Jesus Hates Papyrus » relevance

Something different for Santa

Michael Buckingham — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 20:10:13 +0000

We just sent our first files out last week to the printer for one of the Christmas programs we are working on. We currently have 5 different Christmas projects left. The story is beautiful…but it’s the same story, so how do you keep it fresh? Is it possible to bring originality and relevance in church marketing during Christmas?

The challenge is trying to step out of my understanding of Christmas, remembering that for many it’s about family, vacation and Christmas presents. How do you tell the story of a selfless life during such a, sometimes, selfish time?

What if you forgot the Christmas story? What if you didn’t give your standard Christmas message of good tidings, etc. etc. What if you setup a new series, give them something that causes them to want to come back. Or what if you didn’t talk about Jesus? What if you talked about Joseph?

Is there are better way to keep the tradition of Christmas and introducing a hook that will bring them back?

fear of commitment

Michael Buckingham — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 17:38:36 +0000

After a year of dragging my feet, I am ready to begin my journey as a blogger. I say that I am ready not because I have stacks of prepared posts, not because I’m the best writer, and no, not because I’ve figured it all out. I’m ready because I am committed to it. I’m committed to sharing my thoughts on church marketing, to having the conversation about how the church communicates…I am committed to the task.

Commitment is essential to excellence within the church. Lack of commitment is why postcards are sent out that say nothing and have no impact. Lack of commitment is why blogs like Church Marketing Sucks exists. Not because they aren’t committed to the ministry, but because they aren’t committed to communication. Why didn’t people show up to your last great outreach, because you weren’t committed to communicating with relevance, impact and originality.

I hope that together we can change that. I look forward to the journey, and hope you’ll join me for the ride!