February 26, 2010

Interviews with Cynthia Ware

Recently our executive director, Cynthia Ware, has found herself in the news on a few occasions. We're glad to welcome her as a part of our team and looking forward to the church at large benefiting from her voice in the community.

She discussed ministry excellence with skill and poise in a recent piece from the State of Ministry Online. Asked about the definition of excellence in online ministry, Cynthia had this to say:

Excellence used to be about making your blog spectacular, but now we are seeing many more evolutionary and collaborative open source efforts. Sometimes online excellence is seen when someone has taken the initiative and laid the foundation for others to follow.

She was also quoted recently in Faith in San Antonio as well, discussing the delicate challenge of making wise decisions about when to embrace new technologies.

We look forward to Cynthia's continued role in helping the church balance technology and effective communication.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 10:16 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 9, 2010

Brad Abare on Christian Copycats

If you've followed us for any time at all, you likely know that we tend to give a rough time to Christian copycats. Recently, our founder Brad Abare sang this same tune once more in The Tampa Tribune.

Brad responds to the fad of Christians making puns or spin-offs of popular culture items, saying:

"The whole claim for Christians in general is that God is the source of all creativity. I think there's something to being original that will speak to people in a way that we don't have to copy."

It's always nice to have an opportunity to point folks looking for a quote from the "Christian perspective" in the right direction. We hope to see more loving and challenging quotes like this come from the church moving forward.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 2:23 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 3, 2010

Church Marketing Sucks in the Leadership Journal

The latest issue of the Leadership Journal took a look at churches using social media, and they turned to Church Marketing Sucks for reference.

Our own Michael Buckingham is quoted on the issue, saying:

"The Internet isn't powerful because it connects you to information, but because it connects you to people."

And they go on to report our unscientific poll results to help get the pulse on how churches are doing with social media.

We're always humbled and excited to be involved with publications like Leadership Journal. We look forward to continue giving advice and challenges to the church community at large as we all try to communicate the gospel more clearly.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 12:01 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 20, 2009

Brad Abare on Smart Phones and Spirituality

Our own Brad Abare recently penned an article for Christianity Today considering the benefits and detriments of the cell phone revolution on spirituality.

He examines the obvious benefits of the technological advance--greater access to biblical texts, great connectivity amongst individuals and improved availability of resources for those seeking to go deeper.

But perhaps more astutely, the article considers the drawbacks of this technological advance. He warns:

A life-giving, biblical church community must understand the difference between using technology to communicate the transforming power of the gospel, and letting the gospel be transformed by technology. We need more thoughtful Christians who are determined to heed Henry David Thoreau's warning against becoming "the tool of our tools."

You can read the entire article on the Christianity Today web site.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 6:57 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 12, 2009

Chicago Tribune on Cultivate

Recently, the Chicago Tribune looked at the issue of churches marketing themselves online, and more specifically, the Cultivate Conference recently held at Park Community Church:

On Tuesday, 250 Web-savvy Christians -- from blogging pastors to iPhone programmers -- gathered at Park Community for Cultivate 09, an interactive conference on ministry communication, which includes marketing strategy. More than a third of Americans younger than 50 don't have a religious affiliation, according to a 2008 study by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, but conference organizers say Web-based campaigns help bring younger, "unchurched" people into the Christian community.

The article covers the benefits of connecting via technology as well as the potential pitfalls of bypassing personal relationships in favor of online connectivity. It also includes a mention of Center for Church Communication founder Brad Abare:

The conference's proceeds benefit, in part, the Center for Church Communication, a nonprofit that tries to steer churches away from bad clip art and ineffective marketing. In its online labs, 3,500 people have shared their innovative ideas, said Brad Abare, 30, the center's founder.

Don't hesitate to read the entire article to see their view of churches marketing and communicating online.

Posted by Joshua Cody at 12:44 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

July 4, 2009

CFCC in Veritas

Veritas, an online magazine for twentysomethings in Des Moines, Iowa, did a story on social media and the church. The story includes an interview with our own Brad Abare who offered his perspective on social media and the importance of forging offline relationships.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:51 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 23, 2009

Star Tribune Piece on Religious Marketing

The Minneapolis-based Star Tribune recently covered religious marketing and gave us a nod. They briefly mention own our "bluntly named" Church Marketing Sucks, noting that we criticize how marketing is done rather than the practice of marketing itself.

