Church Marketing Sucks: March 2008 Archives

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March 31, 2008

Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 3

This is the last of my three guest posts here at Church Marketing Sucks on the best practices for Internet ministry. In my first post, I explained how my research had shown that the churches and other ministries with successful web sites were the ones who had a deliberate planning process. My second post discussed the issue of using volunteers to develop and maintain your web site and how the most successful web ministries did not use volunteers to do this. In this post, I will discuss the last of my preliminary findings, which relates to keeping the site updated.

Internet Ministry Best Practice #3: a successful Internet ministry carefully decentralizes the responsibility for updating content.

Continue reading "Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 3"

Posted by Guest Blogger at 7:11 AM
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March 28, 2008

Church Marketing Lab: Welcome Displays, Bulletins and More

(Filed under: Peer Review)

As the Church Marketing Lab nears 2,000 members, we want to remind you that anyone can take part. Whether you're a designer, a person with a question or someone with an opinion, it's the perfect place for you. And if you prefer the non-cyber world, check out the Local Labs. Here's a taste of what's been going on in our Church Marketing Lab this week.

Miami Harvest Church has a new welcome display banner.

Continue reading "Church Marketing Lab: Welcome Displays, Bulletins and More"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 5:29 AM
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March 27, 2008

Church Marketing in South Africa

(Filed under: Interviews)

Finishing up (to the best of my knowledge) a whirlwind tour around the world from England to Belgium to Australia, we've now got Norman Clack from the Republic of South Africa to tell us a little more about church marketing in Africa. It's one of our longer interviews, but it's super interesting and insightful to hear the stories and challenges of life and church marketing in South Africa.

Norman, tell us a little about yourself and your church.
Norman: I’m a licensed pastor with the International Federation of Christian Churches in South Africa. I have been in full-time ministry for 9 years. I have had the privilege to be on staff and involved in a leadership capacity with a spectrum of denominational as well as some non-denominational churches in South Africa over the past 17 years.

Continue reading "Church Marketing in South Africa"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 12:20 PM
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March 26, 2008

Responding to Attacks

(Filed under: Public Relations)

You've probably seen a raving, ranting black preacher talking about racism and "God damn America" with a fiery anger on just about every TV channel. The news media found some video clips of sermons given by Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright, the pastor of potential presidential candidate Barack Obama. The news media found the most incendiary examples and played them ad nauseam with no context. People began accusing Wright of all kinds of things, including being anti-American, anti-gay and an anti-Semite (based on the context I've seen, I concluded he's none of those things).

But Barack Obama and Jeremiah Wright aren't my focus today. My focus is what Trinity United Church of Christ, Wright's church, has done in response.

Continue reading "Responding to Attacks"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:42 AM
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Boston or Bust! (Our HOW Winner is ... )

(Filed under: News & Updates)

A special congratulations goes out to Vincent Scatliffe of Decatur, Ga. for his victorious effort in our special Win a Free Trip to HOW contest! Of the first 30 respondents to our call, he was the winner of a random drawing for a full conference pass. On May 18th, he'll be headed to Boston for the HOW Design Conference, and on May 21st, he'll be back to share all his new wisdom with his family, church and CFCC friends.

We do, however, have a special consolation prize if you didn't get drawn for the free pass. Until Friday, you can still get up to $120 off by using the code "CFCC8." Still a pretty sweet deal if you ask us. So head over and register to join Vincent, Michael and the gang at the conference in May!

Godspeed Vincent, don't forget to tell us how things went!

Posted by Joshua Cody at 5:37 AM
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March 25, 2008

A Prayer for Church Communication Professionals

(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

I had lunch last week with an art director from one of the larger well-known churches in southern California. This guy (I'll call him Brian) oozes sincerity and has a real passion for seeing people--especially those in the 25 to 35-year-old crowd--get to know Jesus. Although Brian works at a church now, his background is in the corporate media world, including a stint at Disney. Brian could get a job anywhere making many times what he's making now, but he chooses to be where he is at because he wants to see the church get better at communication.

