Church Marketing Sucks

The ChurchMag Spotlight features our own Kevin D. Hendricks (that’s me):

Eric Dye and I talk about the Tick, reading and church communication. Here are a few highlights:

The Biggest Church Marketing Lesson:

“This is going to sound kind of weak, but I think the biggest thing is they just need to do it.”

There are so many churches out there, the churches under 300 people, they don’t have a communications director. A lot of these churches are just small and they’re not focused on communication and marketing. … So many churches need to realize the importance of it and realize they’re already doing it.”

“Because this is the greatest story ever told, this is the gospel, and we want people to come to our churches and hear that. But if we’re not telling anybody, if we’re not bringing them in, then we’re not doing the great commission.”

Best Church Marketing Ever:

“When we talk about the worst church marketing ever or the best, those are difficult categories… so when I think of the best communication I’ve seen, it’s stuff that connects with people and that doesn’t require loads of money and all kinds of fancy stuff. It’s usually simple things, simple stories, simple testimonies. The age old testimony where people got up in church and told their story, that’s really powerful communication. … Capture that story, tell that story. Write it up in a few paragraphs, get a video on that person, even if it’s just your phone. Those stories are incredible.”

Good News for Small Churches:

“We’re not going to compete on slick production values, but we have cool stories we can share and that’s what’s going to work and where we can find success.” -Kevin

“Churches big and small; budgets big and small; those with technical skills, those without; those that are creative, those that are not; we can all do it, start with the story and go from there.” -Eric

Suggested Reading:

The practical books:

• The Social Media Gospel: Sharing the Good News in New Ways by Meredith Gould
• The Word Made Fresh: Communicating Church and Faith Today by Meredith Gould
• Less Clutter. Less Noise.: Beyond Bulletins, Brochures and Bake Sales by Kem Meyer

The Center for Church Communication books:

• Outspoken: Conversations on Church Communication
• Dangerous: A Go-to Guide for Church Communication
• Church Communication Heroes Volume 1: Lessons From Those Who Have Gone Before
• Or get all three in an ebook bundle and save some cash.

The Memoirs:

• Traveling Mercies: Some Thoughts on Faith by Anne Lamott
• When We Were on Fire: A Memoir of Consuming Faith, Tangled Love, and Starting Over by Addie Zierman