All Churches Are Marketing
A few weeks ago, I started a conversation about church marketing. Among other things I shared that if your church or ministry is not growing, it’s probably not a marketing problem. I suggested churches may even want to stop marketing…at least for a time.
That said, I’m certainly a still proponent of church marketing. Why? Because I happen to believe more is better. More people hearing the Gospel is better. More people taking steps in their spiritual journey is better. More people experiencing life change is better. More people having healthy marriages is better. More people finding God’s purpose for their lives is better.
You may be saying, “My church doesn’t embrace the marketing tactics of corporate America.” Well, I doubt that very seriously. Whether you want to admit it or not, churches have been marketing for a long time. Church marketing includes:
- The message signs out front with the clever cliches.
- The bulletins announcing upcoming events.
- The announcements you make from your platform or pulpit or sofa.
- The ads in the local newspaper announcing Sunday’s service times.
- The experience you create, whether intentional or not, for first-time guests.
- The environment inside your building or your living room or the theater where you meet.
- The way you handle every interaction with someone who wants to commit to taking their next step at your church.
- The online experience someone has after Googling your church name.
- The name and logo you use to identify your church.
- The word-of-mouth marketing that involves one person telling another person to visit your church.
You may not see it as marketing, but it’s marketing. All of that and more lead to impressions people have of your church. Whether you like it or not, all of that helps people decide whether or not they will connect with your ministry.
A few weeks ago I told you to stop marketing. The only problem with that advice is that it’s not possible. I’ve never seen a church that wasn’t marketing itself in some form or fashion. Go ahead. Try to prove me wrong. You won’t be able to do it.
With that, I’d like to suggest that if we’re going to embrace marketing, then there are strategies we can engage to make our marketing more effective. And I’ll share some of those strategies…
In a future post.
I definitely think that marketing is inevitable. Regardless who you are or what you do, there’s some form of marketing involved – directly or indirectly.
However, I think that the idea that marketing will solve the problems of a church is a narrow way of thinking. It takes a church’s focus off the wild Goose Chase and places it on copying other churches.
I appreciate your direct approach of telling people to “Stop Marketing!” I think it served as a wake-up-call.
Thanks.
Nice! I’m thoroughly intrigued.
Waiting for the next post…
I think we have no choice to embrace marketing. No marketing would be better than poor marketing, but you have already said that is not possible for a church to have no marketing. Therefore, this is an area that must receive more attention from churches.
Sadly, for most churches, advertising is an after thought, and most of those catchy sings out front all come from the same books or websites.
ahh… cliffhanger! I posted (http://tinyurl.com/fusion125) about a great book by Nelson Searcy from “The Journey” church in New York. He’s talking about a different form of marketing… but marketing none-the-less.
Moderation is lengthy here.
The order of comments was this:
Antwon Davis
December 10th, 2008 at 7:23 pm
I definitely think that marketing is inevitable. Regardless who you are or what you do, there’s some form of marketing involved – directly or indirectly.
However, I think that the idea that marketing will solve the problems of a church is a narrow way of thinking. It takes a church’s focus off the wild Goose Chase and places it on copying other churches.
I appreciate your direct approach of telling people to “Stop Marketing!” I think it served as a wake-up-call.
Thanks.
Danny Lucas
December 10th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
The Lord Jesus Christ failed to use a single bullet you present, with the possible exception of the final item:
“The word-of-mouth marketing that involves one person telling another person to visit your church. ”
Even with THAT one, word-of-mouth was NOT used to get people to visit church.
Word-of-mouth was used to get people to know Christ.
The problem with marketing is that churches are marketed.
What people need is not church; they need Jesus Christ.
But churches fear that if they market Christ, instead of their church, people will turn to Him, instead of them.
Suddenly, there will be no meetings to discuss $20,000 to pave our new parking lot. People following Christ will be spending their money feeding the poor.
New musical instruments, media, and Christmas plays won’t matter. Folks will be in prayer, and visiting prisoners to proclaim the Good News.
Divorce Recovery, Addiction Recovery, Sports, The Haven and caves for teens will not be given a thought as they are a gigantic to-do list to keep everyone so busy for the church, that Christ doesn’t matter.
Amazingly, without the continued pursuit of Jesus and simply knowing Him better, the pews begin to empty. People “church shop” and continue that practice, for what they seek is Jesus,…but what they find is church and programs, and folks pretty much like the ones who never attend church.
God does not need man to build His church.
The rocks and stones would cry out “word-of-rock” marketing, I guess, if there were no church.
Spend your money on the poor, the sick, the homeless, the low in spirit instead of bulletins, JumboTrons, louder music, TV, and pavement or buildings. It might lead someone to Christ……just the way He did.
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
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To request comment and not print them is counterintuitive at best. Your audience deserves a spectrum of thought.
I found you on a link.
I suspect they are unaware that all comments must agree with the post to be printed.
In 12 new locations and comments the day I posted here, all linked from one to the other, your site was the sole censorship on the net.
One, inadvertently deleted and posted that, so I could resend a copy. That’s marketing a blog well, eh?
No reason NOT to use wise wisdom in ministry marketing strategies….The internet is a whole new arena in which to share the Good News. But let’s do it with a spirit of excellence…Web, video ministry, etc God gets the glory.