I’m Addicted to Speed…

…and I don’t mean the drug.

Everyone will agree that we live in a fast pace culture. The convenience of technology has connected us and allows us to multitask better than at any other point in history. We have become oh so familiar with phrases like timetable, deadline, turnaround, and of course “time is money.” But, I have ask, what’s the cost of our need for speed?

Those involved with design and marketing know that a quick creative turnaround is key to staying profitable. But what if that first solution isn’t the best? What if it’s only half as successful as if it were worked over for another day? What if, by moving quickly, you’ve lost sight of the end goal and compromised our creative ability?

These questions nag me in my corporate work, and make me nauseous when I think about it in the context of my church/ministry work. What if I only half the people made it to that life-changing message Sunday? What if I moved too fast and forgot to make it about spreading God’s love and good news to everyone? What if I’m not exercising the creativity that God has blessed me as steward over for his glory?

It says in Proverbs 7:8 that “The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.” I think it hugely important for all of us involved in the church/ministry communication world to be patient when it comes to creating marketing materials. Just like we’d hope our pastor would take time to develop a sermon inspired and anointed by God’s spirit, we too should step back and give God some time to communicate through us.

This video was posted on the Collide blog last Friday. I’ve watched it several times, and am blown away by it every time. This photographers patience and commitment to creativity and his art inspires me.

Watch the video and share your thoughts on our collective addiction to speed, and the possibilities that exist for us if we’d just tap the brakes every once in a while.

5 Mistakes Churches/Ministries Make When Working with an Agency

I’ve recently been reading through Branding Faith by Phil Cooke. It’s a great book that makes a lot of valid points about marketing and communication in the church, ministry and nonprofit worlds. Here are some thoughts I’ve pulled from it:

1. Assuming That They Don’t Need the Agency
“Outsourcing” is all the rage in corporate America these days. The big idea is, if it’s not one of your core strengths as a company, church, or organization, let someone who does this professionally do it for you. Mulit-billion dollar companies rely on marketing and advertising agencies for nearly all of their creative needs. It’s the outsiders with “fresh eyes” that can bring a new perspective, and streamline your efficiency. As Andy Stanley says it in his book Next Generation Leader  “Upgrade your performance by playing to your strengths and delegating your weaknesses. This one decision will do more to enhance your productivity than anything else you do as a leader.”

2. Not Giving the Agency Access to the Top Person in the Organization
If an agency has been brought in to a church/ministry organization they’re most likely being asked to help identify, clarify, or express the vision and mission of that church/ministry. Typically the vision and mission of a church/ministry are coming from the top down. It’s kind of a no-brainer, but if you’re asking the agency to help spread your message you might want to make sure they’re hearing it from the horse’s mouth.

3. Having “Middle Managers”Criticize the Agency’s Recommendations
This can be a tough one, especially in volunteer churches, but it’s an ugly reality that needs to be faced. Chances are if the church/ministry leadership has brought in an outside agency to solve a certain marketing/communication problem it’s because the in-house “management” team just wasn’t quite up to snuff. One of the biggest ways to limit the creativity and potential success of an agency is constantly micro-manage and meddle with what they are trying to accomplish. Give them some room to breath, and trust that they are here because they want to help you, not hurt your feelings and take your job.

4. Being Afraid the Agency Will Take Over
If you’re working with an agency that’s been around for more than a few years there’s a 99% chance that you’re not their only client. I can’t speak for all designers, but I love what I do, and love the diverse clients and projects I get to work with/on. That being the case, why would I want to take over your entire church/organization? To us at The Plow, there is nothing quite as satisfying as the excitement and sense of ownership our clients have when together we solve the issue we were brought in to take care of. Plus, making pretty pictures on my Mac is way to fun.

5. Only Use the Agency for Short-term Projects
So you mailed out one postcard to 5,000 people and didn’t get the results you want, what’s next? Fire the agency? Traditionally there is a rule in the advertising world of “six to stick.” That is, a person has to see an advertisement or marketing message six times before it ever sticks with them. This is a great way to look at a relationship with an agency. Sure, they can come in do a new logo, fix up the website, make a postcard, etc. But the biggest waves and the most successful outcomes comes from churches/ministry who invest in a relationship with an agency. Get to know them as they get to know you, and together you’ll go big places.

Darwin on Love

I came across this stencil art on Digg just before the long weekend, and wanted to share it with all of you. Though I’m not completely positive I understand what the artist is trying to say, to me, this piece has a strange beauty that is found in it’s simplicity and rawness. Whether the artist is telling us to love evolution, or that love transcends all worldly things, I think this art really demonstrates the emotional and communicative power that words and images can have when used together. What are your thoughts on this piece?

Not Art. Gospel.

Why create art? That is a question I have been asking myself a lot the past couple months. Do I want recognition? Do I want to stir up controversy? Do I feel like I am superior to others? The more I spend time thinking about my reasons for art, the less I spend time thinking of the gospel. So here is my resolution. Do not create art, but share the gospel. That is what I am focusing on for a new project. My goal is to create images for every topic on the Sermon on the Mount. I want the art to tell the story, I want the art to be the gospel.

