Priorities

Perhaps it is the phase of life I am in, or that I realize that storming off to accomplish something wild and audacious without a sound foundation is foolish, but recently I have been evaluating how I spend my time. I resumed blogging on a blog my wife and I used to share as a creative outlet, but have shifted things a bit more towards my family. Being a photographer, I love taking photos of my new son and explaining the various situations through a story of sorts. They are almost always short, but provide me a very fun and creative outlet for documenting the joys of seeing him grow.

That said, I began to realize that posting about my family is so much more compelling to me than posting about communications. Now, that doesn't mean that I don't love communications - I do. Nor does it mean that I think communications isn't important - it is. But I have finally begun to understand what it means to have priorities in life.

I had the privilege of working with Jeff Brazil a few years ago. We both happened to be at the same church. I didn't work closely with him as I was in a different department, but we talked fantasy football in the hallway every now and then, and I always enjoyed his perspective on things. I sat down with him in his office one day to ask about my career in communications. Aspiring to be a director of communications, I asked him if he felt more schooling would be needed. His answer gave me an insight to life that I honestly didn't have before.

The essence of what he said was this: "In life, there are 3 things that are most important. First is your relationship with God. Second is your relationship with your spouse and children. Third is your relationship with your family/friends. So at best, your job comes in as the fourth priority in your life." He went on to talk about the various skill sets needed to be a director of communications, but that first bit of wisdom is what resonated with me for the rest of our conversation.

I'm sure if someone asked me specifically enough, I would answer something similar to that list, but I'm not sure I would have ever lived my life that way had I not heard it from someone in my trade who applied it. As I have been blogging about my family, I have come developed a different understanding of communications.

I have always trusted that the Holy Spirit plays a significant role in moving in one's heart to compel them to respond to Christ. My efforts have value, but are not all that is needed to move one's heart. I have seen, however, the impact of a prioritized life. I see people respond to the way I live, and can see God's action in my life through the way I live. Ironically, I am realizing the less I am focused on communicating strategically on Christ's behalf, the better I am at it.

Do you want my money?

I just got back from an evening trip to a supermarket where they don't accept credit cards. As a primarily-plastic kind of guy, I always feel a bit of stress as I fill up the basket. I typically have no cash and don't even know where my wife keeps our checks, so if my card fails me, I'm out of luck. Today as I was shopping, I was chatting on the phone and heard the tail end of an announcement saying "we will only be accepting cash, check and [muffled noises]". I begin to wonder what that muffled option was, hoping the debit services hadn't gone down. Just as I was about to unload my cart, I asked the cashier if they were accepting debit, and she said "no". Eying my cart full of goods, I asked "sooo, do you know when it will be working again?". "No" was her ever-helpful response. She then proceeded to ask if I had cash or a check, which I found annoying (would I really ask about debit if I had a wad of cash in my pocket?). I said no, returned all the cold items to where they needed to go, and left.

I recognize that this experience itself wasn't the fault of the supermarket, as they most likely hire a company to provide the debit service, but it touched on something I have been noticing more and more lately.

I'm having a really hard time spending my money.

It's not that there aren't things I want to buy anymore. It just seems that I am being presented more hurdles than I remember. Which brings us to communications.

Any organization or business needs revenue to survive. If you have convinced people to buy your product, but make it so hard to complete the transaction, you will lose business. The causes that I have experienced recently include: bad service, employees not knowing where inventory is, know knowing anything about the inventory, not having the inventory, or not being able to take money if it isn't cash. All of these are hurdles preventing a successful sale, not to mention establish a negative perception of the company. There are certain places I simply won't go to for certain things anymore. Its a sad day for a company when the consumer is willing to not purchase something they want because of the company selling it makes the process so difficult.

The same applies for communication in the church. The principal is very basic, and applies to just about every form of communications, but it is crucial to view things from the consumers perspective. Who is your consumer? Is it a young church or an old church? Are you focused on bringing in those tho don't know Christ, or developing those who do to be more effective ministers? These questions, and others like them must be asked every time a decision is made. If we lose sight of the flocks we are supposed to lead, we will not them well.


** A note with regards to this topic: **

It is crucial to understand the church that God has called you to be. The biggest mistake you can make is to say "Famous Church does it this way, so should we". Yes, we can glean a lot from the 'famous' churches in terms of ministry practices, but the reason they are successful is because they reach the people God has called them to reach. They don't do what they do because everyone else does it, or because it is neat. They do it because they have determined it to be the most effective way to reach those that God has called them to reach. Be willing to take the risks that will help you reach your flock most effectively, not the ones that are trendy or attractive. The Good News stands the test of time, style, and trends.

