My good friend and marketing genius, Greg Stiestra has outlined plans for mega-churches to partner with corporate sponsors for win-win ty-ins. I'm being told that there are huge opportunities to 'knock-it-outta-the-park' with subsidized projects, missions sponsorships and offers for free resources paid for by sponsorships.Stiestra is quoted in this Wharton article as saying:
Megachurches do offer opportunities for secular marketers, Stielstra adds, but uncovering them may require creative thinking. He recalled a financial planner who came to him with this problem: Potential customers were likely to hire his services if they heard his presentation, but few people were willing to sit through it. The number-one reason for marital conflict is money, Stielstra told the planner, and church-going couples are likely to seek out their pastor -- rather than a financial planner -- for advice. The solution? Stielstra put the financial planner in touch with local pastors, who now provide him with a steady stream of potential clients interested enough to sit through his presentation.
Here's some of ideas I've received so far:
- Tithing Series sponsored by Bank of America Online Banking
- Building Stronger Marriages Series sponsored by Home Depot
- Mission Trips brought to you by Travelers Insurance
- Church Nursery brought to you by C.G.E.D.B.T.M.
(The Chinese Goverment Economic Development Board for Toy Manufacturing)
- Valet Parking sponsored by Geico
- The Food Pantry brought to you by Hot Pockets
- Wardrobe provided by Old Navy
Instead of making this decision myself - I would like to open this up to the members and see what you think? Is a billboard in the parking lot okay? What if we had a small ad in our bulletin? Would a "sponsored by" powerpoint screen be too much? How about a 30-second commercial before the service? Banner ads on our website? If the advertisers were Christian companies would that make a difference? What if we kept it to book publishers?
Ready to innovate? WWGS do?
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