When you meet Brian and hang with him for more than a minute, you are immediately drawn to his let-it-all-out persona. He's dramatic, insightful and has little tolerance for crummy church communication. Brian is deeply frustrated with his own church for their apparent disregard for improving and, although he has been there for a couple years, he is at the end of his rope. I wouldn't be surprised to see his resignation any day.

My heart goes out to people like Brian as I know he's not alone. And while it's easy for me to criticize and condemn, I'm trying to get better at laying this stuff at the feet of Jesus.

Continue reading "A Prayer for Church Communication Professionals"

Posted by Brad Abare at 12:42 PM
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March (Sex) Madness Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

So the 30-Day Sex Challenge is already well under way, and if you were looking to join in, you'll have to wait until next year. We figured we'd wrap up our coverage of it with a poll asking what you thought of it.

Most of you were big fans of the campaign. You like the idea of churches encouraging intimacy within marriage and encouraging singles to abstain. Any British fans of church sex marketing could also check out the new material from the Church of England--"Growing Together." Summed up (probably inaccurately) by British tabloid The Sun as, "Officials at the Church of England have written a saucy good sex guide for their parishioners."

36% of you aren't so sure. Half of you aren't fans of their caveat that singles should also remain celibate. You think this is condoning premarital sex, and churches ought not be in that business. The other half of you could wrap up your feelings about the challenge as, "Meh."

The last 26% of you think it's silly altogether, and there might be a little too testosterone-driven. C'mon guys can make up the marketing campaigns just fine. I mean, what do you propose? Extreme Makeover: Church Edition? (Ed. Note: My apologies for that being the best I can come up with. Comments are now open to 30-Day Sex Challenge Alternative.)

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:19 AM
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March 24, 2008

Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 2

(Filed under: Demographics/Research)

by David Bourgeois, Guest Blogger

In this series I am previewing some preliminary results of my research into the best practices for Internet ministry. In my first post in this series, I suggested that churches and other ministries that have a deliberate planning process that includes the development of a mission statement for the web site, data collection and the development of a target user profile are the most successful. In continuing this research, I present my findings as they relate to the use of volunteers to develop a web ministry:

Internet Ministry Best Practice #2: a successful Internet ministry does not rely exclusively on volunteers to create or maintain their web site.

Continue reading "Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 2"

Posted by Guest Blogger at 5:03 PM
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March 21, 2008

Real World Easter Marketing

(Filed under: Examples)

Here are a couple churches going out of their way to create buzz for Easter. Not everyone should do these things, but we always encourage thinking outside of the box.

Easter fortune cookies - Lifechurch.tv in Hendersonville, Tenn., gave out bags of fortune cookies that include a fortune and a link to their Easter site. Folks may not want to listen to you about your site, but they might check it out after they get a sweet fortune cookie.

Elephants for Easter - Church by the Glades (we've discussed them before) is going to have Judy, a 9,000 pound Indian elephant, at their services this Sunday to promote a message on denial. Sounds like a great idea, and it even comes with the obligatory response to PETA.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:59 AM
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Church Marketing Lab: A Bright Idea

(Filed under: Peer Review)

This week, we take a break from our regularly-scheduled Church Marketing Lab roundup. I couldn't help but highlight a single entry this week -- a poignant and humorous submission that might just be a good idea for all churches.

To quote Church Marketing Lab member reslifephoto, this is ...

"A guide to caring for volunteers at church. Internal communication to help staff work with volunteers. I chose to use cartoons examples to keep people's attention. It seemed to work, for months after I handed these out, people still had them posted at their desks!"

Three cheers to you, reslifephoto, for a great idea and putting your priorities on treating volunteers well. And another two cheers for you, Church Marketing Lab, for being a place where ideas like this can come to get around.

