The quality of your consumer experience is measured in comparison to your competitors.
- Jeremy Lockhorn :: “Web Sites: Best Practices or Creativity?” :: ClickZ Network
Jeremy made this statement in reference to the lack of differentiation between corporate websites and online experiences. However, this principle also applies to the full scope of your church. It means two things:
- If every church in your community is alike, these churches will minimize their impact on the community by offering a church experience that appeals to only a select set of needs, preferences, and lifestyles.
- Your church’s true competition is not the other churches in your community but everything your community would rather do than attend your church. Meaning that people, particularly the unchurched, will measure the experience they have at your church against your competition - Starbucks, Bass Pro Shop, shopping, etc.
Of course your church website is still very important. Jeremy goes on to say:
Your Web site and, more generally, the digital experience you enable are increasingly important to your overall marketing efforts. The Web site is replacing the :30 spot as a brand’s central expression.
He also offers the following tips for organizations looking to effectively and positively differentiate themselves from “the competition”:
- Foster an environment in which testing and experimentation are encouraged.
- Create projects that are allowed to fail.
- Segment your audience and push these test experiences to a small percentage.
- Push your creative teams to reinvent the experience.
So how is your church different? What are people experiencing when they visit?
Awesome! But I have a question - we are a Church that is intentional about most things we do - esp. on service days. As far as branding - i believe that we are headed in the right process of direction. Just 2 years ago we changed the name of our Church for a more relevant connection - it worked - however how often should a church change NOT ITS NAME but its logo. Ive noticed corperate E.g. Pepsico (MT. Dew) changes their look often - and so on - what do think?
Randy,
Great Question!
How often should a church change its logo?
First off, let’s assume that a church’s logo is originally created to reflect not only the church’s brand (core values/what makes it unique/mission) but also to appeal to the primary target audience that the church is called to reach. In this case, a logo should only be revised if:
1. The culture of the target audience evolves to such a degree that the logo also needs revised.
2. The brand (core values/mission) evolves to such a degree that the logo also needs revised. (Hopefully, this evolution would be a God directed change.)
3. It is not timeless but designed around fashionable design trends that are now outdated.
Sometimes companies will update their logo every decade to seem a little more current. Sometimes a logo revision is simply a way to repackage a brand and reposition it in the minds of prospects (this repositioning will only last if the company also changes internally).
Ideally, you will begin with a good logo that is timeless and you can keep a lifetime. Consider NBC, CBS, Coca Cola, or even Pepsi. They are all simple yet timeless marks that have for the most part successfully weathered the years. I think Mt. Dew has also kept the same identity. I believe that they have only changed their creative approach to communicating their brand.
The problem many churches have (and so do many businesses) is they have logos designed based not on timeless qualities that reflect their brand but on fashionable design trends. The problem with this approach is the logo will be outdated in five years. Like an out-of-date shirt or haircut you will be judged based on cultural opinion and not on the actual identity unique to your church.
That’s the basics in a nutshell.
-Kent
[...] A month ago, we discussed the importance of church differentiation. In response to the post, a pastor named Randy asks the following question: How often should a church change NOT ITS NAME but its logo? I’ve noticed corporate E.g. PepsiCo (MT. Dew) changes their look often - and so on - what do you think? [...]