Twitter, Facebook, iPhone efforts and offers on books and other products seek to tap into growing digital communities

Christian publishers and suppliers are finding ways to plug into a wider audience through the popular iPhone as well as widely used online services like Twitter and Facebook. They say that by tapping into the benefits of social-media technology, their companies are promoting their authors, books and other products.

Standard Publishing has seen positive results from offering a free iPhone application based on Tony Jeary's new book, Purpose-Filled Presentations.

With more than 1,600 downloads since July 1, the free app—available at a.tapstack.com—presented instruction and insight to help Christians better communicate their faith, Standard officials said.

"We are reaching an entirely new audience who might not have known about Purpose-Filled Presentations otherwise," said Sarah Felkey, Standard's marketing manager who developed the application. "By offering this app, we generate sales for the book, but we're also getting valuable content out to more people through this channel."

For retailers, the app also functioned as a book preview, giving a more in-depth cross-section of the content than the first chapter featured on the book's Web site.

Standard Publishing President Larry Carpenter said the company will pursue other iPhone opportunities. "This first application was intended to gauge the response to this new content-delivery method," he said. "With this level of demand, we are pursuing more mobile applications."

LifeWay Christian Resources launched three iPhone applications in June based on The Love Dare (B&H Books/B&H Publishing Group) by Fireproof movie-making brothers Stephen and Alex Kendrick, which has sold more than 2 million copies since it was released September 2008.

The applications include a digital edition of The Love Dare with pop-up scripture references and the complete Holman Christian Standard Bible (available for $9.99); a "40 Dares" program that lists each day's challenge from the book and allows users to check off the dare when it has been completed (available for 99 cents); and a daily reminders application with 365 quotes from the book that users can mark as favorites and e-mail to others.

Big Idea also recently launched the first VeggieTales application for the iPhone and iPod touch with name personalization.

The "VeggieTales Just For Me" app featured the voices of Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber singing and speaking the name of users as part of an interactive experience. The application offered 3,500 names and nicknames from which to choose, allowing users to listen and watch their very own personalized VeggieTales theme song sung by Bob and Larry.

Meanwhile, DaySpring recently launched a new online community to benefit women, www.incourage.me. The Web site was created by a group of women employees at DaySpring who wanted to share the company's vision of "messages of hope encouragement, everyday, everywhere" in new and fresh ways.

"A lot of companies make the mistake of trying to use social media and those involved in it for a quick transaction, when really it's about building a lifelong relationship with the consumer, incorporating all aspects of her life, including products," said Stephanie Bryant, DaySpring's business development manager. "I get excited to think that our personal passions and corporate mission can coexist and create real life change for women."

Elsewhere, Thomas Nelson recently launched a multifaceted social-media campaign to promote Max Lucado's newest book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear, released Sept. 8.

Thomas Nelson CEO Michael Hyatt kicked off the campaign in August on his blog with a video book review, while offering Fearless' first chapter to download. He also offered those who submitted the first 100 comments a free copy of the book and 1,000 copies for bloggers via the Thomas Nelson Book Review Bloggers program.

Nelson gave away a total of more than 1,200 copies of Fearless. "When we decided to give away copies, I assumed we would get a lot of interest," Hyatt said. "But even I was caught off-guard by the surge of traffic that overwhelmed my blog's server. The response was tremendous."

During a video town hall meeting in August, Lucado answered questions from live audience members related to various subjects, including fear of job loss and losing loved ones, which were later posted on the Fearless Web site.

Fans of another Thomas Nelson author, Donald Miller, followed his updates on social-networking sites to find the locations of hidden manuscript copies of his latest book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, released last month.

Sixty numbered and signed "bootleg" copies of the manuscript were hidden in secret locations in 60 cities across the country. Miller sent out daily messages via Twitter and Facebook with information on the location of two of the manuscripts. Those who found them also received Miller's personal phone number, so they could call him to talk about the book.

The Donald Miller Hidden Manuscripts game started in mid-August with manuscripts hidden in Portland; Seattle; Memphis, Tenn.; Fremont, Calif.; Fairhope, Ala.; Longmont, Colo.; and Atlanta. The response had been phenomenal, with manuscripts being picked up within a few minutes of Miller's Twitter and Facebook updates, Miller's publisher said.

Nelson also gave consolation prizes to people who didn't arrive in time to find the manuscript, including a free download of the audio version of Miller's best-selling Blue Like Jazz (Thomas Nelson).

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