Done something creative? Want to do something creative? Head over and get your creative glass filled up.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:38 AM
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March 20, 2008

Catalyst Interviews Seth Godin

(Filed under: Interviews)

The kind folks over at Catalyst pointed us to their most recent podcast with Seth Godin, our favorite bald marketing guru extraordinaire. As always, Seth has some incredible insights, and the Catalyst podcasts are always entertaining. Head over and check it out, or go straight through iTunes.

You'll get wonderful tidbits of information on the power of free, marketing stories rather than products, making a difference rather than making a profit, not being something you're not, the value of quitting and more.

It'll be worth your 30 minutes, I promise. If not, I'll personally refund your money from downloading it (but not the opportunity cost of the 30 minutes).

Posted by Joshua Cody at 12:09 PM
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March 19, 2008

Still Time To Win HOW Ticket

(Filed under: News & Updates)

If you haven't entered to win the ticket to the HOW Design Conference this May 18-21, ~~you still have a chance~~ you're out of luck--the drawing is now closed. We're going to announce the winner on Tuesday, March 25.

While you're over on the CFCC site, you can also see the announcement of who will be leading the CFCC session at HOW in May.

The deadline for early-bird registration is March 28 and you can save up to $120 if you register before then.

Posted by Brad Abare at 7:03 AM
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March 18, 2008

Churches as a Media Platform

(Filed under: Evangelism & Outreach)

Veggie Tales founder Phil Vischer has been blogging about his big dreams for his new company, Jellyfish (if you're not familiar with Vischer's departure from Big Idea, you should read his book, Me, Myself & Bob: A True Story About Dreams, God, and Talking Vegetables). So far he's blogged about two problems:

"Problem #1 – we need to raise a generation of Christians who know what it means to live out the Gospel."
"Problem #2 – Christian kids media is dying for lack of a platform."

He's gone on to talk about a platform to address these problems, which he called the "world's smallest TV network." God speed, Phil.

But I've got another idea: Why can't the church be the platform?

Continue reading "Churches as a Media Platform"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 1:49 PM
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Sunday Morning What? Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

There's a lot of newfangled names floating around for that thing churches usually do on Sunday mornings. We decided to round up a few of them and see just what everyone is calling their Sunday Morning [blank]. Here's what you had to say, followed by a custom personality analysis of your church.

70% of you are holding strong to tradition and calling it a "Service." I imagine this might be preceded by a word like "Worship," or it might just stand alone. Either way, feel good, because you're in the majority. You like to keep it simple and stick with what works.

6% of you refer to Sunday mornings as celebrations. Again, possibly preceded by "Community," "Worship" or another twist on the term. What does this say about your church? You like to let people know they're in for a good time on Sunday mornings, and they can come party with you.

Another 6% of you call it a gathering. I think this one usually stands alone, but if you refer to yourself as a "gathering," you probably tend to be a bit more free-wheeling, nomadic, and cutting edge. 3% of you go with a Sunday morning "fellowship." I'm not sure exactly what this says about your church. To me, it says that you have donuts and coffee, but that's not so scientific.

And cheers to me for a great poll result, 0% of you call it an "environment." Hey, I've heard of it before. And another 14% of you call it something else. Let's hear it in the comments, what do you do on Sunday morning?

This week, let us know, how do you feel about the "30-day Sex Challenge?"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:21 AM
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March 17, 2008

Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 1

(Filed under: Demographics/Research)

by David Bourgeois, Guest Blogger

For the past year I have been conducting a research project on what makes a successful Internet ministry (see the specifics here). The goal of the research is to understand how churches and other ministries are implementing their web presence and then to use the results to develop a framework for successful Internet ministry.

I have spent many hours interviewing church web ministry leaders to better understand the various decisions they have made and processes they have used. Over the past couple of months, as many of you may know, I have surveyed over 240 ministries (which includes 88 churches) to try to get some deeper insights into their web implementations. The folks here at Church Marketing Sucks have graciously allowed me to use this platform as a way to share some of my preliminary findings (in the form of "best practices") and to get feedback from you all. I will be presenting the full set of results at the Internet Ministry Conference later this year.

