Marketing Communications Proposal for Charis Worship Center Ministries
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The proposed marketing communications approach for Charis Worship Center Ministries by Tawana Jacobs emphasizes the need for a strategic foundation as the church develops its first five-year plan. The strategy includes extensive research, clear communication goals, community engagement, and online presence to increase awareness and participation. Jacobs aims to create a comprehensive marketing plan that leverages Charis' unique brand and connects effectively with target audiences while operating within budget constraints.
Marketing Communications Proposal for Charis Worship Center Ministries
- 1. Proposed Marketing Communications Approach Presented by Tawana Jacobs, APR January 2013
- 2. 1 INTRODUCTION I welcome the opportunity to offer support to Charis Worship Center Ministries (CWCM) on its marketing communications activities. Charis’ Senior Pastor, Dr. La Verne A. Wilson, has been a family friend for more than 25 years, and I believe her trailblazing ministry could have a positive impact in the community. It would be my honor to assist Charis with its continued growth and development. As an accredited public relations professional with nearly two decades of experience managing media relations, public affairs and marketing communications programs for nonprofit organizations, I have a unique understanding of what is required to build a program with a limited budget and staff. My specialty is comprehensive strategy development and implementation, and I have led local, national and international advocacy-focused media campaigns, promoted research-based publications and coordinated multi-stakeholder initiatives that have successfully built brand and issue awareness. I am also a published author of blogs, op-eds and magazine articles on health, politics, diversity and culture. As the church develops its first five-year strategic plan, it is important that a strong marketing communications foundation be built. I am confident in my ability to help with that effort by using the approach below to develop a comprehensive strategy. PROPOSED APPROACH It is important to develop a marketing communications plan that is a natural fit for CWCM, its budget and staff capacity. I take into account the following “must haves” for any successful effort: Clear, measurable goals Extensive knowledge of your stakeholders and what issues are most important to them Compelling brand introduction and messages to connect with target audiences Smart strategies and tactics for reaching audiences A simple work plan that will help to guide the work and prioritize activities My thinking about how to approach this endeavor is below. After additional consultations with Pastor Wilson and CWCM stakeholders, I will work to develop a comprehensive work plan for achieving Charis’ goals for 2013 and begin to lay the groundwork for future marketing communications efforts that will work in concert with the strategic plan. RESEARCH AND DISCOVERY I am a firm believer in conducting accurate, in-depth research and analysis to guide a marketing communications planning process. It is imperative for me to understand the mindset of Charis’ target audiences and assess how best to develop a coordinated approach that appropriately engages all. This research and discovery process is the foundation needed to create and refine brand messages, optimize CWCM’s ability to reach audiences and broaden the church’s base of support by increasing attendance, and ultimately membership. During this phase, I will interview CWCM stakeholders as identified by Pastor Wilson, to obtain their essential input on Charis’ brand value along with their thoughts on the church’s progress since its
- 3. 2 inception. I also will examine the “competitive” space in which Charis operates by constructing a comparison with other local churches and a select number of churches outside of the area with similar missions and visions. A key part of this work is to determine how Charis can better define its niche within its current space. MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS STRATEGY Based on the research described above and additional consultations with Dr. Wilson and other designated participants, I will develop an initial marketing communications plan for CWCM. Its focus will be on increasing awareness of Charis, its ministries and services within the local community. The first step in the planning process is to prioritize Charis’ marketing communications (outreach) efforts by age/generation in order to increase the likelihood of reaching and engaging desired audiences with the most effective brand messages. Specifically, I anticipate the 2013 strategy will address the following elements: Marketing communications goals and objectives for 2013. We will work together to specify goals and objectives that can be accomplished in the short and long term. We will team up to identify what your prioritized “Top 3” audiences want, how best to engage and involve them, and develop clear indicators of how increased participation by these audiences will help you accomplish CWCM goals and objectives. Message and brand narrative development. We will work together with CWCM stakeholders to develop a brief, top-line brand narrative that describes Charis’ unique reason for existence. It will clearly and compellingly describe who you are as a church and what value you bring to the community. This part of strategy development has the potential to be quite time consuming; however, it is essential to have a narrative that works for all stakeholders and effectively communicates Charis’ view of faith and works to the broader public. Integrate ministries and communication activities. The plan will articulate the most effective ways to leverage current CWCM ministries and activities to reach potential audiences and meet your marketing communications goals and objectives. Communication tools. We will work together to ensure that whatever the communication tools—online or offline—we clearly define how they can be used to reach desired audiences. I will also make recommendations for how to use social media, and integrate online and offline communications. Communications capacity analysis. I will identify the core capabilities and capacity of CWCM staff, stakeholders and members to determine what resources are available to implement the plan. How to prioritize. I will make recommendations on how to prioritize the elements of the marketing communications plan so Charis can appropriately pace the work and balance needs against other demands.