Know Your Market

When communicating your message, there are many things to consider. The most important however, is your market. You need to know what language they speak (literally and figuratively), and communicate your message in a way they can understand.

My wife an I are looking to buy our first house. We are very excited, and are constantly trying to be aware of properties available. One area has a lot of new condos that look very nice, so of course I have been casually watching it. I had a conversation with my boss about it today, and he said they were going for over $400,000. If we were still in Orange County, that would be a steal...but we aren't. We are in the High Desert. You can easily buy a nice house in a nice area for $250,000. That is a painfully clear example of the problems that beset you when you don't understand the market. While the O.C. lifestyle might appeal to people in the High Desert, the finances aren't here to support it.

The way we communicate our message as a church is no different. We need to understand our market, and make our choices based on it. How are we making our decisions? Are we looking at our needs in the context of our own community, or are we looking at what other churches are doing to meet their needs? Look to others for a guide on how to travel the course, but don't follow. Each church needs to solve its own problems in the context of it's community or it will not be as effective as it should be.

Blogging vs. Doing

I've been reading a lot of blogs recently that talk a lot about what other "movers and shakers" are doing with regards to a variety of trades and industries. Some of the individuals mentioned captured my attention, and I began researching them. What I noticed in my research, was that there wasn't a lot of information about them beyond a bio. No blogs, no podcasts, no twitter. That got me to thinking...is the blogging community a group of people who spend their time writing about doers rather than getting anything done themselves?

As I get older (I'm only 27, so don't read too much into that), I am starting to realize what a huge distinction there is between making an actual difference in the world, and a virtual one. Seldom does a blog post change my life. I can get some good information from a blog post, or find a neat little piece of software or new technology, but at the end of the day, nothing has really help shape me into who I am today.

Now as one who posts on a few blogs, I don't write to say that all blogs are worthless. Rather, I am writing to say accomplish something real with your life. Invest in your relationships and your passions. Spend your time acquiring depth in the meaningful things in life, rather than being shallow over a variety of fields an interests. Also, use technology for meaning. I am currently working on a blog that is exclusively for friends and family who are out of the area in order to keep our relationships connected and flourishing. Make the use of technology worthwhile.

Beyond us being church workers, we are Christians called to change the world for Christ. May we not spend our time distracted from the call that has been placed on us. I vow to blog less, and do more.

New Personal Database

You may recall my idea management post a few months ago. Well, FileMaker has jumped into the mix with a new product called Bento. I haven't yet upgraded to Leopard on my computer at home, so I haven't had a chance to play with the demo yet, but from the videos I have seen, it looks very nice. If you happen to be on Leopard and are looking for yet another option, Bento seems worth a look.

This Post is Green (How Trends can Devalue Your Message)

Through a blog I frequent, I was pointed to a New York Times article announcement of the "color of the year". It wasn't the color that intrigued me, rather, it was one of the quotes in the article. Now, before I go down that road, I just have to say that I find it quite amusing that a committee of people sit around talking about which colors should or should not be "in". Thanks for doing the thinking for me guys...now I can follow your lead like a mindless robot until the color is so overused that I blend in with everyone else trying to communicate their message. While that may be a cynical perspective, the quote that caught my attention points to a similar problem - how trends can swing from helping your brand to hurting it.

In the article, a comment was made about the color green. Thinking about our culture, and the huge trend towards an "environmentally friendly" public image, you would think that the color green would be nominated instead of the shade of blue that won. After all, green is green, right?

For educated consumers, Mr. Pean said, the overuse of green in marketing is increasingly a turn-off.

Wait. Isn't being environmentally friendly a good thing? Last I checked, it still matters. However, now that everyone is saying that they care, it begins to mean less. While I'm glad that Ford is green, so is Chevy, Toyota and Honda. The "greenness" of a company no longer differentiates them from everyone else.

I think this is a very important lessen for the church to understand. Too often, the recommendation for the next series title starts with "Make it look like those [insert ad campaign name here] ads". The issue however, is that unless the appropriation of these campaigns are done at the very forefront of a trend, the marketing materials have the potential to actually turn the target audience off. Yikes! Now, it doesn't mean that these ideas can't work, it just means that conversations and research should be done before solidifying a campaign approach like this. Make sure the ideas aren't already over saturated in the audience you are trying to reach, or that the value of the campaign has been diluted.

If there isn't a differentiation between the message of the church, and the message of our culture, then something is terribly wrong. After all, the church isn't supposed to look like culture...it is supposed to look different. Our marketing should be no different.