Continue reading "Best Practices for Internet Ministry: Part 1"

Posted by Guest Blogger at 2:28 PM
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When Church Marketing Sucks

(Filed under: Off the Wall)

Any church marketers out there looking for a job involving a healthy dose of damage control? Check out these couple of churches.

Trinity United Church of Christ. Barack Obama's church is in some hot water. (We discussed his views on church marketing earlier.) This week, his pastor made it a point to violate one of the basic rules of church marketing (and the law): Don't endorse a candidate. He decided to endorse Obama often from the pulpit, and now the IRS is considering revoking their tax-exempt status. Oops!
Unnamed Daphne, Alabama church. Officials are thinking an outbreak of E. coli in three Alabamans might have come from meat at a church cookout in Daphne, Alabama. The lesson here? It sounds silly, but in reality, burned burgers are the safe choice at your church cookout. It's a big liability to let just anyone cook meat for people visiting with you, and giving them a disease? Bad marketing.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:53 AM
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March 14, 2008

HOW Church Marketing Sucks

(Filed under: News & Updates)

How does church marketing suck? Well, we count the ways on this blog nearly every day. But one way church marketing can suck a little less is by learning from the communications professionals behind How magazine (who included us in an article back in December) and the How Design Conference. The Center for Church Communication--our nonprofit parent--is partnering with HOW.

So what does that mean for you?

A special CFCC workshop at the upcoming HOW Design Conference in Boston from May 18-21.
You can save up to $120 on your HOW registration.
A chance to win a free full-conference pass to the HOW Design Conference.

Check out the CFCC site for more details.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 5:09 PM
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Surveying Church

(Filed under: Resources)

Have you ever done a church survey? We talked about them long ago, but if you still haven't jumped on the bandwagon, I wanted to give another little plug. It's a great way to get quantitative data to put certainty to your qualitative hunch. Church Central recently discussed three tips to survey development, and while they may seem a little rudimentary, they're a great starting point. I'll give you their categories and my thoughts about them.

What do you want to know? Don't just start taking shots in the sky and hoping someone will give you some good answers. Figure out exactly what you're looking to know, and ask accordingly. You don't have to know everything right now; just stay focused, and keep it simple.
Remember survey etiquette. Find a way to make your survey least intrusive and most diverse. Ask differently formatted question so number folks and grammar folks can both get their say, and make it available to people so it's not an inconvenience.
Follow-up is key. This is so vital. Let people know that their votes mattered and you're looking to make changes. If the survey wasn't anonymous, get in touch with individuals to delve deeper or say "Thanks."

Church surveys are a simple way to know your congregation and give them a voice; don't miss out on a great opportunity.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:11 AM
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March 13, 2008

Erwin McManus Touches (Lightly) on Church Marketing

(Filed under: Evangelism & Outreach)

Erwin McManus has his thoughts about why churches are in decline. And it's not bad design, bad web sites or poor use of technology.

"My primary assessment would be because American Christians tend to be incredibly self-indulgent so they see the church as a place there for them to meet their needs and to express faith in a way that is meaningful for them ... I think the bottom line really is our own spiritual narcissism. There are methods and you can talk about style, structure and music, but in the end it really comes down to your heart and what you care about."

You don't market country clubs. You don't market your secret society. And you can't market your church if the attitude within is one of self-indulgence and only caring about what works best for your members. Simply put, you can't market your church if your church isn't ready to sacrifice. (link via MMI)

Posted by Joshua Cody at 1:36 PM
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Job Lab Roundup

(Filed under: News & Updates)

The Job Lab and Freelance Lab are still going strong in 2008. It's been two months since January; remember that time you resolved to find a new job? Well, don't miss out on some great opportunities we've been seeing.

From the Job Lab ...

Church by the Glades is searching for a motionographer
Are you a graphic designer? Brookside Church needs you.
There's an opening for a pastor of marketing and communication at Valley Christian Center.