- 4. 3 Timeline development. The plan will detail when strategies and tactics would take place in accordance with the annual church calendar, how items relate to one another and what it all means for staffing, budget and goals. Timeline development for unexpected events and opportunities will also be addressed. Budget. Taking into account Charis’ limited budget for marketing communications, I will develop a basic budget for the plan that focuses on free and low-cost options. SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES/TACTICS Community Engagement Strategy To increase community awareness of CWCM and begin relationship development, it will be important to develop an initial plan to connect with desired audiences. I would suggest a strategy that includes three separate circles of engagement: location (city, county, state and region); age; and interest (would correspond with CWCM ministries). As a team, we will work together to determine where the circles intersect and how best to reach these audiences with Charis spokespeople. These are the steps I envision for this strategy: Introduce Charis to prioritized target audiences Example: Send letters of introduction to Parent-Teacher-Student Association (PTSA) leadership at Paint Branch High School Cluster Schools. The letters would include an offer to support (or sponsor) a school event. Example: Write and submit periodic blogs that connect newsworthy topics and the importance of faith to The Root DC (Washington Post), Black Voices (Huffington Post), The Grio (NBC Universal) or other online news source. Establish and build relationships with members of the community Example: Request brief meetings with the area’s Montgomery County (MD) County Council Member and School Board Member to learn more about the specific issues impacting the local community and introduce Charis. Example: Pitch Charis as a highly valued resource in the community by hosting an event that would be of interest to the local community. One such possibility could be a CWCM back-to-school event where school supplies are distributed. Inform the community of CWCM activities and events Example: Locate community neighborhood associations and publicize events in their newsletters (possible fee could be waived if CWCM is registered as a 501c-3 org). Example: Add events to local community calendars (newspapers, TV, radio) and notify news reporters from community newspapers (Colesville Patch, Gazette, Washington Informer, Baltimore Times, Washington Afro American, Washington City Paper).
