The game publisher hired a group of nearly 20 people to stand outside the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles on Wednesday and appear to protest the upcoming EA game "Dante's Inferno." EA spokeswoman Holly Rockwood says the stunt was arranged by a viral marketing agency hired by EA.

This is a reckless, foolish stunt by Electronic Arts, and it makes them seem like very disingenuous [insert a derogatory name of choice]s. Stunts like this at the expense of others and that are so blatantly dishonest really irritate me.

But all that aside, as Christians, we set them up for this joke. I told the story of when Hooters came to the town of the church I attended here, and I think this is in the same vein. We've made ourselves the butt of the joke by being protesters rather than servants. And now, it's a tough pill to swallow as we reap the fruits of that stance.

What is your church doing to distance itself from these sort of outlandish protests in favor of a more philanthropic, gospel-based views?

In it, he makes some great points regarding marketers' obsession with numbers and metrics. I'll give you a couple snippets to whet your appetite, but you don't want to miss the entire article.

I'll quote Jeff who quotes Seth Godin who is quoting Dave Balter (welcome to the Internet.):

"Because marketers were raised on the scale of mass-TV, radio, newspapers, they have a churn and burn mentality. The Internet turns this upside down. The Internet is about who, not how many. The Internet lets you take really good care of 100 people instead of harassing 2,000."

"We leaders, marketers and revolutionaries need to be awfully careful that we do not measure the 'success' of our efforts based solely on metrics. We need to avoid delving into this comomditization of the community, where we treat everyone like a number. The consequences are fatal to those that are trusting us to lead and guide them. And pretty soon, our marketing is ineffective and our message is meaningless. 'Community' becomes another byword for 'customer base,' and once again Christians are being called (rightfully so) hypocritical."

"And they have overcome (conquered) him by means of the blood of the Lamb and by the utterance of their testimony..." (Revelation 12:1, Amplified Bible)

In the marketing world, there is a great understanding of the power of a testimony. It doesn't matter what you claim about your product, but it does matter that some of the people who have used your product share their experience.

I am involved in the marketing strategy group of a large Christian conference center in Sweden, and we encourage all of our guests to comment on their visit. Then, we ask for permission to use that in our printed material or on our web site, and it has proven to be incredibly effective for us.

I found myself considering how poorly we utilize people's stories in church marketing--particularly on church web sites.

Surfing around the web I find that most “modern” church sites have one main feature in common, a prominent slideshow telling about the theme for the next upcoming message series. Of course, there's nothing wrong with that, but on most sites it's impossible to find stories from the people who are actually in that church and have seen their lives transformed by the power of God.

You have them in your church! Maybe they are not former drug addicts, gang members or sport stars, but they are people who have faced all kinds of problems or found purpose in life. And they've found the solution in their relationship with God and with your church.

One Danish church ministry I recently created a web site for chose to highlight stories from their members in a “Believe it or not” section. It's people with all kinds of backgrounds who have seen their lives transformed by the power of God. They also host an online environment every night where people can come in and chat with some of these people.

It's been very successful for them, and they have even seen people surrendering their lives to Jesus online and becoming a part of their church community.

My pastor often reminds me that, instead of constantly talking, we should let other people speak, the people who can testify about how that message has changed their lives. And I think it's time for us to give all these people a voice in our online and offline marketing. Maybe it will touch people in an even more powerful way then if they would just hear it from our pastors!

Eek, only 4% of you are huge fans. That spells some bad news for denominations looking to build loyalty with possible new members.

A bigger chunk of you are all right with them, but they don't get you too excited. It's not going to make you head down to your local Kingdom Hall with your bicycle because a few folks in a magazine said they were Jehovah's Witnesses.

21% of you are right there with me--laughing your hind end off that these denominations are ripping one another off on a campaign based around individuality.

And, finally, 57% of you think denominational marketing campaigns suck. You think they ought to go back to the drawing board and not come back until they have something better. I feel like there could be potential for a niche site there.

This week, we want to know: How do you feel about the idea of bringing guns to church? Move your mouse over to our right sidebar to cast your vote.

How to Kill Relationships and Irritate People is an upcoming series about biblical relationships.

The Crossing Place is working on a brand new site design.

Here is version two of a logo for Revolution Recovery.

"I'm an evangelist, too."

It's a simple and powerful statement that church marketing is evangelism.

It reminds me of the first chapter of Meredith Gould's The Word Made Fresh: Communicating Church and Faith Today, which argues that church communication is ministry.

What we do is not just some business skill for the church. The work you do is not mere work. It is a vital ministry of the church, seeking and saving the lost. We marketers and communicators, designers and editors, volunteers and assistants--we are evangelists.