And if you're a freelancer looking for opportunities, or if you're looking to outsource a job, don't miss out on our Freelance Lab. It's a great place to go to have a site built, get some print design done or find a writer.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 10:43 AM
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March 11, 2008

Forget Marketing, Christian Living Sucks

(Filed under: The Christian Walk)

A recent report from Christian pollsters the Barna Group, summed up in the book UnChristian: What a New Generation Really Thinks about Christianity ... and Why It Matters by David Kinnaman, has some bad news for churches.

Today's young people, ages 16-29, have a more critical view of Christians than previous generations. Specifically, they think Christians are judgmental, anti-homosexual, hypocritical, too political and sheltered. And that's not just a minority viewpoint--it's an overwhelming majority who say Christians are ...

Anti-homosexual: 91%
Judgmental: 87%
Hypocritical: 85%
Old-fashioned: 78%
Too involved in politics: 75%

And those negative perceptions aren't simply perceptions:

"Going into this three-year project, I assumed that people’s perceptions were generally soft, based on misinformation, and would gradually morph into more traditional views. But then, as we probed why young people had come to such conclusions, I was surprised how much their perceptions were rooted in specific stories and personal interactions with Christians and in churches." -David Kinnaman

So what does this mean for churches?

Continue reading "Forget Marketing, Christian Living Sucks"

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:14 PM
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Evangelism as an Ad Model: Part Two

(Filed under: Brand & Identity)

Last time, we discussed Advertising Age's review of Brands of Faith, and we looked at the problems that arise when churches over market and under deliver.

But there's a second problem lurking.

The label of "evangelical." With individuals familiar to Christianity or the Bible, "evangelical" would seem to be "one who shares the gospel," thus, we would all hope to be evangelical. With individuals looking to apply terms to a movement, "evangelical" is conflated with words like "Republican," "fundamentalist," "intolerant" or "conservative."

Continue reading "Evangelism as an Ad Model: Part Two"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 8:16 PM
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Give It Up for Lent Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

We put together a little list, and we wanted to know which church marketing move you wanted your church to give up for Lent. Your results were all across the board. Here's what you had to say:

The top two answers were the 46% of you who either most wanted to get rid of bad web design or brand theft. You're tired of web sites that look like this (Pepsi site circa 1996, courtesy of the WayBack Machine) and series called "True Values" and "iGod." It's OK, we feel your pain.

Another 17% of you are tired of every church and their brother plastering billboards that say "Best sex ever" or "[Insert phrase] -Satan" or "God answer knee mail." For the record, we post them here for inspiration and to push the envelope, not for the express purposes of plagiarism. We won't knock it if it gets people in and gets people's lives changed though.

12% of you are fed up with paying for sermons. You want your downloads to be free, otherwise you're about to turn to church sermon piracy. Another 6% of you are ready to be rid of professional greeters. It seems a little bit contrived to you. And a final 3% of you are tired of endless blogging. I wonder if this is because of not too many pastors trying blogging or just a few pastors being great at it.

And then, of course, there's the 15% of you whose church doesn't do any of these. Congratulations! Feel free to vent your frustration with other, unlisted church marketing offenses in the comments. This week we ask what you call your Sunday morning, um, event.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:35 AM
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March 10, 2008

Evangelism as an Ad Model

(Filed under: Brand & Identity)

I'll admit, I'm walking in to this conversation a bit late. Advertising Age recently ran a piece called When Evangelism is the Ad Model. It's actually a book review, so be careful where to point any criticism or praise you might have. Here's the jist of things (jist (n.) - me explaining a book I have not read via the impression I got from an Advertising Age article):

The evangelistic movement is an ad model for Christianity; it's the lens through which secular America views our faith. The rise of evangelical Christianity, along with its politics and attitudes, was built on marketing rather than true spiritual revival. Mara Einstein, the author of the book in question, looks at different brands of faith (e.g. President Bush, Rick Warren, Oprah) and their rise to popularity. Then, she examines the relationship between religion and marketing, as well as a looming "disappointment" for individuals drawn to religion by marketing.

