Methodists Use Television Ad to Jumpstart Membership
Mainline protestant denominations have continued on a downward slope for decades, with baptism, discipleship and membership all falling at a rapid rate. While most denominations are responding to the decline with traditional ministry approaches – evangelism, outreach and Sunday Schools – some mainline churches are utilizing the media as a tool to attract new congregants and members.
The United Methodist Church, the nation’s second largest denomination with 8 million members, is among the handful of old-schoolers trying out this new approach. Next week, the UMC will begin airing a television spot titled “The Journey” on 18 cable networks nationwide, inviting millions of Americans to join in a journey of faith.
“The Journey” is the newest element of the denomination’s advertising and welcoming ministry, according to the Rev. Larry Hollon, chief executive at United Methodist Communications, and the denomination will be paying a total of $2 million to run it.
"We are on a journey that leads us toward God," Hollon explained to the United Methodist News Service. "This spot shows that persons seeking a path for their faith can find a home in the United Methodist Church."
Hollon said the new commercial, part of the larger “Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors” campaign, is designed to appeal to people from 25 to 54. The commercial also marks the first element of a “new wave of advertising” by the UMC.
The UMC began its “Open hearts. Open minds. Open doors” campaign in 2001 to attract new members to the church. According to research by the Barna group, the campaign increased first-time and overall worship attendance in 150 test churches across the United States between 2001 and 2004.
Between 2005 and 2008, the church plans to track the effectiveness of the campaign on 300 churches, and spend up to $25 million on advertising.
The commercials will run from Aug. 29 to Sept. 18 in 15-, 30-, and 60-second versions. They will air a total of 1,200 times on A&E, ABC Family, Animal Planet, BET, CNN and CNN Headline News, Discovery Channel, Fox News Channel, Hallmark Channel, Home and Garden Television, The History Channel, Lifetime Movie, TBS Superstation, TNT, TV One, USA Network, The Weather Channel, and WGN Superstation. Spanish-language commercials will be broadcast on Telefutura, Galavision, and Univision. The commercial will have the most airings, 264, on CNN and CNN Headline News, followed by 138 on The Weather Channel.
In addition to the national television campaign, United Methodist Communications is giving any denominationally-affiliated church or organizations a chance to take part in a local campaign. The UMC will match up to $50,000 for local churches with a plan to air “The Journey” on television, radio, outdoor or cinema. To date, the UMC has matched more than $300,000 worth of grants for 64 local groups. Applications will be available Nov. 1 at www.ignitingministry.org for the 2006 Lenten season media campaign. The deadline for applying is Dec. 1.
