Videoblogging Article

Aaron Flores is blogging about an article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about Christians who are videoblogging (you may need to register to access the article - I did, but it looks like you might be able to reach it without registering by going through the front page).

About a week ago, I was contacted via email by the author of the article asking for my perspective on videoblogging. I guess he had found this site through an earlier article I had written about vlogging (another name for videoblogging). Some of what I wrote back to the author ended up in the article, but Aaron had something valuable to say in response to something I had said which was quoted in the Journal Sentinel article.

My portion:

If the church could catch a vision for using video technology to present an authentic presentation of the life of the church - not rehearsed videos, but spontaneous records of conversations, laughing with one another, weeping with one another, people sharing their lives, etc. - the average person might take notice,” Frank Johnson wrote in an e-mail interview.

Aaron’s response:

The key is that spontaneous conversations and showing life should not be a strategy to proselytize / evangelize. The videos then become suspicious to the viewer as religious propaganda. It must be natural to the community sharing their life. They must be as open, sharing, and accepting as what they portray online. If anyone meets me in real life they know that I am just as open, sharing, and accepting of others (some say too open and sharing). It would be a shame to share the life of the community in a positive light online, but in real life the community is nothing like its online presence. Also, weeping with one another and showing the gritty side of sharing life with each other is so important.

Aaron’s right - authenticity is so important and what we do online should not reflect something different than what we are in real life.

It reminds me of discussions I’ve had with pastors about branding. Here’s an illustration I often use from the world of business:

If I see an advertisement in a magazine which presents a business as having great products and wonderful customer service, but the first time I call the company, the receptionist is rude to me, then all of the “branding” effort that was put into that magazine advertisement just went out the window. Because the “ultimate branding” of a company is the experience I, as a customer, have with that company’s people.

I remember years ago when I had purchased a laptop from a warehouse store. After a couple of years of using it, I decided I wanted to upgrade the memory. It turned out that, in my earlier ignorance, I had purchased a laptop which required proprietary parts to upgrade the memory. I couldn’t just go to my local computer store and buy some memory chips - instead, I had to purchase a special add-on memory board.

So I called the company that made the laptop. They said that they no longer sold those parts, but they could refer me to a company that did - Penguin Portables in Massachusetts (unfortunately, no longer in business).

I called Penguin Portables, and I’ll never forget what the person on the other end of the line said after I explained to him that I needed that memory board which the manufacturer no longer sold. He said, “They (the manufacturer) think it’s bad business to keep selling that part. We think that it’s never bad business to make a customer happy.”

That experience is indelibly “branded” on my brain. I still remember exactly what he said. And notice one more thing - I still remember the name of the company (more than 10 years later). Ultimate branding, for good or for bad, is determined by the experience I have with a company’s people.

It’s no different for churches and ministries. Ultimate “branding” (what I think of Christians and churches and ministries) happens when I have an experience (for good or for bad) with the people in a congregation or associated with a ministry.

All that to say that we should make sure that the “branding” on our websites matches the “ultimate branding” people will experience when they participate in our community of believers.

Make sense?

Posted by on 08/24/05 at 12:28 PM

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You may be interested in reading these articles which enumerate core principles of the strategy we advocate:

Effective Church Websites For Emerging Generations
Investigating the various ways in which a church's website can be targeted toward unbelievers in a church's local community.

A Strategy For Local Internet Outreach
How can the internet be used for evangelism and outreach while maintaining an environment of authentic Christian community?

Flawed Follow Up Or A Flawed Philosophy of Evangelism?
The ease with which we can “share the gospel” online can actually short-circuit the God-ordained process by which unbelievers are brought to faith.

Should We Include A Gospel Presentation On Our Websites?
Should conversion be our immediate goal in our internet evangelism efforts?

A Strategic Opportunity For The Church
A proposed strategy in which a church would use short video profiles of members of their congregation to entice unbelievers in their local area to consider the value of a local congregation’s ministry in their own lives.

2 John 12
Is there something incomplete about digital communication?

Wed, December 03, 2008 at 07:19 am
Frank thoroughly impressed with the professionalism of the WebTrends Ad Director team http://ping.fm/EuHLl

Sun, November 30, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Frank interested in finding good resources (blogs, books, etc.) on cause marketing.

Fri, November 28, 2008 at 11:57 am
Frank contemplating a line from "O Holy Night" - in His name ALL oppression shall cease

Tue, November 25, 2008 at 08:31 am
Frank exhausted but gratified after today's Scene7 imaging launch on telescope.com!

Mon, November 24, 2008 at 08:05 pm
Frank @benwiles although you made me think about OneNote again. I think it might have feature to allow you to forward a website to OneNote

When the Luis Palau Evangelistic Association wanted to use the internet to promote their city festivals, they turned to Strategic Digital Outreach. Read more ....

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We work with several different organizations in exploring ways in which digital means can be used to reach an increasingly digital world. Some of these organizations are more traditional clients. Some are friends. All are our partners in the gospel (1 Corinthians 3:9). Invariably, we learn as much from them as they do from us. Here is a sampling:

David & Linda Arzouni
Assemblies of God missionaries to West Africa, based in Mali (the land of Timbuktu).

Assemblies of God
The Northern California and Nevada District, based in Sacramento, California.

India Prayer Drive
A 21-day prayer drive through the nation of India.

IreneDias.com
Although the suffering they face is severe, this is not a story of despair, but of an incredible faith and even more of an incredible God who sustains His followers with lavish grace, extravagant kindness, and unrelenting love.

Luis Palau Evangelistic Association
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Sacred Ink
Joyfully declaring the gospel to the tattoo subculture.

Santa Cruz Bible Church
Their evangelism department focuses on marketplace ministries.

ShareFest Santa Cruz County
Churches in Santa Cruz County, California join together to become a bridge from the church to the community through work projects designed to bless the community.

TimeOut Conference
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Wake Up! Santa Cruz
Presenting the claims of Christ to the business community in Santa Cruz, California.

These are projects which we have initiated (either individually or as members of a team) in our efforts to use digital means to spread the gospel:

MissionEquip
MissionEquip.com was established to provide resources to missionaries and short-term missions teams traveling worldwide.

ChristianCruz
ChristianCruz.com is a localized portal for believers living in Santa Cruz County, California.

Prodigal God
ProdigalGod.com, a work in progress, is designed to provide biblical instruction to the wider body of Christ through the use of video teaching segments and written articles.

Christian Screen Savers
ChristianScreenSavers.com offers a selection of high-quality, inexpensive Christian screen savers which reflect biblical themes. Proceeds from the sale of these screen savers are used to support the work of Strategic Digital Outreach.

Blogs I Read

Adventures Of A Web Evangelist
The Appian Way
BetaChurch.org
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Boyink Interactive
Carpe' Digital
Christian Web Trends
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Church Marketing Sucks
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digital.leadnet.org
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The Digital Sanctuary
e-vangelism.com
Effective Church Web Sites
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Equip Blog
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GodBit
Goodmanson
Gospelcon
Heal Your Church Website
If Jesus Had A Website
Leave It Behind
MicroExplosion
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So You Want A Church Website?
The Ultimate Issue
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