Pizza Wars

Deborah from Athletes4Jesus did not like my critique of their marketing campaign. I understand her being upset, I was not kind to their website or their choice to spend so much on a Superbowl ad. You can read her point of view and my response.

Improve Your Church's Communications by Learning from an Expert

If you are trying to figure out how to market your church, you can't go wrong by following the advice of Seth Godin. He is an expert on starting legitimate conversations with and amongst people- which is what the Church is trying to do- get people talking about and in a relationship with God. Check out this free video of Godin speaking at Google:

"All Marketers are Liars" - Seth Godin speaks at Google - Google Video

Make sure you have your notebook ready because Godin has some paradigm shifting statements that will greatly effect your ability to change and improve how you communicate. And if you are wondering if Godin shares his best stuff consider one of his latest blog posts:

So, the question: should you put your best song on the free CD?

If it's your best song, and it's free, then no one will pay to get it from iTunes. And if it's the best song on the album, maybe no one will buy the album since they already have the song.

It's easy to argue that you should hold back the best song, make people pay for that.

Until you realize that the >>> button on my CD player works great.

If you are trying to figure out how to better communicate with your audience, watching this video is probably the best use of your time today.

How, Not If, To Market The Church

John Throop has an excellent article on church marketing trends and what new challenges are being faced:

"...massive shifts in American society over the past 20 years present churches with tremendous challenges to adapt, address new assumptions, and use a new, non-theological language with rapidly increasing numbers of unbelievers..."

How churches market, that is communicate, to to their culture is not an issue it is the issue. Our job description as Christians is to be communicating the Gospel. Jesus contextualized his message and put it into a framwork that could be understood by his hearers. We should follow His example.

Hollywood Woos Your Church

Christian Zappone explains how niche companies find new markets for Hollywood studios:

Paul Lauer, president of Motive Marketing, contends the company's goal isn't about marketing movies as much as providing congregations with tools to further their goals. "Our biggest asset is our relationships," said Lauer. His firm, which also markets to non-religious audiences, developed study and resource guides for "Narnia" that targeted church leaders and school teachers -- just as it had created outreach materials for "Passion."

Christians and conservatives have been clamoring for family friendly movies for over a decade. Now Hollywood is responding. There are more PG-13 movies than in the past, (though some of the content is worse than R movies without being as graphic). The information and study packets for family and Christian themed films are great resources that are usually provided for free. So Christians and conservatives have gotten what they wanted, Hollywood has changed.

Why this change of heart? Is it because of the protests, the full page ads against film and TV violence, or has Hollywood been taken over by the converted? Follow the money- it became less profitable to make non family friendly films. Dollars are votes so when people stopped watching those films and voting for them with their dollars, Hollywood changed their approach. Money isn't everything, but in a capitalist society it is a powerful way to send a message and affect change.

How to Reach the Youth

This Article by Jonathon Norman emphasizes the best way to reach the youth is to empower them to particpate in ministry:

"In a world that does not accommodate teenagers very well unless we're marketing to them and relying on their 'impressionable minds' and pockets to carry our economy, can we as the Church practice a different model of saying, 'You are a vital part of who we are NOW!! Your gifts, your talents, and your service is valued- not just in cleaning up and putting up tables and chairs at dinners but in being a WHOLE part of this community with a voice'.... I hope that's where we are, cause I know they need that empowerment and the Church needs their gifts, raw creativity, ability to venture outside the box, and spirit energy."

I agree, and would add that this is the best way to reach any group in your church.

God Loves Homosexuals

These t-shirts from Apologia Sharewear are another way to start conversations with people about God.

Episcopal Church Reaches Out to the Out

The Episcopal Church reaches out to LGBTs with billboard in the Detroit area. How should churches go about spreading a message of love to this community? Are billboards the answer?

Steve Harvey Ain't Trippin

Steve Harvey has a movie coming out Friday called Don't Trip, He Ain't Through with me Yet that targets Church audiences. Harvey relates his experiences and observations about Church life. This is another film aimed at Christians affirming a trend in Hollywood. It also looks funny.

Another Web Marketing Tool for Churches- Churchshoppers.com

It's worth taking a look at this site for your church: Churchshoppers.com

Acts 17:11 The Original Church Marketing Plan

How did God get people talking in the first century to kick off his new Church building program? It is different than what we do today for sure. Take a look at the analysis in the article- God's Church Growth Program in the First Century:

"Imagine the foolishness of God. He initiates the birth of the church by supernaturally striking dead two generous, if dishonest, contributors right in front of everyone. We tend to stylize and flannelgraph this situation in our minds. But imagine you had really been there and this had happened to someone you knew in the fellowship. Imagine the practical problems of having a couple of corpses on your hands, the general mood, the thought of how you were going to explain this to the authorities, the appreciation of how serious and intense it is to really be in God's presence, and the deep sense of the fear of God that would naturally be the result.

Word spread: 'That is not the place to go if you are playing around. God is there.' Among the Christians, duplicitous people were struck dead, after all. Not a place to trifle with religion, that is for sure.

Let us jump into the text now, after this rather 'negative' miracle and see what God did by and through it.

