Netherlands: dioceses and parishes, online meetings for a video-based communication strategy

In the last few weeks, the Dutch dioceses and parishes have spent time reflecting over, discussing and sharing experiences about the use of videos in their communication strategies. The initiative of such online meetings has been prompted by the launch of “katholiekeleven.nl”, a news website related to the Bishops Conference. “As a consequence of the pandemic, many parishes have had experiences with live-streamed online videos”, Daphne van Roosendaal, editor-in-chief of “katholiekeleven.nl”, explained. Now, “we want to help take the next step by sharing our experiences”. At the meetings, big issues were investigated from the perspective of the communicative role of videos (social media, information and inspiration, underlying messages and added value), while more practical debates addressed the role and potential use of videos in the communication strategy of parishes and dioceses (on websites and digital news, as well as on paper media through the QR codes) and discussions focussed on the need to have well-trained “video editors” – just like the parishes’ magazines and websites have writers – and the option to create coordination among editorial teams for a stronger exchange of ideas and good practices.
Valentina Bombelli