On the Shoulders of Normal People

I have been enjoying the benefits of community recently. Not "real life" community, rather, an online community. The folks over at Church Marketing Sucks graciously started a "lab" quite some time ago where church practitioners from various capacities (design, video, pastor, etc) come together to lament, critique, and brainstorm. Recently, I have gotten more involved and have tried to contribute to the needs of my fellow church designer. Today, as I was reading a post, I couldn't think of a solution, so I moved on a bit frustrated at my inability to help. I checked back a few hours later, and an idea was suggested that I really enjoyed. From that, I was able to suggest a specific application for that idea, as well a suggest new idea. I realized that it doesn't take an earth-shattering idea to come to great design solution. Instead, it simply takes a conversation. Not to say that the idea suggested was bad (because it was great), but it was the conversation that triggered a new idea to suggest.

Design can be one of the most selfless trades that I have seen. Our ideas are very rarely 100% ours. In fact, they are often 10-15% ours. We are simply the executers of vision, with a little sprinkle of us mixed in. As we continue to create, having resources like the CMS Lab, as well as co-workers and friends to have conversations about communications is vital. We don't always need to stand on the shoulders of giants to accomplish much in our trade. Often standing on the shoulders of normal people works just as well.

Why Font Matters

It seems that fonts either get too much attention, or not enough. While the study of typography can be a very dull science for some, there is much impact that can be made through a sound understanding of type. But for those of you who don't care too much about devoting your life to studying letters (other than Paul's), I'll give you the most important piece of typographic knowledge that is forgotten much too often. It won't seem too profound until your next encounter with bad typography, but I promise you it is significant.

Pick a font that is readable.

I know, I know... "duh". Shockingly though, there are WAY to many businesses and organizations that simply fail to choose a font that is readable. Last night on the freeway, I was driving by a BMW that had a web address on it. Part of the address was legible, and peaked my interest. I wanted to know what this site was so I could find more.

Let's stop there for a second. The fact that a part of a website demanded enough of my attention to cause me to speed up to try to read the website is HUGE for any business or organization.

Now, the sad part. After 20 seconds of glancing over trying to read the web address, I gave up. That means I won't go on the site, nor will I ever have the chance to buy any of the products there. A lost sale. All because I couldn't read the font. Those meetings figuring out what products to sell, how to choose an effective web address that would capture people, and developing strategies for getting the word out were all a waste...because of a poor font choice.

I know this may sound like an over dramatic post, but it isn't. If you are promoting your church, but people can't read what you are saying, you will fail in getting your message out. It would be the same as preaching a sermon in a language that no one understands.

A quick way to check the readability of a font. You ready? This will be an earth shattering bit of info...Ask someone else. If the answer doesn't seem clear by asking those around you, drive to a nearby store and ask someone out front if they can read what it says. Obviously this only applies to fonts that are beyond your normal Arial or Times type fonts. Typically cursives have the most problems. Also, don't ask if people like the font, ask if they can read it. That is a subtle difference that I have learned changes the answer completely.

So once you have a message that is worth sharing, make sure you communicate it in a way that others can understand. Obviously everyone won't respond, but those that are interested will...because they could read it.

Keep on Keepin' on

Very sorry for the massive delay in posting. I have been swamped at work with a major project, and now that it is back from print and mailed out to a few thousand households in the High Desert, I can reflect a bit on the chaos. The project was a magazine that we were trying to get done for Thanksgiving (along with a few other things all due at the same time). Typically we try to get our magazines in homes on the first of the month, but with Thanksgiving being a family gathering oriented event, we thought it would be great to have the magazine in the hands of the congregation to show to their holiday guests. Getting it in homes a week and a half early meant my deadline was a week and a half sooner than I was used to.

It wasn't just the deadline that made the project chaotic. The magazine was focused around compassion and I was having a really hard time figuring out how to communicate it visually without using the standard ideas. And not just once. There were three articles about it. I hit a creative wall, and couldn't seem to get through it. I began to realize that often the walls we face aren't because we are pursuing the wrong idea, rather, it is because we haven't pursued the right idea long enough. I am very happy with the final design, and am shocked to see where it is today, considering where it was just a few weeks ago. All the building blocks are the same...I just spent a lot of time moving them around.

From what I have seen, communications is no different. If you say something only once, the message will probably not make an impact. Instead, you have to live your life in a way that shows that you care about what you are constantly talking about, or your message will lose its teeth. Keep pursuing the thing that are right. If things don't seem to be coming together, then maybe you just haven't pursued it long enough.

