Say “Yes” to Church Strategy Sessions: Clarifying Your Mission & Vision

by Chris Goldman

As part of my work with leadership teams for companies engaging our marketing services at bizmktg.com, we begin with a strategy session. This session is usually four hours long and helps clarify the mission, vision, and organizational messaging. For every company or nonprofit organization, this must be uniquely authentic as good marketing is genuine. Facilitation of this session is exciting as participants experience the synergy that comes from unity, clarity, and exploration. I believe these sessions would be a benchmark for most church leadership teams.

In the church world, here are the questions that need to be answered for this level of clarification:

• Who are you trying to reach and who are you equipped to reach?
• As a church, what strengths do you have?
• What is the need you fulfill or the problem you solve for the people you’re trying to reach?
• What is the process you have developed for people to engage with you?
• When someone finds you online or in person, what do you want them to do to get involved?
• What are the benefits of belonging to your church?
• What are the consequences of not being part of a church or your church?
• In two or three statements, what is the transformation you hope for people?

This level of exploration leaves a team with a refined tagline, a clear message, and multiple blocks of content for use online and in-house. Teams – often for the first time – leave with a clear strategy for working as one for a common purpose.

The business world has always understood the importance of clear, organizational messaging. Jesus was a master of communication and clarification. When the Church follows His lead, there is nothing we can’t accomplish for the good of the Kingdom!