One thing we specialize in here at BMGcreative is helping new businesses and ministries get off the ground. It is actually one of the things we love to do. Start-ups are always exciting because we get to create something new.
But how do you market a new Christian business or ministry? Many eager new business owners want to push their faith through their business. While being “in your face” with a blatant Christian message usually isn’t the best route to take, we always encourage Christian business owners them to live their faith through their business.
Christians who do marketing
In the simplest sense marketing is advertising, promoting or telling others about a service, product or idea. So if we were to mix in Christian with marketing we would get someone who believes in Jesus that does advertising or promoting.
There are a lot of companies that are owned or run by Christians, but you wouldn’t know that overtly by their branding or marketing. However, once you get to know them, you can clearly see Christian principles in action rather than in their logo. Most of the successful Christian-owned businesses that I know operate in this way.
Christianity in marketing
One big mistake we see often are business owners that feel they need to proclaim Jesus and honor God by plastering Christianese and Christian symbols all over their business materials. I strongly agree that we need to honor God in all we do. However it may not be the best practice to put verses, icons and Christian wording all over our business collateral.
Please don’t get offended, but when people see crosses, Jesus hanging on a cross, and all other kinds of Christianese on your business materials, this almost always turns them off to your business. If you are truly trying to reach people with the message of the gospel, then build a relationship and be a witness to them. If you are trying to promote your business or ministry to others, not just Christians, then do it in a professional clear way that others can understand and won’t get turned away or confused by. God calls us to be salt, something that is palatable and tastes good. We are not called to be a red hot pepper. Use common sense in your marketing efforts in order to help attract people to you rather than making them run away.
Marketing to Christians
Now there is another way we can look at Christian marketing in the sense of actually marketing to Christians. If you are trying to reach only Christians, or any target market for that matter, you can break some of the typical marketing rules. Keeping the same message contained to a target market allows you the freedom to use language that you shouldn’t use when marketing to a general audience.
Keep your audience in mind
Whether you are a Christian in marketing or trying to market to Christians keep in mind who will be seeing your ad, brochure or billboard and ask how someone that doesn’t know you could interpret it. Oftentimes, seeing things from others’ perspective is difficult. For that reason, most companies hire marketing and branding agencies to make sure they have the most effective message developed to reach the right group of people.
It’s better to ask others that will give you honest advice than to waste efforts and resources on the wrong message reaching the wrong people.
For more information and a how-to guide visit BMGcreative.com/OneToday.
Grif Blackstone is the publisher of the Good News, the largest Christian newspaper in Florida and the president of BMGcreative, a full service web design and marketing company. Grif has helped hundreds of organizations build an effective brand and help them communicate who they are to their target market. Writer, speaker, and consultant, Grif is known for technology and business and is highly caffeinated. Contact him at: grif@bmgcreative.com or 954-229-2256.