They also point out that "the bulk of the site offers tips on designing eye-catching web pages." Hopefully we're accomplishing more than that, but we'll take what we can get.

The article does have a lot more to say about church marketing from smarter folks, as noted on Church Marketing Sucks.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:05 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 29, 2007

Interview with Bloggers Series

Church Marketing Sucks was recently featured in a series of blogger interviews by Issue Dynamics. They talked with yours truly, CMS Chief Blogger Kevin D. Hendricks. Check out the full interview.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:07 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 26, 2007

CFCC in How Magazine

Check out the December 2007 issue of How magazine for a feature on Christian design and marketing. The story includes the Center for Church Communication and our flagship blog, Church Marketing Sucks, with quotes from founder Brad Abare:

"The church is all about spreading the greatest story ever told," Abare says. "We have a problem when that story is lost to poor communication methods, marketing gimmicks and inauthentic ways of connecting with people. The creation of the blog was a way we could help church leaders, without them having to hire our services. Our mission is to frustrate, educate and motivate the church to communicate, with uncompromising clarity, the truth of Jesus Christ."

Abare maintains that marketing isn't sleazy--it's just another way of getting the word out. "Marketing is simply thinking through what you do and why you do it," he says. "It's being intentional. You can certainly do marketing poorly--either so sloppy it doesn't work or so slick it turns people off. Both suck, and both are at odds with your religious values." ...

"Understanding the church audience is just like understanding any other audience you're communicating with," Abare says. "We're all people with heads and hearts, bellies and budgets, families and friends."

And when it comes to spreading the word, there's a term that churches certainly can embrace: marketing. Says Abare: "Some have argued that marketing is just another word for evangelism, suggesting that it's a way to spread the good news of the Gospel, just as an evangelist would tell people about Jesus."

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:27 AM
| Comments (1) | TrackBack

January 16, 2007

CFCC is One of 59 Smartest Organizations Online

Seth Godin's Squidoo, Net Squared and Get Active have put together a list of the 59 smartest organizations online and the Center for Church Communication made the list.

These charities were chosen for their excellence in online storytelling and collaboration with their donors. We didn't play favorites to one cause over another, nor did we look at their fundraising goals or number of members. Instead, these organizations are winners because of their web 2.0 smarts and a willingness to engage their constituents far beyond asking them to dig into their pockets.

These are organizations that give their volunteers and members a voice and get out of the way. They're pros at mobilizing awareness online. They're experimentors. Innovators. On a mission. They're fearless.

And now we're blushing.

You can also vote for your favorite organization and CFCC is currently ranked 10th. That ranking will likely change, but hey, 10th! (link via Seth Godin)

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 3:03 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 15, 2007

CMS is Top 5 Fundraising Blog

The writer of the Donor Power Blog, Jeff Brooks, listed Church Marketing Sucks as one of the top five must-read fundraising blogs:

Part of the Center for Church Communications, this blog is, as described in its tag line, “the blog to frustrate, educate and motivate the church to communicate, with uncompromising clarity, the truth of Jesus Christ.” Brooks says he likes this blog for its edge in critiquing church marketing efforts. “It’s got a real point of view,” he adds.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 10:52 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 11, 2007

Top 20 Web Sites for Church Communicators

Outreach magazine recently ran the web exclusive article The Top 20 Web Sites for Church Communicators, written by yours truly. Check it out for more than your daily requirement of webby goodness.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:40 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 27, 2006

Creative Synergy Interviews Brad Abare

The latest episode of the Creative Synergy Podcast with Greg Atkinson and Anthony Coppedge includes an interview with our very own Brad Abare.

"If the church gets branding and marketing right, more people will come to Jesus." -Brad Abare

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:15 AM
| Comments (1) | TrackBack

November 22, 2006

San Antonio Paper Mentions CMS

The San Antonio Express-News did a story on churches using MySpace, "Pastor is making MySpace his own", on November 18, which featured a brief quote from yours truly:

To Kevin Hendricks, chief blogger for Church Marketing Sucks, these Christian alternatives created "yet another Christian ghetto"--just like art, music and books made to respond to secular originals.

