• www.niche.com
• Town website or Chamber of Commerce
• Trip Advisor

• Church Website
• Church Social Media 
• Google Maps (pictures and street view)
• Google Reviews
• Watch a service

A couple of great resources:

• Zillow.com (housing)
• DataUSA.io (cost of living compared to where you currently live)

• Don’t accept an on-site visit if you AND your spouse can not see yourself living in or working at this church.
• This can’t be a vacation opportunity or a chance to see friends in the area.
• This is not a timeshare deal.

• Ask for a schedule of your time there.
• Be sure you have enough time to renew and refresh
• After you review the schedule, carefully offer input if necessary

• Do they make opportunities for connection with your spouse?
• Will they include your spouse in any part of the interview process?

• Come with a list of questions about the community and the church
• Every interaction counts. Every one.
• Ask great questions.  If you can google it, don’t ask it.
• This is really no different than a zoom interview, except the stakes are higher and the conversation is more serious.  Be prepared and make a good impression.
• If you hit it off online, chances are you’ll hit it off in person. They like you, that’s why they’ve brought you in. The purpose now: IS THIS A FIT?

• Do they give you opportunities to talk freely with staff or do they control those situations?  Why or why not?
• Is this an 'incognito visit'?

Do they give you the opportunity to tour the community?

• Imagine living in this town
• Imagine being on this staff
  Imagine your kids going to this school
• Imagine your family attending this church

• Have they let down their guard and started to (willingly) show their imperfections.
• Are they still superficial?  Are you able to start building some trust and relationship?

• What do the questions they’re asking you tell you about their values?
• How much past conflict has the church endured?
• How do you compare to the last person that held the position?
• What are they postponing until you arrive?
• What is the existing leadership structure and where do you fit?
• What are the motives of the person who picks you up at the airport?
• What is the church’s financial situation?
• What are the cultural and theological issues of the day?
• How many people are related to each other?
• What does the first year look like?

• This may or may not come up.
• If they ask you what you need, have an answer in mind. But be careful.
• If they don’t bring it up, you probably shouldn’t either… at least yet.
• Sometimes you don’t know the salary until they make an offer (we hate this)
• Search firms (like Chemistry) hopefully will filter you by your financial needs so that there is no severe mismatch at the end.

• An offer?
• “We’ll get back to you”
• A mutual feeling that this isn’t a good fit
• Salary negotiations

Thank them and follow up. They've invested a lot of their time and money in making your visit happen.  Be sure to be appreciative (even if the weekend doesn't go as planned).