Having reviewed Dino Rizzo’s book Servolution, it’s clear that there are a number of lessons for church marketers that can be drawn from it’s pages. I just want to highlight four specifics.

1. Who would miss your church?

“A questions I am always asking myself is, If HPC closed down tomorrow, who would notice?”

While advertising, street signs and a full garage on a Sunday are great signs of success for a church, they aren’t necessarily indications of a great impact on your community. As Rizzo points out, a billboard may mean that your community knows the name of your church, but does it mean any more than that?

The ultimate test would be this: if your church closed, would anyone notice? Other than the regulars, who would shed a tear for a moment and then go somewhere else? Would the neighbors, local police, community leaders and schools even notice if you disappeared? Now think, what would change that--another advertisement or visiting the sick and staffing an after school club? That’s the point of Servolution, to be more than a building in a community but a church that exists in the whole of the community.

There must be nothing worse than getting tired of caring for people. But it can happen, and when dealing with volunteers it’s vital to take care of them.

It’s similar in business, your staff are your most important asset. Look after and care for your staff, and they will do a good job and be happy to work for you. Ignore them or make them feel undervalued and they won’t be as attentive to your customers and your reputation will quickly take a turn for the worse.

Rizzo makes a point of showing that volunteers need caring for too. They can’t be expected to work tirelessly without rest and food, whatever the situation. For example:

• People who have been involved in setting up for an event should be allowed some time off before they have to work as greeters or serve the public.
• Acknowledge that people have different gifts. Don’t expect a great cook to be great at serving the meal too. Work to people’s strengths.

Are you caring properly for the needs of your staff? Do they feel valued for their individual contribution?

3. To God be the glory-–not you or your church

Serving is about growing the kingdom, not your church. As soon as you start seeking the credit for your church, or yourself, your service becomes hollow.

Pride can creep up almost unnoticed, and don’t think that you’re exempt, it can happen to anyone. Dino Rizzo fought with this issue after Healing Place Church received a mention in the President's State of the Union address.

To exercise this discipline, HPC will partner with other churches in their events without even seeking name credit. They are just happy to be serving people at the point of their need. Doing this has resulted in them being invited to partner in bigger and more public events and given great public relations.

What’s your motivation? Are you looking for personal glory and your own church, or are you working for the growth of the kingdom?

4. Manage and measure

Some of the activities Healing Place Church were involved in during the early years have ceased to exist. Not out of a lack of will, just that they were no longer required of the skills needed to provide a good service had disappeared. In Servolution, Rizzo encourages us that some services are just for a season, so we shouldn't be afraid to cut them-–it’s not a sign of failure, just good management of resources.

Servolution makes a good case for management of resources. It’s a waste putting effort into one unwanted project when those resources could be better used elsewhere. HPC has had to deal with the management of services on a local and national level, and through the story of these events, Rizzo shows the importance of communication.

Are you doing things out of tradition? Is it time you reviewed your activities and redistributed resources?

Dino Rizzo’s Servolution does two things:

First, it tells the story of Healing Place Church (HPC) in Louisiana, and how in 1993, armed with a $400 check, Rizzo and his wife DeLynn started to serve the unwanted people of Baton Rouge. In the book he chronicles the worries and successes, the challenges and the celebrations in the life of a church community that grew from the vision of one couple to having multiple campuses and a range of ministries.

Secondly, Rizzo shares the strategies and resources that have made the ministry of HPC so fruitful. The book concludes with suggestions of things you could do to get your own ‘servolution’ started and a list of connections that HPC have made during the course of serving such a wide range of people.

He’s also clear that serving those needs are not part of a recruitment drive for your specific church. We are called to love our neighbors regardless of which church, if any, they choose to attend. So, the services are provided free and with love. Some may be accompanied by information of the church you are part of and when your meetings are, but in all cases the love comes first.

Imaging the impact that mobilizing your church in this kind of way would have on your community. People not only know the name of your church and the building you are in, but they also know the name of the people who worship there. They would have positive stories to share with their friends about your church--and we all know that word of mouth is the best kind of advertising you could hope for.

Well, at least HPC knows this, the word got so far that they even got a mention in a State of the Union address, but you’ll have to buy the book to read about that. It’s well worth it.

You might ask what this book has to do with church marketing. I'm sure nearly all of your churches have been in the same situation as Dino was--very little money, very big dreams and no way to market your church. Obviously, at a broad level, living a Christ-like life and serving is incredible marketing. But more specifically, watch for a second post on four specific lessons Dino Rizzo gives to church marketers in Servolution.

Among the other interesting findings of the study are that only three in four described the megachurch they attend as their "home church." This could be indicative of some level of Christian tourism, where people visit to see what a given church is like, or it could just be that people are shifting towards visiting more than one church regularly. Megachurches are also the place of worship for more well-educated and wealthy individuals.