Continue reading "Evangelism as an Ad Model"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:33 AM
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March 7, 2008

Church Marketing Lab: From Logos to Postcards

(Filed under: Peer Review)

Last week, we took a week off from letting you know what was going on in the Church Marketing Lab. But now, we're back in the full swing of things, and here's a taste of what we've seen in the past couple of weeks:

This is a series concept for "Generations."

Continue reading "Church Marketing Lab: From Logos to Postcards"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:04 AM
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March 6, 2008

Church Marketing Goes Local

(Filed under: News & Updates)

If you're signed up for our monthly e-mail newsletter then you probably already heard the news: We've gone local. The Center for Church Communication (our nonprofit parent) has just launched the Local Labs.

What are the Local Labs? They're local meet ups for church communicators--a chance to connect, share ideas and maybe even commiserate (you're not the only one who has to put up with Comic Sans). They're being organized locally by folks like you. Check out the Local Labs page to learn more, including how to join a group or start your own.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:26 PM
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March 5, 2008

Church Marketing Down Under

(Filed under: Interviews)

Our international repertoire has been growing leaps and bound. We learned about church marketing in England and then we moved on to Belgium. (Anyone from South America, Africa or Asia? Antarctica maybe? Drop us a line.) Then we decided to head to the other hemisphere and hear from Steve Fogg, the communication manager for Crossway in Melbourne, Australia. Here's what he had to say about church marketing in the land of kangaroos, boomerangs and blooming onions.

Steve, tell us a little bit about your church and your position there.

Steve: Based in Melbourne, Australia, Crossway is the largest Baptist Church in Australia. It is a church that has over 3,800 people attending its four campuses (plus English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Korean and Indonesian language congregations) around Melbourne, with a fifth due to be launched this year. The vision is for Crossway to grow as a movement of churches throughout Australia and beyond with over 8,000 people by 2010.

Continue reading "Church Marketing Down Under"

Posted by Joshua Cody at 11:13 AM
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Internet Minsitry Poll Results

(Filed under: Poll Results)

This week, we asked how your church most often uses the Internet during ministry. We've certainly seen examples of churches doing all three, but when the vote went to the people, here's what you had to say:

The clear, large and distinct majority use the Internet to augment existing ministries. Maybe you have a Facebook account to go with your youth group, a microsite to go along with a service launch or information on your church's site to promote an event.

Another 25% of you use the Internet primarily as missions and outreach. There are people out there who are yet to be reached, and you see the only way to reach them as the Internet. Maybe gamers. Maybe techies. Maybe even Trekkies?

The final 5% of you use the Internet to replace existing ministries. I mean hey, why drive to church on Sunday mornings when you can fly in Second Life? Really though, what sort of ministries have you been able to completely outsource to the Internet? It's an interesting concept.

This week, we're asking you, what church marketing move do you most wish churches would give up for Lent?

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:43 AM
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March 3, 2008

No Time Like the Present

(Filed under: Demographics/Research)

Church marketing. It's a term that sends chills down the spines of some and puts warm fuzzies in the heart of this blog. Love it or hate it, it's something that is, and it's something that is going to be.

The New York Times reports on the U.S. Religion Landscape Survey that more than 25% of adults have left their childhood faith for either a different religion or no religion. People are switching congregations, denominations and faiths at an unprecedented rate in a culture of short attention spans and mass boredom.

Both the NYT article and the original survey provide too many insights to cover here--from a decline in Catholicism to guesses at why megachurches succeed and everything in between. It's incredibly insightful, and it could spur some great conversation about how to market your church. Maybe even a great staff read.

Either way, folks are moving around out there, and unless they know your church exists and what you believe, they won't be able to get on board. So go out there and market your church for the sake of the Church.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 7:27 AM
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