strategy | Mike Bonem https://mikebonem.com consultant, coach, speaker, author Tue, 09 Aug 2022 22:14:03 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://mikebonem.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Icon.png strategy | Mike Bonem https://mikebonem.com 32 32 A Lesson from the Movies https://mikebonem.com/lesson-from-the-movies/ https://mikebonem.com/lesson-from-the-movies/#respond Mon, 06 Jun 2022 11:30:37 +0000 https://mikebonem.com/?p=5771 Pastors love to use illustrations from movies. But what about leadership lessons from movie theaters? If you owned a chain of movie theaters, how would…

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Pastors love to use illustrations from movies. But what about leadership lessons from movie theaters? If you owned a chain of movie theaters, how would you feel about your investment? I heard a news story about CinemaCon, which is a large conference for movie theater owners. The reporter described the decline in ticket sales that began before the pandemic and wondered how theaters would recover. But what struck me were interviews with participants at the conference, who expressed great optimism about the future and acted as if they were one blockbuster movie away from a return to the good old days. I kept thinking, “Don’t they know the world has fundamentally changed?”

Then I began to wonder about the similarities with churches. If there was a large convention for pastors called “CongregationCon,” what would a reporter say? Consider these parallels in the landscape for movie theaters and churches:

  • Just like movie theaters, church attendance was declining before the pandemic, and current attendance is significantly below pre-pandemic levels. 
  • People have a wide range of options for entertainment, and they became more accustomed to those options during the pandemic. People who are looking to fill the “God-shaped void” in their lives are also presented with many options for doing so. 
  • Movie theaters are tied to their physical facilities, just like many churches.
  • Regardless of the optimism expressed by CinemaCon participants, the future is very uncertain for movie theaters. While I am absolutely confident that the big “C” Church will prevail, the way that plays out for individual congregations is not at all clear. 

Despite these realities, I am not pessimistic about the future landscape for ministry. We should, however, avoid the head-in-the-sand thinking I heard from the theater executives. Rather than waiting for the next blockbuster, the theater industry should rethink it’s strategy. The same can be said for churches. I am not saying we should rethink our mission of sharing the gospel and loving people as Jesus did. “Strategy” describes the ways that we are pursuing the mission. 

I don’t know what your new strategy should be, but my hunch is that it should include several elements. One is a strong external orientation that seeks to reach unchurched people and make a positive difference in your community. Another is an increase in experimentation. Trying several different short-term ministry efforts can help you determine what will be most effective in your context.  A third element is more honest evaluation of what is working. Finally, the new strategy may result in fewer internally-focused programs and less staff to lead/support those programs.

I wouldn’t want to invest in a movie theater right now. But I’m all in for an investment in the church … as long as we’re willing to take a fresh look at the strategies that will help us accomplish our God-given mission. 

The post A Lesson from the Movies first appeared on Mike Bonem.]]> https://mikebonem.com/lesson-from-the-movies/feed/ 0 Post-Pandemic Digital Strategies https://mikebonem.com/post-pandemic-digital-strategies/ https://mikebonem.com/post-pandemic-digital-strategies/#respond Tue, 09 Feb 2021 06:01:00 +0000 https://mikebonem.com/?p=5501 What day did everything change for your church or ministry? March 12, 2020 was the last time I had a face-to-face meeting with a client.…

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What day did everything change for your church or ministry? March 12, 2020 was the last time I had a face-to-face meeting with a client. Everything moved online after that. For many churches, March 7 or 14 was their last time for regular, in-person, unrestricted worship services. In a matter of days, they switched to online offerings. Then over the following weeks, they purchased equipment and made a variety of adjustments to improve digital quality.

Eleven months later, we face different questions. We don’t know an exact date, but we can foresee the time when it will be safe for people to gather indoors for worship, sitting side-by-side without masks. I don’t know of any church that plans to discontinue their online worship at that point in time. But have you defined your post-pandemic digital strategy?

The specific details for your future online offerings should be dictated by an overall philosophy. Here are three possibilities:

  • Online as second choice. This philosophy emphasizes that gathering in-person whenever possible is the first choice. Online is seen primarily as an offering for church members who are unable to attend, due to illness, travel, or work schedules. The expectations for quality and the amount of additional programming are lowest with this approach.
  • Online as the front door. This philosophy also seeks to move people to an on-site experience, but it sees a church’s digital presence as an essential way to reach new people. The assumption is that newcomers will linger in the ease and safety of online before setting foot on campus. Therefore quality online content (worship and more) is needed in addition to the church’s web site and social media presence.
  • Online as a unique community.  This option is based on a belief that a number of people will prefer online over in-person and will choose a church that meets their desire. High quality is also essential in this approach, and the need for additional non-worship content is elevated. Staffing will need to reflect this level of commitment. Churches operating under this model will explore ways to build community and disciple people who are online only.

In the first option, worship may be experienced through the lens of a camera in the back of a sanctuary. The online participant is an invisible presence looking over the shoulders of the people who are on-site. The second option increases production quality with better camera angles or the use of multiple cameras. Just as importantly, active efforts will be made to connect with online worshippers, especially visitors, and invite them to on-site worship and programming. The online worship experience may be very similar In the third option, but the invitation will focus on digital programs such as an online small group or Bible study.

These three philosophies are distinct, but they are not mutually exclusive. Resource requirements – staff, funding, and more – are lowest for the first option, and highest for third one.  One is not better than another. But leaders need to be clear about which path they are pursuing and then align programming and resources accordingly. Which digital strategy is right for your church?

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