You Are Already Marketing

I am excited for in just a few days my wife and I will be attending the "Wired Churches-Innovate 2007 Conference." With speakers like Mark Beeson, and Tim Stevens who authored the "Simply Strategic" series that many churches use. This conference is all about being relevant in today's culture. It exposes you to how the church needs to market itself in a relevant way which got me thinking.

Whether you knew it or not, if you are a pastor of a church or owner of a business...you are already marketing. The question is...what are people saying about your marketing? When you pay your bills on time or not on time...you are marketing. If people walk by your church and see the shape of your building or how your grass looks, what is it saying to people? You are marketing whether you know it or not.

I was intrigued by an article in the latest "Outreach Magazine." In an article entitled, "How Important Is a Building" by Thom S. Rainer and Sam S. Rainer III, they said, "Churches that did not have adequate or attractive buildings were perceived by the unchurched as under-funded. But the credit for attractive facilities was given to the leadership of the church."
You don't have to have a big building to make it attractive. You just need to simply look at the place as a whole and say, "does this represent the future of our church?"

Again, whether we know it or not as leaders of churches...you are marketing. The question is...what message are you sending?