I Forgot

As my wife and I were walking out of church Sunday evening, she noticed that a container collecting food for a food drive the church was promoting was empty. She turned and said "how sad, there aren't any cans in the box for the food drive." Confused, I said "what food drive?" She scolded me saying, "the one in the bulletin last week. Didn't you read it?!" As a staff member in the communications department, I read it a few times. In fact, I proofed it before it went to print! That got me to thinking, why didn't I remember?

Part of the reason is that I don't go to church for events. I go to worship God, be developed in my faith, and be equipped to change the world for His glory. Now, that by no means trivializes the food drive. It simply explains why the small blurb in the bulletin didn't resonate with me. In that, I realized that once a week communication has some significant limitations. Mainly, most people forget the events of the bulletin by the time they reach their car after the service, let alone remember to go to the store, pick up some canned goods and return them to church the next week. So, how do we remind people?

Our answer is to use our blog. The church I work for is divided into different communities, each with their own programs, ministries and worship style, united by the same teaching. The youngest of the three communities has a blog, and uses it for general interest purposes. It isn't about this verse or that passage all the time. Sometimes it is a funny YouTube video that is going around, and other times it's an update on what the pastor does to relax. In this case, the food drive will be a perfect fit. Because we have a blog, we have a mid week opportunity to remind the congregation that they have an opportunity to give. By using the blog this way, it will take the digital communication and translate into a tangible result.

Another way I have seen work, but only works when planning ahead, is to provide some tangible reminder for people to take home. At my previous job, we used to literally have pallets of empty boxes for people to take home, fill up, and bring back. There were several reminders built in. First, you had a bunch of empty boxes all over the place screaming, "oh ya, there is a food drive". Second, people would literally have a box to see and remind them that they need to fill up a box. And finally, as the boxes are returned and stacked in various locations, people were reminded, "oh ya, I still have that box that I need to fill up".

Obviously different applications can be applied at different places, but those are two methods, one about damage control, one about planning ahead successfully, to reach your congregation more than once a week.

iPhoneslide

I found out about a great service today called iPhoneslide. It is great for a few reasons. First, its free. Second, it really makes managing all these various online tools nice when it comes to uploading media. Don't let the "iPhone" part of the name scare you off, it works from any cell phone or computer.

The idea is simple. I have a Facebook account, a blog through Blogger, and am playing around with a Flickr account. Now, if you are anything like me, I don't fully understand the depths of each of these tools. Because of that, I typically post similar information on each site. And there comes the hassle. I don't want post the same photo to three different sites three different times. I then say "bah! forget it", and my photos go nowhere. Well, the wonderful people at iPhoneslide have solved that problem, and more.

The idea is to be able to take your photos from your phone and upload them from wherever you are to wherever you want them to be. That list includes Twitter, Flickr, Facebook, Wordpress, TypePad and Blogger. It is as simple as emailing your photo to post@iphoneslide.com. You will receive an email back with a link. Follow the link, and you are asked which sites you would like your photo uploaded to. You can even include title and descriptions for the photos by using the correct fields in the original email (check the FAQs). Amazing!

Obviously this has some really cool applications from the road. "Look, I'm stuck in the airport because of snow", or in the case of us southern Californians, "Look, I'm stuck on the freeway because there is a giant wall of fire in front of me". But it makes the upload to these various sites a lot easier even from the computer. Pretty cool stuff.

YouTube outreach

YouTube asked the question, "how has YouTube changed your life", and video makers answered. I find it interesting that the insecurities of being a teenager haven't changed much, only the way one "deals" with them. This short video is a great evangelism piece for YouTube. Wouldn't be a bad idea to have something like this flying around in your church's your ministry circles talking about how your [insert life stage here] is changing lives.

Pretty doesn't equal Effective

I took the last week off writing so I could mull over some things and take care of the hefty list of to-dos I had before me last week. We had a yard sale over the weekend, and I was struck by a few things that apply directly to the way the church creates and communicates.

Obviously the goal with any yard sale is that people show up. Without people showing up, you won't sell any of the glorious goods you are trying to get rid of. So, the first issue becomes creating signs that communicate clearly and effectively.

My parents put some signs together made of shiny paper cut in the shape of arrows. They weren't particularly attractive in my opinion, but to add to that, they put orange and black streamers hanging off the signs. Lovely. The thing I noticed however, is that the signs were extremely effective. Now, as a designer I strive to produce attractive work, but all too often I see things that look pretty, but don't communicate. I regularly see signs that are attractively designed, but don't work. They are too small or too subtle. I need to know to turn left to get to the food court or the worship center. A subtle sign that blends in nicely is not good design. Design, after all, is the balance of aesthetics and communication.

