggling to recruit new volunteers?

Check out our article on recruitment tips here.

Training new volunteers can be tough, buying great production gear should be easy.

Join the ChurchGear Early Service here and you’ll have exclusive 48 hour access to our best, rarest gear before the entire world has a chance to buy it.