How To Market Your Ministry

In November, I am going to the Holy Land with my church (Cascade United Methodist in Atlanta), visiting Egypt and Israel. The trip is planned by Road Scholar, a non-proft organization that specializes in programs for life-long learning experiences through travel. I hope to be able to maintain this blog while on this 12 day trip.

My bible study class got interested in this trip a little more than a year ago. We have been saving our nickles and dimes and making payments for a long time. The date is finally here and 35 of us are expecting to have a great time. I’m expecting to get baptized in the Jordan. We’ll make photos and keep in touch.

I have been having a wonderful time meeting with Bishops, Elders, Pastors and Lay Leaders during the past 30 days.
We have been busy with a few consultations and have not posted a blog. But, I’ve learned so much from my association with these church leaders. I want to process all of it, getting different points of view and additional information from these experiences, to help others with ministry marketing situations. A couple of days in Macon GA at the AME 6th District conference, talking with pastors from a wide range of churches (small, medium and large) has given me another fresh opportunity to examine and improve some of the techniques I wrote about in my book Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry.

My seminars are becoming more focused on specific ministry marketing challenges, such as “How to plan and implement a church event and fill the seats?” or “How to get on the radio with no money?” Another very interesting and challening subject matter that some churches and organizations are asking about is “What should you do when a crisis is knocking at your door?” I have developed a general template for crisis management and will be able to provide this to churches and other organization.

Stay tuned.

A funny thing happened while I was visiting with the Reverend Dr. Barbara King (who was just consecrated a brand new Bishop in the New Thought Christian Movement Church) at Hillside International Chapel and Truth Center. I picked up a newspaper called the Spiritual Herald and began to thumb through the pages. What should my wondering eyes see? The publlisher of the paper is an OLD friend of mine, Hugh Wyatt. I immediately called him and pounced on him to do a couple of stories (after all, I am in public relations — what did you expect.

We have been talking almost daily since we re-acquainted with one another — “What I do to help him with his ventures and what can he do to help me with Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry.” God is good.

The Spiritual Herald is published in hard copy from New York and is making its way south. You can check it out and get a subscription through www.thespiritualherald.org. I think the publication has thought provoking content and the writing is excellent. If you like to read good new commentary that makes you think, you’ll like the Spiritual Herald

I’m so excited about my relationship with AIB TV!

It started with a conversation between me and Collie Burnett, the president of AIB, in the parking lot of Publix grocery store. It was a blessing that grew into action. I recently did a seminar/lecture at AIB TV in their studio with about twenty-five pastors and others ministry leaders. I talked about methods of getting the word out about how to grow church membership and participation. We talked about my book, Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry. We also talked about the value of knowing who you are communicating with, why you are communicating with them — before you decided on the tools and techniques for communications. We talked about everything between the newsletter and the flyer, to the website, social media, and the television. And, or course, we talked about the television ministry and how AIB TV can help — even with a small budget allowance.

The follow-up has also been good for me and those pastors who took advantage of the followup sessions I promised to donate to the participating pastors. One interesting idea we discussed was how to use video voice mails programs like the ones offered by ComF5 and people like Karen Hanson. Check Karen out on www.refreshyourcommunications.com.

No matter where the truth lies, there will be the need forgiveness, healing, and reliance on the grace of God.

However, from where I sit, as a public relations professional of a little more than 35 years, I immediately see an extreme media crises situation for the members of New Birth Church. Because I engage in media crisis management for my clients, I am sorry that New Birth did not kick in with a responsive media crisis plan immediately.

48 hours without a response leaves folks to draw their opinion from what they hear and see in the media. Interestingly enough, after two days of hysteria, some folks will tune the news out on the third day – feeling that they have “had enough.”

It just so happened that I recently wrote a book entitled “Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry.” The book includes a short chapter on “Managing a Media Crisis” where we just touch on the issue.

It seems to me that The Bishops’ team might have advised an immediate response to the media once it was determined the story was going nationwide. (CNN actually carried a visual of the complaint. ) The response should have been a basic statement to the fact — “allegations were made on the character of the man; however, these allegations do not eradicate all of the good works accomplished by Bishop Long and New Birth (and enumerate some of the positive actions).” Giving a few positive facts puts another point of view before the public for consideration. But we have been watching the media report a one-sided story which has now grown from sex with young men to include lavish lifestyle and much more.

In many instances, this is where the public relations professional and legal counsel differ in opinion. The client gets caught in the middle not knowing whose advice to take.

