Communicating for a Cause

ECHO Conference

 

Thanks again to everyone who came to the session today at the ECHO conference! As promised, here's a quick recap of some of the key points we discussed as well as a few take-home resources.

Enjoy!

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I've Had a Change of Heart

Yes, I know. Originally I was in the, "What is Starbucks thinkin'?!?" camp.

Starbucks and instant coffee just didn't seem to jive for me. Starbucks was about an experience & I had stuck Via in the same camp as the nasty coffee one finds in hotel rooms.

But this past summer my family and I went on a summer break in the middle of nowhere. No Starbucks. No cute coffee shops. Just a cabin, a boat & a lake. We were too lazy to make coffee, [hence the "vacation" part] so we snagged a few Via packs on the way.

Wow. It's actually really good... And insanely easy.

I decided to continue my President of the Lazy Club activities at home & have been hooked ever since. [Seriously, how hard is it to microwave water and stir] I also love the packaging--intentionally designed to take with you so a fresh cup is always on hand.

At this point I realized, they hadn't extended their brand into instant coffee. The extended a lifestyle habit to be more travel-friendly.

Quick lessons I learned:

• Don't be too quick to judge
• When extending your brand, it's possible to stay true to the value proposition even if the product/channel/service is quite different
• Wait until the initial dust settles before trying to convince others of the new idea

What do you guys think? Have you seen this idea played out in other organizations? Yours?

Cultivate Conference '09

A gathering of mavericks in ministry communication is convening at the end of this October. And registration is officially open. [after registering, your Twitter avatar will show up in the "who's in" section]

The facilitators vary in the focus of their expertise--some from the marketplace, some from ministry--but everyone has been carefully selected because of their impact and heart to make a difference.

We'll be highlighting their backgrounds in the weeks to come, but in the meantime here are just a few that I'd like to introduce you to:

Matt Knisely is a multi Emmy® award-winning Photojournalist and Storyteller focusing on social-awareness campaigns with non-profits around the globe.

He served as director of photojournalism for FOX Minneapolis and made it one of the best stations in the country for television photography and visual product. His work has been featured on the BBC, NBC, ABC, and FOX News Channel and he has received the prestigious Edward R. Murrow Award in electronic journalism.

Clint! Runge is the co-founder and creative director of Archrival, a distinguished mid west youth brand strategy and design firm.

He's served a diverse roster of clients that include Red Bull, SPAM, Walgreens and Microsoft and has a reputation for winning numerous national gold ADDY'S, Art Directors Club, Young Guns, AIGA awards and One Show appearances including multiple One Show Pencils. His work has also been featured in publications like Communication Arts, HOW, Print, Graphis, STEP and the One Show Book. Runge teaches at the University of Nebraska in the advertising and architecture colleges.

 
Phil Cooke is considered one of the most insightful resources on issues of faith, culture, and media. His production and consulting company: "Cooke Pictures," works specifically with non-profit and religious clients, and as a founding partner in the commercial production company "TWC Films," he also produces national advertising for some of the largest companies in the country - giving him a unique perspective on both religious and secular media issues.

His online blog at philcooke.com features insight into issues of media and faith, and his book: Branding Faith: Why Some Churches and Non-Profits Impact the Culture and Others Don't is changing the way non-profit and religious organizations use the media to tell their story. He's lectured at universities like Yale, University of California at Berkeley, UCLA, and is an adjunct professor at the King's College & Seminary, and Biola University in Los Angeles.

And there's more to come... some focus in ministry, some are social entrepreneurs... all want to help others tell their stories more effectively.

Seriously--you won't want to miss this.

"Can" versus "Should"

Lots of people are talking about Starbucks' recent entry into the instant coffee market. The packaging & roll-out is slick, and apparently it tastes really good.

But just because we can do something, should we?

One of the key issues I run into when working with clients is the challenge of focus. Sure you may be able to execute a fantastic youth program, red-headed quilters' group or coffee bar. It might be making an impact and even change some people's lives.

But if it splinters the core of your unique positioning, you'll dilute the essence of who you are in the long run.

When times get tough, it can be tempting to start grasping at straws that reach outside your sweet spot.

Starbucks used to have one of the strongest brand positions on the block. But unfortunately a series of eclectic choices have left people wondering who they really are anymore.

If you don't understand an organization's identity, it's hard to apply their value proposition to your own needs.

How often do we do this in the ministry space?

