What if Starbucks Marketed like a Church?

This blog has received lots of links from progressive-minded churches wanting to improve their marketing. It's my turn to reciprocate.

Just as churches can learn something from business marketers, business marketers can learn something from churches. Churches do things to turn off potential Christ-followers. And businesses do things to turn off potential customers.

In this video parable, the Beyond Relevance blog shares how churches subtly construct barriers to making new attendees feel welcome. Enjoy and learn ...

RSS Readers ... click here to watch the video.

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** Kudos to Danny Franks for the heads-up.

Comments

[BIG Kahuna]

The only problem is Starbucks is everywhere. In every grocery store, street corner....

Being special and hard to find is not in the Starbucks language anymore.

[Greg]

BIG Kahuna,

If you live in the Bible Belt, there are more churches than Starbucks.

John,

What a great clip. I sent the link to the priest in charge of outreach where I attend church...a good lesson for all of us.

[Brian]

Spot on!

- Frustrated Christian

[Ralph]

truthful, painfully truthful so thanks

Ralph

[StephanieInCA]

This made my day; couldn't be more dead-on.

I think another (albeit less hilarious) example of a campaign that that builds barriers rather than bridges is VW's bizarre "Routan Boom"-- http://urbzen.com/2008/11/06/routan-bust/ --There's a difference between poking fun at your target market and just outright mocking them.

[BIG Kahuna]

John,

I'm a Northeast Jew, I just couldn't identify with it....

But it certainly was entertaining.

[johnmoore (from Brand Autopsy)]

Scott (BIG Kahuna), I don't see this as a Christian/Jewish thing.

It's a parable ... a parable about the subtle but significant barriers churches, synagogues, businesses, and organizations have in place that prevent new members, believers, customers, and employees from feeling welcome.

[BIG Kahuna]

Sorry I should have said "I'm a Northeast Jew, I just couldn't identify with it....

insert northeast sarcasm here.

I got it silly. I laughed and cried. More sarcasm.

[Mark True, brand warrior]

Want to see fear? watch what happens when you suggest a business act more like a church - express love, embrace others, connect, etc. - and watch what happens when you suggest a church act more like a business - with purposeful communications, measurement, marketing, etc.

Both could learn from that little exercise.

-Mark

[Mark True, brand warrior]

Want to see fear? watch what happens when you suggest a business act more like a church - express love, embrace others, connect, etc. - and watch what happens when you suggest a church act more like a business - with purposeful communications, measurement, marketing, etc.

Both could learn from that little exercise.

-Mark

[Pat Nerr]

one of the funniest things I've seen in a while and so true.

The button down shirt, khakis and hair style make this video for me. Makes me want to go to church again

[Brett Duncan]

Bible-belt-living, lifelong church-going Christian here, and that video exposes all kinds of stuff - spot on! And FUNNY!

[DUST!N]

Classic! I actually do some volunteer work at our church to try and keep this from happening. I'm not always successful.

"Rick Warren" Hawaiian shirt and J-O-Y = Java, Others, You
Those were the money shots for me.

Thanks for the painful laugh!

[Dan Morelle]

The irony is that there is a church in my locality that has set up a Starbucks franchise within it! It all makes sense now.

[Mike]

Have you ever gone into a small-town cafe and had a similar experience? I love rural communities; but they could learn a thing or two from the video on how to welcome visitors and new residents.

[Josh Hunt]

that is great!!!

-Josh
www.salemfriends.com

[Lloyd Christmas]

The church is actually a family of disciples (not a consumer-driven company). No matter how savvy our marketing techniques are, people will believe that we are trying to sell them something.

People's experience of the church needs to be like Jesus' vision of it was: a hundred times more mothers and brothers and sisters and homes and lands. If we ignore this truth, each of us will miss the most amazing thing on earth, a family closer than blood relations.

People who are seeking and hungry for God (i.e. the ones we should be looking for) don't need another company that's dispensing a product. They need a Father, and a Good older brother, and other family surrounding them.

Christianity is not an industry, nor a product. Father, wake us up.