The survey seems to present some overwhelming evidence in favor of megachurches, except for one key aspect:

Nearly 45 percent of megachurch attenders never volunteer at the church and 32 percent give little or no money to the congregation.

The report speculates this could be due to divided loyalties among different churches or the assumption that megachurches are for spectating rather than participating.

Either way, it seems megachurches are finding a lot of successes in some areas and some startling challenges in others.

It looks like the biggest group of you are tired of hearing about all of this stuff. Over a third of you think we ought to be worrying about more important things rather than the diction of authority figures.

Slightly less of you, 29%, think a pastor ought to keep it clean. "Cussing" should never be a word to describe pastors. And another 27% of you think that it should stay as clean as possible, but the occasional, decorative curse isn't so bad.

So who does that leave in the minority? Those of you who love some four-letter words and expect the same from your pastor. You think pastors should be able to use whatever word is best in the situation, regardless of whether children's ears need to be covered.

This week, we'll revisit another post: What do you think of "I Am/We Are [Insert Denomination Here]" ad campaigns?

But let's get to those money quotes from folks smarter than us:

"People see it as too worldly or gimmicky for the church to be marketing itself. But most of the same people who say it is sacrilegious also expect their church to have a website, a listing in the phone book or an ad in the phone book. To me, this is marketing." -John Mayer, executive director of City Vision, an organization that tracks religious demographics.

"They used to look at me as if I'd just said a four-letter word." -Hayim Herring, former rabbi and now executive director of STAR (Synagogues: Transformation and Renewal), on the response he used to get to suggesting synagogues use new technologies.

"It's considered heresy in some circles. They consider consumerism shallow. ... Whether they like it or not, religions are being forced to compete for members." -Greg Smith, Pew researcher

"We live in a competitive religious marketplace. You have to be competitive if you are going to attract and keep members." -John Smith, Pew researcher

"It used to be socially expected that people would go to church. That's not true with the current generation. We have to find ways to reach them. We have to be willing to try new things." -Katharine Jefferts Schori, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church

"We have to reach people through the culture we find ourselves in. If we want people to hear our message, we have to get them through the doors first." -Scott Anderson, pastor at Eagle Brook Church

This is a classic awareness problem. Great product or service. Huge market potential. Major disconnect between the two. So we try and do both. We attempt to build awareness for the product/service and sell it at the same time. Doesn't work. You've got to pick one.

Churches experience this all the time. New church gets started with many new ways of "doing" church. The community is ripe for new ways of doing church. Major disconnect between the "new church" and those that are looking for new ways to do church because they're having a difficult time finding each other.

Like my friends with the new product, they need to raise awareness for the itch they're scratching. You can't tell people they have an itch and scratch it for them at the same time. When you attempt to do both, your credibility and/or ability to do either is stifled.

So build awareness.
Or meet the need(s) of the aware.
You choose.

Long, long ago we ran a satirical piece about megachurches serving as homeless shelters. Then, we discussed some just ideas in a four-part series, and one part focused on the idea of churches providing a home for the homeless.

Some churches made the news recently participating in the Family Promise program, which looks to provide not just homes, but complete rehabilitation for those experiencing homelessness. The article's final line, a quote from a program participant, sent chills of happiness down my spine:

"I've never met so many people who give."

This is what people should be saying about the church. You can learn more about Family Promise, including how to participate, at their web site.

I think myth numbers five and six hit the closest to home for churches:

Myth #5 - "I don't care what it takes, just get it done!"
Myth #6 - "We can't spare a dime to invest in research."

All too often, we get so connected with an idea (a song, a service type, a TV show, etc.) that we'll stop at nothing to make it a reality. I think the church loses a lot of resources this way, and it's a fine line we have to walk.

And how many times have churches overlooked the value of research? Polls, surveys and research take a back-seat because of their up-front cost, in spite of their long-term benefits.

Make sure to read the full article for even more myths.

Coming out on top (by a wide margin) was Kem Meyer's Less Clutter, Less Noise. Your church is having a bit of trouble focusing on what matters, opting for the catch-all approach. You want them to know they need to pick one.

Next up was Tribes. Some of you have probably read this book already, and some of you probably just know the name of Seth Godin. Either way, you're ready for your leaders to start taking risks and leading boldly.

In a close third was Reimagining Church. It sounds like some of your churches have added so much clutter that they're losing focus on what the church is meant to be and do. And you'd like them to make a drastic shift.

Only 5% of you would prescribe Flickering Pixels to your church staff. I guess it's not an epidemic that pastors are getting over their head in technology and losing their focus on the message of Jesus Christ.

This week, in what's sure to be a controversial poll, we're asking: Where do you stand on cussing pastors? Navigate on over to the right sidebar to let us know how you feel.