I have come to a conclusion about how many ministries see marketing. They view it as a program much like the programs you see in the bookstore or curriculum providers for churches. When they want to raise funds for a building, they look for a fund raising program. When they want to attract youth, they invite a traveling troop of athletes to break ice with their foreheads and bend bars around their necks. When they want to minister to the needs of women, they get the latest greatest ladies Bible study workbooks and send their women to the national seminars.
So when the time comes to think about marketing, they think of marketing as a program. They look to companies who can provide marketing materials. They seek people who can develop graphics and designs for media. They may even call a coach to help them. But what they really expect is for marketing (and the media) to automate their outreach. Marketing is not a program like the materials you buy at the bookstore—it is a mindset.
You can buy some resources to help you reach more people—but you can’t hire out all your marketing. You can hire someone to help you place an advertisement in the newspaper, but who is going to make sure the childcare is safe in your church so people want to bring their kids? You can do a public relations campaign and get the local TV news doing a live shot from your church steps—but who is going to be there to follow-up with the people who show interest in your church?
I have churches contact me regularly telling me, “We have been slipping in our growth, we need to do some marketing” I have to help them understand that what they really need is to apply more discipline to their communication. They have not managed their marketing. Marketing planning can help them—if they don’t try to use it as a one time program.
Many ministries are active communicating messages and have many ideas for “what” they want to communicate, but in my experience I have found few who have a clear handle on the “why” they are communicating. They have little notion of what the cumulative effect of their marketing communication is pointing toward.
3 Responses
September 4th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
So true, Chris! I would go so far as to say that most pastors (in particular) are at a complete loss in understanding even the most basic marketing concepts. They usually default to assuming that certain marketing techniques equal certain desired outcomes.
September 4th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
Oh yeah! You said it brother!
Like the classic, “How many people do you think will respond to a direct mail from our church of say 50k? It’s 2% right?”
I always say, “Well, it depends on what you are offering. If you offer people free briefcases full of $100 bills…close to 100%. But if you offer them flaming bags of liver…next to none!”
September 5th, 2008 at 4:52 am
[...] you are involved in ministry, you will want to read Chris Forbes’ thoughts on “Marketing is Not Another Church Program”. As a pastor who worked for years in the secular broadcast industry, I understand this well when [...]
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