"When we as Christians see something cool, we say, 'Well that involves interaction with the secular world, and that's scary. It might get dirty and ugly.' But what happens is you lose this interaction (with the public) if you're only talking to people in your church."

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:51 AM
| Comments (1) | TrackBack

November 3, 2006

Relevant Leader Interview

Last month our very own Brad Abare was interviewed for the Relevant Leader, the weekly e-mail newsletter of the Relevant Network. Check it out and hear Brad talk about Beethoven's "Eroica" and a wise move from Robert E. Lee.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:35 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

September 19, 2006

Red Herring on Web 2.0 & the Church

The business and technology magazine Red Herring mentioned Church Marketing Sucks in a recent online article about web 2.0 and the church, "Religious Sites Embrace Web 2.0". The article covered MyChurch.org and eBible, and included a quote from, well, me:

“The church is probably handicapped in the sense that the least likely place you’ll find twenty-somethings is in a church,” said Kevin Hendricks, creator of the 30,000 visitor-strong blog Church Marketing Sucks. “The few of us who are there are stepping up and trying to pull the church kicking and screaming into the 21st century, and it happens in small ways.”

For accuracy's sake I'm not actually the creator of CMS. That credit goes to Brad Abare. And for humility's sake, I have to admit how arrogant that quote sounds when I read it now. I can assure you that's not my heart. A lot of folks are trying to pull the church kicking and screaming into the 21st century, not just a handful of twenty-somethings. There are actually a lot of people older and younger doing it, and most of them smarter than me. But I think you get my drift.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 8:36 AM
| Comments (1) | TrackBack

August 16, 2006

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review on Church Tech

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review covers church technology in an article called "'Godcasts' spread the Gospel." The piece covers the increasing use of technology for religious purposes, including everything from podcasting sermons to virtual tours of the Vatican to youth group rooms pimped out with video games--which is where we get a comment from our very own Brad Abare:

But the devices used to transmit the gospel could wind up becoming more important than the message, said Brad Abare, founder of the Los Angeles-based Center for Church Communication.

After all, "Jesus didn't say go into the world and use a soundboard and good lighting," Abare said. The point is to spread the Gospel, he said.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:00 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 19, 2006

CFCC in the Detroit Free Press

On Friday another article on church marketing appeared, this time in the Detroit Free Press. The Center for Church Communication and Church Marketing Sucks both get a mention:

The trend is so prevalent that the Center for Church Communication, a Los Angeles nonprofit of about 30 marketing professionals, created a Web site, www.churchmarketingsucks.com, to help churches market effectively.

"We've got the greatest story ever told, but no one's listening," said founder and president Brad Abare, who runs the Personality ad agency in Los Angeles. But "We think the church has a communications problem. In general, the church has been resistant to the idea of church marketing."

Though I'm not sure who the "30 marketing professionals" are. While we do have a number of volunteers who help out (and always welcome more), we don't have any kind of membership list.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 7:14 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

June 5, 2006

Free Gas and a Mention of CMS

Church Executive Magazine is covering a marketing campaign from Crossing Community Church in Chandler, Ariz. where they're giving away free gas to entice visitors. Lead Pastor Mike Harper and Creative Arts Pastor Jeff Poole mention a few places where they find resources and ideas, including our own Church Marketing Sucks (which just so happens to have covered a church giving away gas in September 2005).

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 6:14 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 17, 2006

Wall Street Journal Mentions CMS

Today the Wall Street Journal explored how churches are using technology in an piece called "Churches Embrace the Web In Bid to Attract Members". It covers churches using new sites like MySpace, Flickr and Friendster and includes a mention and link to Church Marketing Sucks:

Attracting young people, as well as staying relevant, are two of the most common reasons churches are trying these sites, said Brad Abare, who posts tips and interviews on the blog Church Marketing Sucks. The tough-love name reflects the blunt discussion he thinks many religious organizations need to have, he said. "We have the greatest story ever told, and nobody's listening," he said.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:29 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 15, 2006

Everett Herald on Mega-Churches

The Herald of Everett, Wash. covered mega-churches in their April 14, 2006 story, "Megachurches make grand plans for Easter." The story covers church outreach plans and includes a mention of little ol' us:

There's no shame in selling what people are looking for, said Brad Abare, president of the Los Angeles-based Center for Church Communication.