The Fine Line [between where we are & ought to be]

The fine line between being in but not of the world can often feel like a tight rope. Lean too far in one direction and we're out of touch. Irrelevant. Too far in the other can be a slippery slope that leads to compromised values and stumbles in our faith.

How much is too much?

I had the privilege of getting to know Kary Oberbrunner recently and was just wowed with his passion and humbled by the opportunity to get a sneak peek of his soon-to-be released book, The Fine Line.

Kary has a compelling story that drew me in, challenged my thinking and didn't let go.

He's also captured the attention of the big dogs; a few of whose thoughts you can read here, here and here. [You can find the entire list of tour stops here. Definitely worth checking out] But of course the best thing is to get copies for you and your team at a pre-release steal.

Here's just one of the many snippets that captured my attention:

• "Knowingly or unknowingly, when we fail to define relevance, we sidestep accountability. For how can we be accountable if we haven't defined relevance? ...Relevance is a tricky thing. We can't self-profess our way into it; we have to earn it. Relevance is something others believe about us, not what we believe about ourselves."

.: Food for thought ::.

As leaders of ministries, it seems this tension is even more apparent in
how we reach people. Where does the line get drawn?
What filters do you use to ensure your church is "in"
but not "of" the world? How far has that line been pushed?

$25 Cup of Experience

But not the kind of experience I've come to expect from Starbucks. I'm seriously beginning to wonder if they're losing their way.

I recently signed up for their newest "Gold" program. The 10% off wasn't a huge deal, but I liked the idea of being recognized as a loyal sbuxer & the free wifi seemed like it would be a nice touch when traveling.

I'll admit I neglected to read the fine print in the multi-page brochure and assumed the program was similar to the Starbucks Card I already have and the $25 would be loaded on my slick new "you're special and we appreciate you" card.

Imagine my surprise at the drive-thru early this morning to learn it wasn't.
   
    AND

• That I had to haul my still-in-sweats-sans-makeup self into the store to get the [now clarified] "membership fee" refunded

• Which was apparently "impossible" because I hadn't kept my receipt after ordering a couple of lattes the week before

• Therefore I needed to call the 800 number to get help versus from the onsite store manager that sold it to me

But it gets better

• The 800 operator told me their research team would look for the receipt after gathering a bunch more info, including the actual day I made the purchase, email it to me so I can bring it back to the store and start over again to request a refund. "Refunds could not be processed through corporate and could only be handled at the store level."

• To top it off, instead of an apology by either rep for the inconvenience, unmet expectations and overall hassle, I was pointed to the middle of section II, page 6 fine print that *clearly* states I needed to have a receipt and that *no one else* has asked for a refund before...

You'veGottaBeKiddingMe

When designing a program to serve our best customers, [and this applies to all organizations] it's ESSENTIAL to think through the entire experience. If the program isn't meeting expectations, we've already failed and need to be in service recovery mode.

Make it painless to opt-out, apologize for the inconvenience, reward them for hanging in there. Don't point fingers [or worse, to an 800 number] layer additional red tape and otherwise throw gasoline on a fire.

Know When to Say When

Lately, it's been crunch time for me... literally. When I have a ton of deliverables I'm stressing about working on it helps to have hard candy to gnaw on. Today was of the chocolate persuasion & a kind soul gifted me with some peanut M&M's, which usually I love.

Although it seems these particular M&M's were Indiana Jones-themed in some pretty horrific colors of baby poop, dark brown, and a few accent red & yellows. Who wants baby poop and dark brown M&M's? I mean, a few browns mixed in with bright bold orange, green, red & blues is okay. But this is going too far. I'm a visual person. Part of the fun of eating this particular bent of chocolately goodness is the happy colors.

Someone in product development needed to pull aside the brand manager and say, "Psst--Seriously? Do these look yummy to you?"

Some brands are just not meant to be extended into some channels. I recently read Sears is teaming up with MTV to attract teens. Will this make MTV more or less cool?

Likewise, who you align with also needs to be a fit. If it's not enhancing your core, don't do it just because it's possible.

What Does an Engaged Consumer Look Like in Your Church?

I read a great article this morning by Laurie Sullivan of Marketing Daily that highlights the key points of a new report unveiled by Forrester Research at a forum in LA. Lots of juicy stuff for mavericks in ministry--highly recommend taking the time to read the whole thing. But here's a couple of key points that really jumped out to me as they relate to churches:

Marketers have lost control of what consumers say about brands, and "many have begun to realize they never had control in the first place,"  

While many of us already know that, this next quote was even more interesting

'After consumers discover and evaluate products, marketers typically move on to sell to someone else. Now, analysts like Haven say, it's not enough. While the four "I" metrics provide insight into why consumers buy products, marketing professionals must also understand what happens after the sale, so they can assure the consumer has a positive relationship with brands and products from cradle to grave.'

