Jan
20
Written by:
host
1/20/2009 7:00 AM
A blogging friend shared this video yesterday on his site. Although it was created for those interested in marketing their products, it is in many ways equally applicable to the marketing of ideas, beliefs, messages, and values.
Scholz & Friends: "Dramatic shift in marketing reality from Michael Reissinger on Vimeo.
Assuming you just watched it, my hunch is you feel a bit overwhelmed and even inadequate at the moment. Clearly, technology has complicated our lives to the nth degree and filled our environment with options, noise, and distraction from both the inner life and the outer world. It seems harder than ever to communicate our message.
...the church is faced with three challenges: first, to provide an alternative environment to the media environment, namely, face-to-face community; second, to penetrate the media with images and messages that challenge the media’s own values and instead communicate fundamental human values; and third, to teach parishioners (and the public) how to understand the ways in which the media are being manipulative.
Did you catch the three technology-related opportunities before you?
1. Move toward face-to-face community. Technology increasingly offers wonderful ways to connect with family and friends (e.g. Skype, social networking) and churches should absolutely utilize these tools. But one goal in utilizing them is to bring people together in physical space, not just cyberspace, for a deeper purpose such as hands-on service.
2. Communicate fundamental human values. Perhaps the central message of contemporary forms of communication is this: you are a consumer. The church has an opportunity to respond, using websites and video and other contemporary media tools, that people are valuable and valued for something other than their wallets.
3. Teach media literacy/interpretation. Technological familiarity is not the same as media literacy. In other words, just because someone is extremely savvy when it comes to using technology does not mean that they are adept at the theological interpretation of its messages.
What were your thoughts upon seeing this video? Share them with others by posting a comment.
~ Tim Gossett