"There's not a single day when McDonald's doesn't sell a hamburger, the thing they're supposed to be doing," he said. "But there are many days when churches don't see members or new visitors come into their church or people come to Jesus.

"The premise of churches is we have the greatest story ever told. Churches realize they have to learn how to tell the story better."

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 1:08 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

March 12, 2006

Advertising Age Says Church Marketing Sucks

"Smart" and "marketing-savvy" aren't adjectives we're used to hearing thrown our way, but we'll take it. Yeoman, however, is a word I'm used to.

The kind words come from Ken Wheaton's Adages column in the Feb. 20, 2006 issue of Advertising Age (fee required).

Here it is in context so you know we're not making it up:

Church Marketing Sucks seems a smart and marketing-savvy site. Which shouldn't be a surprise. CMS was founded in 2004 by Brad Abare, president of Los Angeles cause-marketing agency Personality. "I gathered my staff and a few strategic partners together to brainstorm some future company 'stuff.' Because many of us are involved in our local churches--and we are all in marketing--one of the ideas that came up was to start a conversation that could be a place for churches to come and learn."

The yeoman's work of keeping that conversation going has fallen to freelance writer Kevin Hendricks.

(emphasis theirs, which means our bolded names were in the same company as Spike Lee, Tiger Woods, Dan Wieden, David Kennedy... and Hitler, Stalin and Mao.)

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:08 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 27, 2006

The Boston Herald Mentions CFCC

The Boston Herald article "Lord Works in High Tech Ways" (fee required) explores how churches are using new technologies like blogs and podcasts.

The Center for Church Communication and our blog Church Marketing Sucks both get a mention, though I apparently didn't say anything quotable enough to make the cut. Maybe next time.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:09 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

February 1, 2006

CFCC is in a Book

Well, on a book. The back of a book. OK, so it's not really about us at all, but it's still cool.

Richard Reising is the founder and president of Artistry Marketing and author of the just-released Church Marketing 101: Preparing Your Church for Greater Growth. Flip a copy of that book over and you'll see an endorsement quote from one Brad Abare, founder of Personality™ and the Center for Church Communication (that's us).

Not too shabby.

If you're actually interested in the book and not us, which is probably everyone, you can read the review at Church Marketing Sucks.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:13 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

January 9, 2006

PixelZion Podcast Ponders Church Marketing

We've been podcasted, and let me tell you, it feels very cutting edge. Our own Kevin Hendricks (hey, that's me!) was interviewed on PixelZion, a podcast focusing on creativity. PixelZion host Jesse Haynes and I talked about the history of Church Marketing Sucks, the potential evil of marketing and why you shouldn't misspell "Christmas".

To make it an even more tech savvy experience, Jesse called using the voice-over IP phone service Skype. Pretty fancy.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:10 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

December 4, 2005

Godbit Interview

The church tech site Godbit interviewed Kevin Hendricks about Church Marketing Sucks. The interview covers the new non-profit status, the potential for Church Marketing Sucks T-shirts and the admission that pointing out examples of bad marketing isn't always very effective:

"When we first started I honestly thought a lot of what the site would be doing is pointing to all the examples of church marketing that sucks. But we’ve quickly learned that isn’t very easy to do and it’s not very effective. Anyone can laugh at a bad design, but it’s a lot more helpful and a lot harder to look at a good idea and notice what’s working."

And it's also good to know that we've learned a thing or two:

"We’re really humbled by all the interest in Church Marketing Sucks. When we first started we thought we’d be writing a book, but instead it’s turned into this huge conversation. It’s so beyond Brad [Abare] or me or any of the other people who contribute. We’re not geniuses and we don’t have it all together. We can’t tell anyone the best way to market a church. But as this conversation continues, as more and more people engage, maybe we can help a few churches communicate better."

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 9:39 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

November 7, 2005

Blogging Church Interview

Brian Bailey and Terry Storch of Fellowship Church in Texas are writing a book on church blogging, appropriately titled Blogging Church. Of course they're blogging the process and also podcasting their interviews. They recently focused on Church Marketing Sucks and did a three-way conference call between Texas, California and Minnesota to interview CMS founder and blogger Brad Abare and CMS Chief Blogger Kevin Hendricks.

And to this day I still don't remember who came up with the title Chief Blogger.

