The still small voice of God is often difficult to differentiate from the mass of words that come at us every day. The Holy Spirit draws, but leaders must follow the instructions of the master:
“Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled'” (Luke 14:23).
Ministries must be as successful with marketing as they are with their kingdom message.
Leaders need to be mindful of the need for reach. In this day of niche markets and personal messaging through texting campaigns, we cannot forget that our market potential is a function of total reach.
If we send a message to 100,000 well-targeted people, we can expect a certain response rate. If we send the same message to 1 million well-targeted people, shouldn’t we expect a 10X return?
I was recently reminded that I like cherry pie. I was served a cherry pie smaller than the size of my hand. It filled a nice niche in my stomach. But what I really wanted was a giant cherry pie to overfill my stomach. Sometimes, more really is better.
The new media is a collection of small digital pies. Each medium seems to launch with a rallying cry about the demise of another. Many now-extinct social platforms claimed to be the next Facebook. But the newbie was only a new flavor of pie that could only offer a claim of “Me, too.” Entrepreneurs frequently underestimate the staying power of an installed base.
As a professor of marketing, I tried to pound home a message to the matriculating new media labor pool:
A new medium does not replace an old medium. Radio did not replace the daily newspaper. Television did not replace radio. Cable television did not replace network programming. Instagram did not replace Facebook.
Small reach is not a substitute for large reach. A niche market is small by definition. I find hair in my fists when marketers expect a mass-market response from small-niche social media.
The Spirit of God is faithful to draw. We must be faithful to compel.
To read more about developing a ministry platform, be sure to read my column in Ministry Today. {eoa}
Today’s Scripture:
“And whoever compels you to go a mile, go with him two” (Matt. 5:41).
Platform Tip No. 136
Everyone seems to want a platform to work quickly. Good things really don’t happen quickly.
Trust must be earned with sustained, consistent messaging.
{eoa}
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