Church Marketing....Do those words belong together?
08.13.08
One of the things I was very aware of as I left the corporate world and entered into ministry some 6 years ago was that there were tons of corporate skills, concepts and ideas which would translate very well into ministry. But, there were also things which are best left in the corporate world and have no place in the Church.
Branding - Very clearly, Bridgeway has a strong brand identity. We have a very corporate presence and it's more than a slick logo and a catch phrase. Our name, logo and tagline communicate who we are and whom we serve. A bridge communicates motion. A bridge is used to move a person from one location to another more desirable locale. Jesus is the bridge between God and man. So, we as Bridgeway want to be "Moving You Closer to Christ". This says everything about who we are. It says that this church is a disciple making church; a place where spiritual growth happens, is anticipated, and celebrated.
Marketing - How does Bridgeway promote itself? We are pretty cautious here. We do run ads in the yellow pages and in Roseville Style Magazine. We have a great web presence. We have a great radio show on 710AM KFIA and 1380 KTKZ on Sunday mornings. But we could do much more and we purposely don't. For instance we could have a press release every week about something we are doing in the community or around the world. But, we don't do that. We could have tons of press releases announcing our new building plans and construction project. But, we don't do that either. Why? We truly want to be a church known for Making Disciples not for making press releases.
Your thoughts?
Comments
08-14-08 Comment by: Jessica Ala
I think the best advertisement is word of mouth referral. ;) Get involved 'within the church' and then share stories and events with other people outside of it. They may just ask "what church did that happen at? Where is it that you go to again?" By sharing a spiritual experience, a testimony, or an act of service with someone who is searching, God may create that opportunity. Other than that we can make Bridgeway shirts for members to wear during the week advertising the building. They'll say, "The walls are up and the concrete is poured...come on in and praise the Lord!!!"
08-14-08 Comment by: Jessica Ala
I think the best advertisement is word of mouth referral. ;) Get involved 'within the church' and then share stories and events with other people outside of it. They may just ask "what church did that happen at? Where is it that you go to again?" By sharing a spiritual experience, a testimony, or an act of service with someone who is searching, God may create that opportunity. Other than that we can make Bridgeway shirts for members to wear during the week advertising the building. They'll say, "The walls are up and the concrete is poured...come on in and praise the Lord!!!"
08-14-08 Comment by: Anonymous
I agree with the amount of marketing that Bridgeway engages in.
Too much marketing does a couple of things in my mind. (1) It makes the church seem a bit arrogant in a "look how good we are" sort of way and (2) depending on what the church is doing, I forget they are even a church.
If too little marketing is done, well then people won't know they exist and what is a point in a church hiding from the world?
So I guess good work guys, keep it up.
08-20-08 Comment by: Kace Fritts
Where did all these people come from? It is interesting to see the church change and grow over time. In my short 2 years of attendance, I have met many new members of Bridgeway (and invited a few as well). Many of these new members are friends or family of regular attendees. I was invited to Bridgeway by a high school friend and I, in turn, have done the same. It seems then, that word of mouth has been an effective form of marketing and will continue to be.
Coming to Christ is, of course, a very personal and intimate development. This can make the search for a new church an intimidating and isolating experience. When I first came to Bridgeway, I felt quite out of place. Having been invited and accompanied by a good friend and recognizing other members of the church body made my first visit to Bridgeway more comfortable. Over the last 2 years, I have invited friends who were seeking a new church, facing challenging times, or just hanging out to be among friends. I believe that Bridgeway has a very unique and comfortable way of bringing about a powerful and life-changing impact in the lives of our community. And we are blessed to be a part of it.
11-26-08 Comment by: Mikel Del Rosario
Interesting post. I can see how some people may react a bit negatively to the idea of "marketing" the church. However, promotions and advertising are just a couple of tools in the marketing mix. And it seems to me that the American church tends to communicate this way because it is a manifestation of cultural communication patterns. What i mean to say is, if you're a missionary in a given place where people are used to hearing info presented in a certain way, you might use the given media to advance your message (whatever it may be) becasue that's what people expect. Kind of like Peter and John going to the synagogue or Paul to the place when Gentiles debated philosophy. Similar thing here. In America, we are so used to branding, intergrated marketing communications, etc... that people almost expect to get info from the church in the exact same way they get info from other entities. Soundbyte-updates on ministries, podcasting, blogs, etc... I think the issue is very cultural in nature. Then there's the whole "development" aspect of non-profit marketing... which can lead me into another whole post... so I'll stop now. :-)
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