Anyway, check out the interview and watch for Blogging Church sometime in early 2007.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:37 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

October 16, 2005

Austin American Statesman on Church Marketing

The Austin American Statesman covers church marketing in an article titled "To fill pews, churches marketing faith". The story includes some great church marketing quotes, though none of them come from us.

Here's what they said about us:

Enter a couple of Christian twenty-somethings who felt compelled last year to launch the Web site http://church marketingsucks.com, a commentary on both the inadequacy of many church ads and the queasy feeling some pastors have about self-promotion.

Brad Abare, who runs a marketing company in Los Angeles, and St. Paul, Minn, freelance writer Kevin Hendricks post examples of effective strategies, resources and reviews.

They give advice: Don't overwhelm a church logo with symbolism. (Abare said some try to squeeze "the cross, the dove, the hill, the sunrise, the grave, walking on water" into one graphic.) Do the research on the church's surrounding community and needs before investing money in direct mailings, billboards and radio spots.

And above all, when creating an effective — not too slick, not too hokey — promotion, they said, churches remain "authentic" and theologically sound.

That way, people who market their church won't feel like sleazy salespeople, Hendricks said.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 11:58 AM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 27, 2005

Church Marketing Sucks is Relevant

Flip to page 67 of the Sept./Oct. 2005 issue of Relevant magazine to see pop culture columnist Jason Boyett (author of Pocket Guide to the Apocalypse) give a shout out to Church Marketing Sucks:

Also worthy of your time is Church Marketing Sucks (www.churchmarketingsucks.com), a weblog maintained by Brad Abare and Kevin D. Hendricks and aiming to "frustrate, educate and motivate the Church" to better communicate the Gospel. They succeed on all counts. CMS's daily suggestions, examples and commentary should be required reading for anyone on a church payroll—many of whom apparently have trouble taking seriously, much less actually visiting, a site that requires them to type something naughty like "sucks" into their browser. Which means the site has instigated its share of controversy. Which is why Abare and Hendricks adopted www.churchmarketingstinks.com as an alias URL, with all the same content but significantly less suckiness.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:03 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

August 3, 2005

Church Marketing Hoovers

The summer 2005 issue of Leadership Journal thinks church marketing sucks:

Church Marketing Hoovers
If your church has a cheesy logo, uses bad clip art, or promotes events with obnoxious flyers, watch out. You may be targeted by the marketing savvy pastors and communicators behind ChurchMarketingSucks.com. Launched in 2004, the weblog affirms that the church has the greatest story ever told, but no one's listening because "church marketing efforts and communication in general suck."

This site is a diverse assembly of content from across the web sampling the best and worst in church promotional materials. Bad church marketing, they contend, also includes airbrushed perfection and multicutural photos that misrepresent the reality of Sunday morning in most churches.

Effective church marketing is neither snazzy nor sloppy. Instead, better church communication is "authentic, it's loving, and it knows how to spell," the bloggers contend. Practicing what they preach, the site creators recently registered an additional web address to appeal to a more conservative market—ChurchMarketingStinks.com.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:26 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 5, 2005

Writing for Ministries Today

Apparently we can write for the real world, too, not just the virtual one.The May/June 2005 issue of Ministries Today magazine includes a story written by our very own Brad Abare and Kevin D. Hendricks. Turn to page 32 for "Marketing Your Church without Diluting Your Message." The piece isn't online so you'll have to dig up a print copy.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:49 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

May 3, 2005

Ministry in Motion Interview

The ministry e-zine Ministry in Motion covered Church Marketing Sucks in an interview with Kevin Hendricks. The story includes the history of CMS, why we started and some practical tips.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:42 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

April 1, 2005

The Wittenburg Door Interview

The Christian satire magazine The Wittenburg Door interviewed Brad Abare and yours truly (Kevin Hendricks) about Church Marketing Sucks. The lengthy interview includes some gigantic photos of Brad and I, so be prepared.

Highlights of the interview including a discussion of the word 'sucks' and the brilliant statement, "I've always appreciated the word." Yeah, that was me.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 12:53 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack

December 2, 2004

PR Week Interview

PRWeek covers faith-based public relations in an article which includes some good comments from Mark DeMoss, the big PR man in the Christian market as well as our very own Brad Abare and a mention of Church Marketing Sucks.

Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks at 1:11 PM
| Comments (0) | TrackBack