Acts 5:11,13-14 (NIV) Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events... No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.

There is our 'church growth' verse, in context."

I would like to see myself or another Church marketing guy pitching this idea to a committee.

Word of Mouth Church Marketing

This article on how to Grow a Church With the Power of Words highlights why and how churches should use marketing. It always comes down to word of mouth, but how do you get people talking and sharing. Here are some questions to ask:

* What has your church done lately that is newsworthy or buzzworthy (generates talk)?
* If your church is doing significant things, are people finding out about it?
* Are members inviting other people to the church?
* When people visit the church do they go away with a positive impression and tell other people?
* Do you gather feedback from members and visitors to improve your church?
* How are people finding out about your church? Are they receiving a consistent positive message or is most of the information gleaned from gossip and hearsay?

Godcasting

According to the Tennesean Christian podcasting know as Godcasting is a growing phenomenon:

"Although nascent, the podcasting landscape is growing with an audience expected to reach 60 million people nationwide by 2010, according to The Diffusion Group, a consumer technology research firm based in Plano, Texas. And religious content is one of its fastest-growing segments, say observers. Lycos.com reported last year religious that programs and sermons are the most popular genre"

Yet another area of communications (what I call marketing) that is growing beyond the average church's capacity to grasp. All the more reason to have a minister of communciation at your church. Wether they are paid or volunteer, this will be a big job and don't underestimate the importance.

Reformed Church Marketing

This website from the Reformed Church of America has some great resources and recommendations for Church marketing.

Marketing the Church's

Chicken sales hit over $1 billion for Church's Fried Chicken. Congratulations!

I realize this is not related to marketing the Christian Church, but I thought it was funny.

Love Thy Neighbors?

A Growing church rankles its neighbors in Detroit. WWJD?

Irish church attendance growing in popularity

Irish church attendance is growing in popularity , but it is still second place to shopping.

Growing Megachurches Use Marketing Surveys and Communications

According to a new study, megachurches are growing in the sunbelt and are getting smarter in how they use marketing surveys and communications. The study also found that many of these churches do have ties to traditional denominations. By understanding what best communicates with their target audience, these churches are providing a welcoming environment to thousands of people.

Top megachurch states
1. California (178)
2. Texas (157)
3. Florida (85)
4. Georgia (73)
5. Illinois (46)

Top megachurch cities in Florida
1. Jacksonville(10)
2. Orlando (8)
3. Miami (6)
4. Pensacola (6)
5. Fort Lauderdale (6)
6. Tampa (5)
7. Lakeland (5)"

Websites Make Speedy First Impression

According to a study reported on the BBC News, web users decide if a website is good in about 1/2 a second.

You need to make sure the first thing people see is a great hook for qualified viewers that can lead them to the rest of your site and then to your organization. This is usually going to be a visual image that gets people's attention, and then leads them to read your headlines and copy. Bottom line: make sure your site has visual appeal backed up by great copy.

Warning Against Church Marketing

In this article Pastor Bill Harrel warns that the Church should not be marketed:

“The world is common, but Jesus Christ is superior. … The message of Jesus calls the people of this world to a different standard, and it’s a standard that they don’t want. It calls them to a different standard bearer. And they don’t want the standard bearer. … They want to make it common so the masses of society can find it acceptable to themselves,” he said.

In this process, the Bible becomes a “how-to-book” for success, worship is barely acceptable, and numbers become the main goal. The world would love this church, he said, but they would not hear the gospel in this church. “The church is not a marketable item,” Harrell said.

I agree that the Church must have a message that is clear, distinct from what the world has to offer, and true to the Gospel. But when you are communicating this message you are participating in the marketing process. I understand Harrel's point- he is concerned with psychology lessons disguised as sermons. My only disagreement with the pastor is in the use of terminology.

Bottom line: Churches are already using marketing, my goal is to get them to understand the best way to do so in order to reach more people for Christ while staying true to the Gospel.

Xtreme Christianity- The New Hippies?

This Article in the Herald Tribune describes the rebellious style of today's evangelical youth modeling similar trends in American youth cultural history. The story compares the trend of kids getting into the rebelliousness of Christianity to other counter cultures of past decades like hippies, hip hoppers, and grungers.

Whatever the reason, youth today are attracted to a message that stand for something more than what secular society has to offer. The more the Church can dial into where they're at in a relevant way the better. How is your church taking advantage of this opportunity?

A Bear of a Divorce

In the Seven Keys to Marketing Genius I caution about partnering with others. Not that strategic partnerships are a bad idea, but they should not be entered into lightly. A partnership is like a marriage. Take the case of the Brown Bear Car Wash. They were making big money by partnering with gas station chains, but saw their family name and business deteriote. Money isn't everything. According to the article:

Taking back the company has been a huge endeavor for the Odermats and their employees. You have to wonder how many people would take back a company that had such internal problems when they could just sit back and collect money from a profitable lease agreement.

"Some people wondered why we would want to take the company back given the terms of the lease, which were lucrative for us," Lance says. "We told them money's not everything, but Brown Bear is everything to us."

Partners beware.