FBC Opelika uses BoxCast to stay connected with a growing, multi-generational congregation.
Unreliable Streaming When They Needed It Most
First Baptist Church of Opelika has been a staple in the greater Auburn community since the 1800s – literally. Nestled near Auburn University, the church draws a diverse congregation of retirees, college students, and young families who’ve chosen to plant roots in the area. With a strong Latino and Korean presence in the community as well, FBC Opelika hosts nine Sunday services each week in three languages: English, Spanish, and Korean, welcoming more than 4,000 in-person weekly attendees.
When Covid-19 hit in early 2020, Todd and his team began noticing issues with their live stream. Located in the Central Time Zone, they saw increasing reports of outages from their then-provider, churchstreaming.tv an hour ahead of them in Eastern Time. That was a major concern, especially with 2,000 to 3,000 people trying to watch online – and many more when you consider households tuning in together. Most Sundays, it was likely closer to 10,000 total viewers waiting to watch.
As Campus Production Coordinator Matt Tabor recalled, “When Covid hit, there were a couple of Sundays that we were a little bit concerned about whether or not we’d be able to stream.” That uncertainty pushed the team to search for a more reliable solution. Something built to handle the pressure of a large and growing ministry, both during the pandemic and well beyond.
Reliable + Innovative Streaming
After some extensive research, Todd and his team landed on BoxCast as the best option to support their nine Sunday services, especially since several of them stream concurrently from different rooms throughout their building. The onboarding process was smooth and intuitive. “From my standpoint, it was very easy,” Todd shared. “We used to start streams manually, and with BoxCast, every scheduled event just goes live automatically.”
Since then, FBC Opelika has continued to expand its use of BoxCast to simplify their viewer experience and streamline internal workflows. “The main reason we’ve been using BoxCast OTT apps is to just point everyone to one place,” Todd explained. “They can see everything they need to in one location.”
They’ve also taken advantage of BoxCast’s Multi-Site Player, allowing them to send a live sermon feed from one space to an LED wall in a different venue—each with its own distinct worship style built around the same message. "We didn’t start these multi-services until August,” Matt shared, “but being able to stream a pastor from one place to another was a direct result of what BoxCast enabled us to do."
Steady Growth In-Person + Online
9 Weekly Services | 5,500 Weekly Online Viewers
With over 70,000 annual online viewers and a team of 30+ helping with video production, audio mixing, and streaming, FBC Opelika’s live video workflow has been running smoothly and reliably since 2020.
“Even if we’re on vacation or out of town, we can still log in, check on BoxCast, and make sure everything’s running well. That’s been incredible,” said Matt. Todd added, “As far as my whole take on media and tech – we want to be completely transparent, not be noticed, and have everything go as smoothly as possible. BoxCast has helped us do that for sure.”
The heart of FBC’s ministry is what happens inside their building and between people’s interactions. But with 4,000 regular attendees, life inevitably pulls everyone away from attending periodically. Whether it’s a vacation, a family emergency, or even a global pandemic, their live stream is always ready to help their people stay connected.
Seamless Streaming, Every Week
FBC Opelika runs nine Sunday services across multiple venues and languages. With BoxCast, they’ve automated and scaled their entire live streaming operation – ensuring that no matter what life brings, their congregation can stay connected to the message.
Technology to Support a Growing Church
From powerful OTT tools to multi-site playback, BoxCast helps FBC Opelika handle the demands of a large and growing church without missing a beat. Whether it’s 70,000 online viewers a year or coordinating streams across worship styles, their team can focus on ministry, not managing tech.