Marketing as Ministry #1:
Marketing can be holy.
I'd planned on going with her all along.
Before our third child was even born, I knew exactly who I wanted as a lactation consultant. After struggles with nursing my first two, I was determined to make it work for baby #3, so I planned ahead to find someone before she was even born.
There was one consultant who was often referenced in our area, and though her marketing was pretty sparse, I saved her info on my phone for if we needed it.
So when our pediatrician recommended I see a lactation consultant four days postpartum, I found the note, pulled up her website...
...and she didn't have any appointments available that week.
I hesitated. I really needed something that week, and now her underwhelming marketing suddenly had me rethinking the choice.
And thus, we went back to the Google drawing board.
I quickly found a different local lactation consultant with availability. What really sold me though?
Her website copy.
It was AMAZING.
It spoke to me directly as a mom of a newborn.
She spelled out exactly what to expect from the visit, step by step, even down to when she'd wash her hands.
She literally wrote that she expected us to be in our pajamas and for our house to be a mess because we're busy taking good care of our babies.
Her relatable copy alone spoke my language, and I was glad the original consultant didn't have availability because, based on her marketing, I was now so sure this one was the better choice.
Two days later, she showed up at my house, and we had our appointment.
And it was...fine.
Not bad. But we definitely didn't jive. And her advice wasn't right for us. I tried to follow it for a week, but it still wasn't working.
After visiting the pediatrician again, I finally went back and booked with the original consultant I'd wanted.
Turns out, my original gut had been right.
Her philosophy was right on with what we were looking for, and even more importantly, it worked.
Why do I tell you all this?
Because not-good marketing could be keeping you from helping people you need to help.
They might go with something inferior simply because the alternative has better marketing.
In the online space, people don't buy good products.*
They buy good marketing, because that's all they can see.
So the question is: Does your marketing match how good your offering is?
*Or donate to good causes, attend good events, read good books, whatever it is you're trying to get people to do.
I'm going to be blunt here: Good marketing matters in the Catholic space because it impacts souls.
If what you are doing brings people closer to Jesus, then your marketing matters because your marketing brings people to you and then you bring them to Jesus.
Marketing > you > Jesus
I'd argue there's no greater service you can do for someone. That's not "adding to the noise" or "bothering" people. That's an introduction and invitation to relationship with the Person who will change their entire lives.
And viewed like that, it means that marketing can be just as holy and important as the call God originally placed on your heart.
In fact, Jesus even instructed the apostles to market well.
Matthew 28:19-20, the Great Commission, lays it all out.
If what you do makes disciples for Jesus — draws them closer to Him, teaches them something deeper about Him — then you are being instructed to go and make disciples.
And in today's digital age, the "go" is marketing. It's how you reach people so you can evangelize.
So it doesn't have to be sleazy or icky or even just a necessary evil.
It can give God glory. It can be a form of evangelization.
And that means marketing is worthy of learning to do well.
I don't say that to pressure you; I say that to motivate you.
Because I want you to learn to market really well so you can bring more people to Jesus.
(I also don't say that to you and then walk away. That's literally why this newsletter, and all the other things I do here at Gloriam, exist.)
So the first step to marketing as a form of ministry?
Being convicted that this is holy work. All of it, even the most mundane parts of marketing.
Because if you start your marketing with the thought it's at best a necessary evil and at worst something immoral or inherently sleazy, then you'll never be able to do it well.
Giving God glory by sharing the mission He's placed on you heart isn't a bad thing. It's exactly what He's asked you to do.
So instead, I want you to start each marketing task remembering that it is a stepping stone on someone's path to Jesus.
Seems more important, right?
So let's do it the absolute best we can, for His greater glory.
Marketing as Ministry Challenge #1: Self Audit
We can't market Jesus well if we have hold-ups about it. If we go into it thinking we hate it, it's uncomfortable, it feels wrong, etc, then we're going to hold ourselves back from doing good marketing that honors the call you've been given and the One Who gave it to you.
Similarly, we can't market well if we don't actually know how our marketing is doing.
So for today's challenge, do the following:
Part 1: Spend 5 minutes in prayer and talk to Jesus about how you feel about marketing. What do you dislike about it? Where do you struggle? Do you enjoy any of it?
Pour out all your feelings about it, then ask Him to reveal any lies about your worth, the morality of marketing, or the importance of this mission. Ask Him to fill you with Holy Spirit fire and conviction that you have been called to this and part of that call is sharing about it and about how awesome He is.
Part 2: Take a look at all of your marketing assets (social media, email, website, etc.). For each one, ask yourself, Does this marketing reflect how good my offering is? Is it meeting the goal I have for it? What could be improved to give God glory for the mission He's given me (and do you know what that mission is and share it well in your marketing)? For now, all we're looking for is awareness — fixing those will come!
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Then, I'll see you back here Monday for installment #2 in Marketing as Ministry:
The #1 thing that every Catholic business or ministry needs to have that most don't (and it's the one thing you really can't hire out — it needs to come from you).
For His greater glory,
Emily
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