The other major lesson I learned is that I don't know everything. My parents decided to have the yard sale on Friday and Saturday instead of just Friday. I spent much of Thursday telling my wife not to worry when no one showed up on Friday, because that just isn't a good day for a yard sale. To prove my ineptitude, more people showed up on Friday than I have ever seen at a yard sale. It was amazing. The reason I didn't know people would show up is simple...I don't know the audience as well as I thought. I knew them only well enough to make the wrong assumption. In the church, assumptions are made regularly about who attends, and how to capture the attention of those who don't. Very rarely, however, do we actually talk to those who don't attend in order to provide an appropriate design piece.

Good design isn't just about looking pretty. It is about developing a piece that communicates effectively and yields results. If we are too focused on looks, or aren't evaluating the success of our products post production, most likely, we aren't nearly as effective as we think we are.

YouTube Nonprofit Program

YouTube announced a new Nonprofit program that allows accepted nonprofits to obtain their very own nonprofit channel on YouTube (blog announcement). This is a great opportunity for nonprofits (and presumably churches) to communicate with donors, friends of the organization, and even potential guests/visitors in a very cool way. I see this as more powerful than simply creating your own channel, as it identifies the church as an institution focused on bettering our world. It also puts us in front of a crowd of people who may not really know what churches do. Is your church making an impact in the local community? This would be a fantastic way to communicate how God is working, and how others can get involved. What are some other ways you can think to leverage this tool?

Rethinking Podcasting and Notes

Podcasting isn't news, but I have always been a bit confused at how the church uses the medium. The vast majority of churches simply rebroadcast what the congregation already heard that week in church - the sermon. While this is very beneficial for those who were out of town or overslept, it isn't really that beneficial to those who attended that week. Obviously there are some advantages to doing this, and I know I subscribe to a few church podcasts to hear services of churches I love, but aren't in my area. But I want to challenge the mindset of "podcasts are for sermons". To do that, I want to present you with a simple piece of free software, and a really cool tutorial that got me thinking.

First, the software. It is called iPod Notes, and it is a very simple tool to use. 3rd generation and newer ipods support iPod notes, but often aren't used. This simple program helps you create and manage notes easier. Now, who really cares about notes? Lets chat about the tutorial.

I found this on the macworld site from 2004, filed unders "secrets". It goes through the process of linking to audio files in your library by using some basic HTML tags in your notes. I love their example of giving a new ipod to a significant other, having them start at a note with a message that then links to romantic songs to enhance the experience. Fantastic!

Now, on to application. How can we levereage this concept in the church? I would love to see a simple study based on the weekend service. Lets say you do a mini devotional on a specific topic. More often than not, there is more than one verse that contributes to a better understanding off the topic. Instead of simply listing the verse, or even putting the reference, why not link to a narrator reading the passage? It could be a very interactive way to engage people in a totally new way. This technology has been around for quite some time, yet I haven't heard of a church leveraging it yet. Podcasting is mainstream, but, in my opinion, it lacks the interactivity that younger generations love. What applications can you think of for this clever little technology?

Why Story Works

It seems that telling "your story" is all the rage in today's church. I get tired of hearing "journey" and "narrative" every time someone opens their mouth in the church, and I think the terminology is grossly overused. The content behind the buzzwords however, is the truest example of the health of the church. A Biblical church should be balanced in the way it approaches three things - "Ministry to God: Worship, Ministry to Believers: Nurture, and Ministry to the World: Evangelism and Mercy" (Systematic Theology, Grudem). So how does this relate to story?

Story is perhaps the most powerful and effective way of communicating the fruit that is being produced in your church. It also communicates another powerful truth of Scripture - we are not all called to the same impact. While the church is to be balanced in the three points above, the individual is not. Each individual is gifted and interested in different aspects of God's calling (which is the beautiful thing about the body). Stories show how a gifted evangelist can use his or her Gifts in a powerful way to reach people for Christ, while the story of one gifted in mercy can exhibit Christ's love to those in need.

A healthy church should be able to find stories that articulate each category mentioned above. Ok, so what? We have a healthy church, and we know people that balance our church. Great! But are you sharing those stories with the congregation? There is a big difference between a church that is about something and a church that is doing what they are about. Stories are a barometer for you and your congregation to ask, "are we doing what we are about?" If so, then stories about the fruit of your ministry will encourage further growth. If not, something needs to be tweaked or changed to cultivate the bearing of fruit.

As creative minded people, we have been gifted with the ability to solve problems in unique ways. I encourage you to figure out the most effective way to use stories in your work. What does the congregation of your church need to hear? How is God using the people in your congregation to Worship, Nurture, and Evangelize? I'd love to see some of the things you have learned in the comments. How do you use stories?