- 5. 4 Engage new contacts in CWCM activities Example: Exchange business cards with new acquaintances and use information to build a mailing list (print and online) that would be contacted at regular intervals (no more than monthly). Example: Be seen or heard by the community in local media just prior to a major CWCM event and leverage the opportunity to extend an invitation for participation. Cultivate the relationships Example: Once a mutual area of interest is established, engage the new contact in ongoing, personalized communication and casually invite them to attend a Charis service or event. Example: Increase Charis’ visibility by getting added to community mailing lists and actively participating in community events sponsored by area schools, the county or neighborhood associations. This strategy would be used for each circle of engagement and adjusted accordingly to reach each prioritized audience. It will essentially be a roadmap, along with topline messages, to guide Charis spokespeople in their relationship building work. Community engagement is the most pivotal piece of the CWCM marketing communications plan and will take the most time and effort to develop. Online Engagement Strategy Charis has developed a fantastic website which is one of the very tangible expressions of a strong marketing communications strategy. However, the website must be part of a larger online strategy that would include social media to increase community engagement. Social media and a robust email (relationship management) program would be the other components of this plan. The objectives/steps of an online plan are similar to community engagement: Increase awareness of Charis Example: Use blogs (idea detailed above) to encourage and engage readers in ongoing conversations. Example: Develop a list of local, religious, multicultural and age-specific blogs. Comment on appropriate columns/stories and attempt to engage the authors and readers in ongoing communication while driving them to the Charis website. Establish new relationships Example: Build the Charis contact list by studying and reaching out to names on friends’ Facebook and Twitter lists. Example: Initiate exchanges with new contacts through social media. This could be in response to a blog, sermon or audio/print news story. Educate and inform the community via Facebook, Twitter and the CWCM website Example: Build Charis Facebook and Twitter lists by reaching out to known friends, new contacts in the community, and desired potential contacts. Example: Re-work the website to include a news/blog section that could include short commentary written by CWCM leadership and select partial reposts of news generated on
- 6. 5 other blogs read by Charis. Twitter and Facebook would be used to share Charis news, start conversations about blogs and build Charis’ online audience. Build the CWCM mailing list and engage new contacts in church activities and events Example: Engage current CWCM members and friends on social media. Ask them to “Like” Charis on Facebook and “Follow” Charis on Twitter. Example: Use Facebook “Friend” email addresses and contact information from blogs and other websites frequently read by Charis to build the mailing list. Cultivate these relationships Example: Update the website weekly with new announcements to be included in the church bulletin. Example: Re-post and date all sermons on the website. Also provide biblical context for clarity. This strategy would be also used to engage each prioritized target audience. Along with the community engagement strategy, this plan will be used to establish Charis as a vital part of the community. It also has the potential to aid CWCM in developing broader regional and national support that could translate into fundraising opportunities for Charis ministries. Refine Charis’ Brand Narrative Based on the outcomes from the research and discovery process, I will work with CWCM leadership to refine the church’s story. This would be done by tweaking the mission/vision statement and creating brief, Internet-friendly topline messages to introduce the church to the broader public and reach each of the prioritized target audiences. These messages would then be used as appropriate in all Charis marketing communications activities. During the brand narrative discussion, I will work with CWCM leadership to develop a concise Charis elevator speech. This introductory statement is something church leadership and members could use when talking about the church with external audiences at meetings, speaking engagements and other public events. The refined mission/vision statement, the topline messages and the Charis elevator speech are all items that would be appropriate to use when fundraising for the church and its ministries. Media Outreach I will develop an initial media list of local, regional and national journalists, columnists, editors, producers and bloggers from print, broadcast and online news sources for Charis to use in its marketing communications efforts. This list, which should evolve and grow over time, will be used to support the community and online engagement strategies detailed above. Signature Events Charis is known to its members and friends as a creative church that thinks and operates beyond perceived limitations. As the strategic planning process gets underway, I will work with CWCM leadership to develop a list of possible Charis signature events. This list would also evolve over time, and ideas could be developed as the church’s budget increases. One initial idea is a:
- 7. 6 Mental Health and Wellness Symposium Charis would host this event which could have a featured speaker from an organization like The Siwe Project which focuses on mental health issues impacting the black community, and offer interactive workshops on topics of interest to varying age groups. SUCCESS MEASUREMENT Measuring the impact of a marketing communications strategy is both an art and a science. I will work with CWCM leadership and staff to implement appropriate quantitative and qualitative evaluation tools to measure results and fine-tune both the short and long-term plans in real time. These established tools include techniques to track website visitors, measure online donations, social media influence and coverage in the news media. Once the complete strategy is developed, I will assist with developing performance indicators that correspond with objectives and measurements that can track changes over time. I look forward to meeting with Pastor Wilson soon to discuss her initial thoughts on this proposed approach. All suggestions and ideas are welcome. Should you be so inclined, and with the pastor’s permission, please send your feedback on the approach and ideas for Charis’ marketing communications plan directly to Tawana Jacobs, APR at: Tawana.Jacobs@Gmail.com.