Are you delighting your best parishioners?
Seth Godin recently suggested that we stop reaching out to strangers. He is writing to business folks, but he idea can be applied to ministry as well. Godin points out that businesses go after new business by spending money and time reaching out to strangers. It seems logical that to grow a business (or a parish) you would want to find new people. But there is a problem with that, as you have already discovered in your communities. Strangers are difficult to convert.
Godin suggests instead that businesses create a hierarchy of potential “converts” or what he calls “true fans” of your business. “Let’s say a marketer has $10,000 to spend,” he writes. “Is it better to acquire new customers at $2,000 each (advertising is expensive) or spend $10 a customer to absolutely delight and overwhelm 1,000 true fans?”
I drew up a similar hierarchy for parishes. Instead of “true fans,” I’m calling the ultimate parishioner a “steward”—someone completely committed to and supportive of the mission of the parish. I don’t think we want to spend all of our “marketing” capital on the stewards, but are we doing enough to “delight and overwhelm” them?
Is it better to spend most of our time, money, and volunteer resources reaching out to strangers? Or is it better to refocus some of those efforts toward embracing and supporting the stewards of the parish, perhaps encouraging them to spread the word about your community to their friends?
What an interesting application of a tried and true method of marketing. Well done and great visuals. It is especially important for parishes to focus on the “true fans” and “sneezers” who will then go out into the world and reach the “strangers.” This is really an excellent way of looking at the role of laity in the Church.
Thanks for your comments Jared. I’d love to know if any parishes out there are really attempting something like this.
This is very similar to what parishes are learning from the Gallup research on engagement. The research, and Catholic parish leaders who are acting on the studies, teach us to stop worrying quite so much about those who are rarely with us (or not at all), or those who are with us much of the time but who are always complaining. Instead, the studies suggest, strengthen those who are engaged (who have a deep sense of belonging within the parish). They’ll invite the not-engaged (those who come many Sundays but who have never made that strong connection), and draw them more deeply to Christ by bringing them more deeply into the parish.
Thank you for bringing our attention to Godin’s observations and to your wonderful use of this information for we who are pastoral leaders.
Leisa Anslinger
Hi Leisa. Thanks for letting us know about the Gallup research. I love the idea of not spending much time with the complainers. I was once in a parish where the pastor completely redesigned the parish bulletin because of one complaint after Mass one Sunday.