Easy Like Sunday Morning

There's a song that says, "I'm easy like Sunday morning." (Now it's stuck in your head. You're welcome!) I've always said that the writer of that song was never in ministry. For those of us who are, Sunday mornings aren't that easy. However, in talking about the "musts" of church marketting, we need to make sure that we are making it easy for those in our congregation to spread the word.


Often times those of us in church leadership get on our soapboxes, preaching to others about the Great Commission, leading others to Christ, inviting people to church without ever thinking that they may not even know how. Most church attenders have never been taught how to tell their story. Few have the outgoing social skills and bravery to invite complete strangers to a Sunday church service with them. That's why in this day we need to give people an easy way to invite others to church and tell others about Jesus.



When asked about this many pastors will say they have little money to produce such items. The budget just simply wouldn't allow. But the fact of the matter is that there are plenty of free ways to give your church goers an easy way to tell their friends.

Some easy examples:

1. Social Media: We will have a blog up in a few weeks about some ways to incorporate social media in
                          churches marketting but it deserves a mention here. If you're a leader and you don't have a
                          Facebook and Instagram account, stop reading right now and go set one up! It's absolutely
                          free and allows you to reach more people in a few minutes than you will probably see all
                         week.

2. Graphics: Many will say that they don't have the know-how to create quality graphics. I'm not talking
                   about professional logos here. Most of us have smart phones. There are plenty of apps available
                   that allow you to create nice looking graphics for little money. (Instaquote & WordSwag are
                   two that we use.) Put those in your bulletins and on social media and let people post away!

I'm afraid that we as church leaders have used a lack of money as an excuse! No more excuses! Get creative! God gave us all brains, let's use them to come up with inexpensive ways to make it easy for those who follow us to tell everyone they know about what God is going in and through our churches! We are a part of the most important entity of all time: The Church! Let's go out and tell the world!

Who are you?

Who are you? Everyone wants and needs to know the answer to that very important questions.  Your "brand" should always convey that. It has to be more than just a great looking logo. What is Gods calling on your ministry, your message, your mission, your passion and desire for the kingdom. Lets be honest, " Church Marketing " and "Church Branding" at times can seem like "ugly words". But they are important! Let me be blunt. This isn't a competition to see if your church attendance is greater than that of your friends church. This isn't about being the fasting growing church in your region. Its about Jesus! The life of freedom and redemption in Christ is too important not to understand how crucial it is.

 So what is Branding? Keeping it simple, Branding is communicating clearly who you are. Too many  times we can get lost in the midst of complexity. Simplicity is key and most times very difficult. Can you define your ministry in 2-3 words?  Once you are able to clearly define your ministry, how do you make sure that your community knows who you are.  Lets look at the what may seem to be the obvious but many times over looked, Consistency. You must stay consistent with your brand and your message. The people in your community need to know that you message doesn't waiver and change, that your mission stays on course. 

I was speaking with a pastor friend of mine the other day about a outreach they had done in the community.  As part of the outreach, they were giving away water bottles on a hot summer day in a busy part of town. All the water bottles had a custom sticker on them with the just the church logo, location and times of church service and simple invitation. One man that received a water bottle said  " I notice you guys are always doing things like this for our community, thanks! " People notice ministries that are consistent in their message.  

We are in a time that is vastly different from what it was only 10 years ago. 80% of people are finding a church to visit online. No longer is the family packing up in the car and driving around town to look for a church. The are going to your website.  What will be their impression of you when they get their? Make sure the message of your church is clear, simple and consistant in every aspect of your branding.  From flyers, mailings, social media, promotional items and even water bottles, the brand you convey across media, print and web is continually defining you to your community.

8 Things You MUST Do In Church Marketing: Think!

By Brandon Goff

Today we begin an 8 week blog series... "8 Things You MUST Do In Church Marketing"! Please feel free to share these posts, and help us increase our following by spreading the word of Forefront. Thank you!

When I was younger and I had to do homework, I was like any other kid, I would try to find a way out of it. So, sometimes I would need my parents help. When I got tired of thinking through the solutions and the issues at hand I would ask my mom, dad, or brother (depending on who was helping me at the time) what the answer was. My dad's response was always "I don't know what do you think?". I hated that response, so I would just throw out an off the wall answer and hope he'd just give me the correct one. But he would always respond with this, "No. Stop for a  minute and THINK about it." That was the whole reason I'm asking YOU for the answer dad, because I don't WANT to think about it! Ever been there, or am I the only one?

The reality is that many times in church marketing, promotion, and evangelism we don't want to think, so we just ask God for an answer and hope He gives us one. I completely believe, however, that many times God is responding much like my dad did... "Stop for a minute and THINK about it." Think about what? I don't know anything about church marketing. I don't know how to create nifty graphics, and I don't know how to even use Facebook...so what do I think about? Try these on for size:

Think about...What does my target age talk about?
Quit looking for the easy way out and THINK for a minute. What is your target age talking about? Sports? Politics? Jobs? Promotions? Kids? Marriage? If you know what they are talking about you can speak their language even better! People talk about what they care about. And then when you know what they are talking about...THINK outside the box on how you can market your church to them? If they enjoy sports, why not market a series of teachings based on a sports theme? If they are worried about parenting why not do a parenting seminar one weekend? If they want to be more professional at work why not get a successful Christian business person to come in and meet those needs? THINK about it!
Exodus 4:10-13 - If you ask God to help you speak their language, He will!

Think about...What will grab attention?
I've heard the old saying "The Word will attract them, we don't have to do outlandish things to attract people." so many times in my life that I could vomit. The Word will TRANSFORM them, but we have to get them to a place where they are comfortable enough to HEAR the word! So, ask yourself what could get others attention? At our church we often say, "We will do anything short of sin to reach people for Jesus". (And NO that's not original with us) For Father's Day why not get a bunch of old cars and park them at the church for the men to gawk over before and after? For Mother's Day why not giveaway free family portraits? For Christmas why not have carriage rides for families? What will grab attention and get people to say, "I want to encounter that. And it's at a church!?"
If you're one of those that is against doing something crazy to attract people's attention... check out Exodus 3:1-6... The Burning Bush! Do you REALLY think that wasn't something crazy to attract Moses' attention?

Think about...What will meet a need?
It's time to stop being a church IN the community, and become a church OF the community! Here's what I mean: we're great at being a church that exists within the community and brings people to the walls of the church. But oftentimes we are horrible at being a church that exists within the community and goes out tell people about Jesus and His church! There's a BIG difference... one sees a need, the other meets the need! Meet people's needs and make it known to your church and to your community that you're there to meet needs! If you're doing a town cleanup, let the paper know about it, let social media know about it, let the community know. "But isn't that being boastful?" Not at all! What that is doing is showing people that have given up on church and God, that there are still people out there that care and love, and here's where you can be part of that! People WANT to be part of something bigger than themselves... it's our job to facilitate that!
Look throughout the New Testament...Jesus met basic needs of people - lepers, deaf, dead, and dumb people. Meet their needs and make a difference!

These are just a few things to get you thinking outside of the box and how you can market your church while doing ministry! Now go and let's MAKE HIM KNOWN!