I do not know what format this will take, or what I want it to become. Please pray that God will use this, and open up doors for His glory to be known.

Here is my first attempt.

Project One: M7:3-5

Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. Matthew 7: 3-5

Colors of the West Coast

For the past 2 weeks I have been driving up and down the west coast. I have really seen it all; beaches, farms, redwood forests, bays and mountains. I have had the weather range from sunny and 95˚ to snowing and 34˚. And what I loved the most was seeing how Gods hand was in all the creation. The beauty that he created is beyond anything I can dream of.

So as a designer, and this being earth day, let me give you the color palette God showed me on my vacation.

Want some more color inspiration? www.colourlovers.com

Marketing for Celibacy

With all of the sex talk on the blog lately, I thought this would be a sigh of relief.

The catholic church is having a difficult time convincing young men that they should sign up to be poor virgins. According to the this article they have seen a catastrophic decline in the number of young men signing up to be priests.

Enter: the marketing department.

They have begun a huge ad campaign, including NBA games.

A catholic seminary has launched a new site to help persuade young catholic men that they should be heroes and sign up for the priesthood. I like the idea of telling men, they need to be men ( or in this case heroes). Though it doesn’t seem that their story is consistent. They say ‘the world needs heroes’, but they don’t indicate a problem that needs to be solved. It feels more like a GQ photo shoot for guys in weird tuxedos.

The way to call your men to be heroes is to tell them their is a huge problem, sin. And that the blood of Christ, and the grace of God is the only hope. They need to guide their families, churches, and neighbors to cross. Give the men a duty, call them to a higher calling.

And now for your moment of zen: Here’s a fake advertisement from the news story.

What Lovely Design

Are you ready for some design hotness? I hope so, cause here it comes!

These taken from Dirty Mouse

This next one will need some explaining. Make sure you read this, awesome stuff.

On major streets and spaces throughout the city of Gothenburg a number of small brightly coloured houses appeared, featuring provocative statements about homelessness and the homeless. At each house the public were asked to critically respond to these statements with their own messages by writing on the houses using pens provided. The houses also contained lighting which would illuminate a pictogram of a homeless person at night.

The statements, written in both English and Swedish, were created to be deliberately inflammatory so they would receive the strongest possible responses. Featuring statements such as ‘It’s a person’s own fault that they are homeless’, ‘Homeless people don’t deserve sympathy’, ‘Homeless people shouldn’t be helped with public money’ and ‘Most homeless people are addicted to drugs or alcohol’ caused the public to react strongly on one side of each argument or the other.

The team hoped that the project could in some small way help to improve communication between homeless people and people with homes, closing the mental gap that exists between these two groups. By reading other peoples statements it was hoped people may begin to question their own views about homelessness.

These taken from Ad Blog Arabia

These taken from Advertising/Design Goodness

What I love about all these designs is the simplicity.

What I love about all of these designs is that the simplicity is powerful. These are all simple concepts but will make you stop and look. The items will make you think, and this is what the church needs to do. Make sure you check out all these blogs and be inspired.

Redesign. Redesign. Redesign.

We just worked on a series for a church in Southern California (EastLake Church)  called “No Perfect People”. This is one of those series that can’t seem to find it’s place in design, and we ended up with three completely different looks. In the moment redesigns can be so frustrating, but in retrospect it is kind of fun to see the message in all three. Each series seems to have it’s own personality, and speaks something different to me. This series wanted to communicate that none of us are perfect, and none of us can be good enough for God. God takes and loves us as is. Just look at Paul, he was arresting and terrorizing early Christians. But God still used him and loved him even though he was stained and broken.

1. The top series was the first and my concept was simple. Every man (and woman) is truly stained. No matter how we look, what kind of car we drive, or how people see us, we are covered with sin. I wanted the graphic to be simple with that message.
2. The middles series had a different approach, it attacked the stereotype we place on each other. The quest for perfection and beauty. To God that is nothing without him. (It was just brought to my attention that this concept has already been designed. I never knew about this one, but it will make a good blog post—always search series titles first!)
3. And the last is about how we see ourselves. We look in the mirror and can see every sin we have ever committed. We see the shattered life that we live, and think there is no way to repair it—but God can.

This series taught me to look at a message from different angles and different points of view. I won’t say that I did not get frustrated having to change it three times, but I am glad that I did.

simplicity screams

In our world of buzz words, marketing trends and relevance, we can lose the simplicity of the biblical illustrations that we have been given. The bible uses 2 contrasting ideas to describe christian life—darkness and light, and death and life. These ideas can be understood by any culture, sex, race, or age at any period of time.

We were given the task to come up with a series design called “Come Alive” that focused on “ identity, freedom from sin, and power in Christ”. When we started reading the description of each week the image of Lazarus and the Widow’s Son came to our minds. When Jesus commanded Lazarus to “Come Alive” it was nonnegotiable, his eye’s were opened. When Christ calls us our eyes are opened, and we now live in the light. That was what inspired us with this art. The visual of a dead man opening his eyes again in world of darkness to see the light. We wanted the art to be so simple that the message would scream though it. The bible is filled with powerful, challenging, beautiful and simple messages that are sometimes best to be keep as is. Let the simplicity of scripture scream.