Marketing and branding isn’t a non-biblical activity, far from it actually. I actually see a lot of connection between the basic ideas of marketing and the ways we communicate the story of Jesus. If Jesus is our model for how to pray, how to do leadership and how to serve people, then perhaps he could also our model for the basic marketing of a church plant. A great place to start thinking about your communication strategy is with the ABCs of church marketing: Assessing Your Audience, Building Your Brand and Creating Community.
Church Marketing – A, B, C
A – Assessing Your Audience
Any kind of a strategy begins by identifying who you want to reach, your customer. I know that language is a bit different than what we usually use in the church, but stay engaged and stick with me for a bit, because I think you’ll find this really helpful.
Jesus had a crystal clear audience that he was looking to reach. Jesus himself put it this way, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Mark 2:17). He was looking for a clear group of people who would acknowledge their need. These were his “customers” if you will.
Some people say that they want their church plant to reach their whole city, and yes, that’s completely true. But the nature of the gospel implies that it’s aimed at the same people Jesus was aimed at. And the way you do stuff—the kind of music you play, the graphics you use, even the way people in your church dress—is going to attract and repel certain types of people.
Who is it that I’m willing to offend?
I’ve found it very helpful to ask this question: Who is it that I’m willing to offend? In my context, the people I’ve been most willing to offend are “the religious people,” the folks who want church to feel a certain way so that they’re comfortable. The folks I don’t want to offend are the people who are exploring faith, and especially faith in Christ.
And of course, I do hope that every single person in our city could find something they like about our church community. I certainly don’t ignore people or kick them out because they don’t fit the “target audience.” But I’ve learned to focus in on those God is inviting me to specifically target. Then I’m able to really think about how to engage them with the good news of the kingdom of God in a way that will help them experience the presence and power of Christ.