However, as a church community, I know that the people at New Birth are also concerned about the young men who are making the charges. These young men are obviously hurting. The entire church community — both Black and white – will feel the impact of this situation.

My heart goes out to Mrs. Long and everyone touched by this devastating story.

Just delivered two back-to-back seminars at the Peachtree Road United Methodist Church in Atlanta to a United Methodist audience within the North Georgia District. The “Generosity Summit” drew approximately 70 people from diverse backgrounds for a full day of discourse.

The interesting thing, and from a personal point of view, was that two of my old friends, Jay F.Springs. and Joe Hudson. were in the audience representing their churches. We talked about old times but zeroed in on how strategic planning and marketing research is necessary to set the stage for implementing effective marketing strategies and tactics. Jay is in radio sales at a gospel station and Joe does strategic planning for some churches and board of directors.

I fully enjoyed the day. Each time I give a seminar on “Getting the Word Out: How to Marketing Your Ministry” I am more energized about the subject matter. Today, I had to fine-tune and trim the seminar down from a two-hour workshop to a one-hour seminar. That was a challenge because I can talk on this subject for at least three hours. Any way, the evaluations were great.

There is enough business, in never-nerver land, for all of us. We just have to learn the true meaning of “networking” and do it. We should help each other; when you think about it, we can’t do it all. We should be in the business of building teams from a variety of effective services and proven products that enhance ours goals.

Toward this end, I met two guys — Jeff and John — who own and operate Get The Edge (GTE) Marketing and Promotions.. They have a program defined as Invitation Outreach and Retention and I like the ideas and the hard-work attitude of the men who are implementing the program. This particular program is designed to help churches grow their memberships. After contracting with a church, they work with the pastor and the congregation to locate 25 “hard working members” who will agree to give some time toward to the efforts of increasing church membership. Jeff and John assist in the development and implementation of techniques to reach the unchurched and bring them into the respective church. I think their program will work. So, we are going to work together a bit — using my book “Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry,” to augment their program.

I participated in a one-on-one session (conversation) with a colleague who recently purchased and read my book — “Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry.” It turns out she has also published a book called “I Motivate Me.” She also has a blog and a website by the same name. After a few minutes, we discovered that both of us love the Lord and are both committed to God’s great commission — winning souls for His Kingdom. We didn’t talk very long but I am positive we connected. After determining that she needed a little nudge to help her focus on some marketing techniques for her and her product, we talked specifics.

Considering the limited budget we all work under these days, we discussed the following techniques: (1) Write a short and sweet summary of the various motivational techniques you have already written about in your book. (2) Prepare a great looking collateral piece (one or two pages) using these summaries–this could be an attratively designed flyer. (3) Use this piece as a give-away. (4) Add these summary motivational tips to your blog — using the very same information. (5) Strategically give away the flyers — at church events, club meetings, etc. (5) Approach a religious radio station to see if this information — reduced to a motivational minute — can be used on air. And if so, give the pieces away (for a short term). (6) If radio won’t use the pieces, try print media. (7) Speak to your pastor and see if he/she can use your “motivational minutes” at the church — in the church news letter or on the church’s website. (8) Of course, take advantage of all of the resources made available through a variety of social media — promote your blog on facebook, etc. weekly or as often as you can.

We exchanged phone numbers. I hope she calls me back so I can check her progress.

Just returned from four days on Martha’s Vineyard. I went with a program called Road Scholar accompanied by 26 delightful folks whom I didn’t know. The only things we had in common was a thurst for knowledge about our history (African American History) and the need to get away for just a few days to someplace special without spending too much money. Road Scholar invited three African American journalists in order to help get the word out about their many travel programs; the journalists were from the Atlanta Voice, New York Trend, and American Urban Radio.

We met Geoffery Fletcher, the young Black man who wrote the screen play for Precious, who gave a presentation to the group on who, what, when, and why of his project. He was delightful and makes us all proud. But the real hero in his family is truly his mother who has raised and educated three sons. Betty Fletcher is an inspiration to all of us raising sons.

I know this has nothing to do with “how to market your ministry,” but your ministry needs a break from time to time.
And if you know anything about marketing, you know you need to have friends in the media. Well, I hope I have three friends whom I can, and will, call on.

In addition, I’m sitting in a restaurant and who do I see but the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church. Knowing the minister, I rushed up to him to say hello. He introducted me to his table — all ministers. So, this is another opportunity for me to spread the news about my book, “Getting the Word Out: How to Market Your Ministry.”

God is good. I’m back at my computer.