First, what brands truly serve people from "cradle to grave" other than the church? If the marketplace is thinking about this, it seems we really should be joining the conversation. (okay, off the soapbox)

How often do we as churches focus on getting people in the door, but neglect to check in as the relationship progresses? I'm not talking about spiritual growth.. (which is always a good thing to be developing) I'm speaking from an engagement point of view. How engaged are people with your church? Is it increasing? Decreasing? What does that even look like?

The study highlights four "I" concepts: (there may be no "I" in team, but there's four in "engagement") I've italicized some additional thoughts as they relate to ministry growth

•   "Involvement" tracks site visitors, time spent, page views and more through software & stats
  I think we can also take this a step further by looking at small group involvement, length & frequency of volunteer opportunities, spiritual development and weekend/midweek participation

• "Interaction" measures the contributions to blogs, purchases made, or upload a photo or video.
  Or consistency of tithing... in the ministry and nonprofit space, I think Involvement & Interaction can be combined or at least interchanged, (another "I" word) as the depth of interaction typically equates the level of involvement

• "Intimacy" tries to understand consumer attitudes, perception, and feelings about a brand through surveys.. Or periodic focus groups. Or first impression info cards

• "Influence" measures the likelihood that consumers will recommend or advocate products or brands. People who are new to your church (as well as Christianity in general) tend to be your biggest raving fans & want everyone to know about the impact that's been made in their lives. Do you know who they are? How are you equipping them to get the message out?

Haven's final point in the article explains engaged consumers will look different in different organizations. And they key is to define what that looks like for you & develop metrics to track progress. (The full study, "Measure of Engagement" is set to publish this May)

Revolutionary Thinking

Ok, I just got off a conference call with Seth Godin about the new revolution we're finding ourselves in. Call it a information, media, social revolution... whatever. The world we live and market in has changed.

Appealing to the masses used to be a strategy that equaled success.

• Control the story
• Push it to as many as possible in the hope a few would be interested & engage
  • (TV advertising, direct mail, telemarketing, food samples in grocery stores.. you get the picture)
• Create products that have been watered down to the lowest common denominator with the intent of having the broadest appeal

Things have changed.

Not one consumer brand in the last 10 years has been built using these methods, (examples include Starbucks, JetBlue, Google) .. and yes, churches are a consumer-driven brand structure.

This isn't about just layering social media tactics or new marketing techniques on top of what we're already doing, but adapting HOW we do WHAT we do so our organizations can thrive and reach people more effectively.
(*note: not just "reach more people" but "reach people more effectively")

In the call, 14 emerging trends were discussed in Seth's latest book, Meatball Sundaes but I want to highlight six here with a bit of adaptation as they specifically relate to ministry.

1. The right to be heard needs to be earned
   1. Not everyone cares what we have to say, so find the ones that do
      
2. Their voice is powerful
   1. All "customers" are capable of amplifying good and bad news. It's not just reporters that have the power to control what's newsworthy. Many churches have a point person to deal with PR and the media... how does that look today or tomorrow?
      
3. We need to tell stories
   1. We can't control how we "market" ourselves anymore.. it's no longer a one-way conversation.
   2. People like, believe and tell stories--it brings who we are on a personal level that's much more meaningful than an "About Us" section
   3. These stories need to be true. The viral effect has made transparency more critical than ever before. If the experience doesn't live up to who we say we are, it'll be discovered quickly.
      
4. Time management is key
   1. ...of their time, not ours. Google & Amazon have changed people's expectations. People will not tolerate endless clicks to find information on your website, or layers of people to get plugged in to a volunteer opportunity
   2. This is not about doing things faster, but reorganizing what's important (to them) to streamline the process & git r done
      
5. Learn from Google
   1. We can't control the path to entry any longer. The homepage or weekend service aren't necessarily the first interaction people will have with our church. Their first impression may be through a small group, serving opportunity, podcast or Facebook link. Is the story and experience consistent?
      
      
6. Learn from PayPal
   1. How can we connect people to each other & remove the organizational structure of the church when it makes sense?
   2. Granger created an online "swap" section where members can trade services, information & just stuff amongst themselves without needing to go through staff. Seacoast created a tool for folks to search & get plugged into a small group. Fostering community & relationships organically makes sense and is effective

Lots of "things that make ya go hmm...."