13 Reasons Why Churches Use ProPresenter

ProPresenter is one of the leading visual media software in church production. Every Sunday, churches around the globe use ProPresenter to carry out their church services. There are tons of different presentation software, what makes ProPresenter so appealing for churches across the world?

1. Multimedia Presentations

ProPresenter makes it easy to integrate images, videos, lyrics, and graphics into your church’s visual media workflow. You can choose between static and dynamic elements in your presentation. For example, pastors can display a static image to serve as a visual aid during sermons. Conversely, users can set up announcement loops to run in the background that automatically switch between visuals. Churches can easily add images or videos that integrate seamlessly with the rest of their presentations.

It is important to note that more media will require more processing power. For more insight into system requirements, check out my article outlining how to pick a computer for ProPresenter.

2. Lyrics Displays

With ProPresenter, it’s easy to set up and display lyrics during times of sung worship. ProPresenter allows you to fully customize every aspect of the lyrics to ensure they blend perfectly with the rest of the service. You have full control of fonts, text size, font colour, and how many lines of text; you have full control. You can easily customize the arrangement of songs according to your worship team and the needs of your church.

3. SongSelect (CCLI) Integration

SongSelect by CCLI is one of the most widely used sources of lyric, chord, and lead sheets for churches around the world. With ProPresenters SongSelect integration, you can easily add any song arrangement to your presentation by simply inputting its unique CCLI number. From there, you can then edit lyrics and rearrange the arrangement as needed.

4. Planning Center Integration

“Planning Center is a set of software tools to help you organize information, coordinate events, communicate with your team, and connect with your congregation.”

planningcenter.com

ProPresenter’s Planning Center (PCO) integration automatically syncs the order of service according to PCO. ProPresenter will also automatically download media that is attached in PCO. This makes it easy to plan and schedule using Planning Center then lets ProPresenter automatically import that information into your presentation.

The PCO integration works hand-in-hand with ProPresenter’s SongSelect integration by automatically pulling the CCLI number from songs linked in Planning Center. It’s important to note that Planning Center integration requires ProPresenter 7.7 minimum (source).

5. Ease of Use

ProPresenter was created to be powerful yet accessible. It features an intuitive interface that makes it easy to train volunteers and staff. Pastors can create sermon slides with a small amount of training time. If any of your staff or volunteers are having trouble learning, there are lots of ProPresenter tutorials on the Renewed Vision website.

6. Livestreaming Capabilities

One of the highlights of ProPresenters for churches is that it has good livestream capabilities. Churches can send live video feeds to ProPresenter and then generate overlays for sermon slides and other media. It’s easy to overlay song lyrics and use custom lower-third graphics for engaging live streams.

ProPresenter also has a Resi plugin to make live streaming easier. Resi allows churches to quickly and simply set up a live stream; you can also automate and schedule live streams for future services.

“Livestreaming with Resi and ProPresenter is simple. Just select your video source screen, preset destinations, and resolution—that’s it. Click Start Streaming and the Resi Cloud takes over, delivering your livestream in up to 1080p60.”

resi.io

7. Engaging Sermon Visuals

Pastors can use ProPresenter to display sermon points, scripture references, and other illustrations for engaging sermons. Slides created in ProPresenter will look consistent and professional. Pastors can quickly learn how to use ProPresenter using Renewed Vision’s catalogue of tutorials. It’s even possible to set up these slides so they are automatically converted to lower-third graphics for live stream use.

8. Real-Time Editing

Sometimes you need to make changes on the fly, whether your worship team starts to improvise, or you’ve found a typo in your pastor’s sermon slides, you can easily make edits during your presentation. Real-time edits that don’t interrupt your presentation are crucial and one of the best features of ProPresenter; it’s one of those features that you use heavily but don’t realize.

9. Mulitple Output Support

One of the main selling points that ProPresenter has is the ability to present on multiple displays at the same time. Churches can set up announcement loops in the foyer and have main monitors, a stage display, and a live stream running all at the same time. ProPresenter gives users the ability to format each output to display specific content. The software even has built-in stage display functionality.

10. Stage Display

Stage displays, or confidence monitors, are integral to running a service smoothly. They give people on stage information on the status of the service and guide them on where to transition to next. ProPresenter automatically formats a stage display that shows upcoming slides, notes, cues, and even how much allocated time the speaker has left in their segment of the service. This way, pastors can see if they are running overtime or have extra time for their sermons. The stage display is generated automatically using the information users input while creating their presentation.

11. Cues & Timing Control

Another powerful use for ProPresenter is its ability to work with cues and timing control. This is crucial for smooth services and ensuring seamless transitions throughout your church service. ProPresenter can link to DMX lighting, tracks from your worship team, and other timed functions all linked to the slides in your service. This integration can help reduce the workload of your volunteers and blend every aspect of your service nicely.

12. Consistent Styles and Themes

ProPresenter was built for professional presentations. What this means in the context of churches is that things like series graphics and church branding can be integrated into custom ProPresenter themes for consistency from Sunday to Sunday. It’s easy for churches to reuse playlists from week to week, this reduces tech prep time and volunteer/staff workload.

If your church is considering ProPresenter, check out our other article outlining 17 reasons your church should use ProPresenter.

13. Regular Software Updates

Renewed Vision is constantly updating ProPresenter; they actively listen to their customers to fix any bugs and improve their software. Minor updates are included in your initial ProPresenter purchase but, major updates will cost you. For more information, check out our article breaking down the cost of ProPresenter and some alternatives.