Every year we like to look back and see what we’ve accomplished. It’s a good practice for the end of the year. Here at Church Marketing Sucks and our nonprofit parent, the Center for Church Communication (CFCC), we’re thankful for all our volunteers and supporters who help make everything happen.
Here are some of the high points from 2015:
Christmas
This fall we launched God Rest Ye Stressed Communicators: Planning Christmas for Your Church. This print and digital book is a practical handbook to help communicators plan, promote, and survive the Christmas season. It’s been encouraging to hear the many stories of how churches celebrate the birth of our Savior. Easter is coming in a few short months and we’ll be ready with a new Easter book that will launch in January.
Creative Missions
In May, a team of creatives headed to Boise, Idaho for the fifth annual Creative Missions trip. It’s an opportunity for church communicators to use their skills to help churches communicate better. This year the team created 10 websites, 12 logo or branding projects, 6 videos, 27 print designs, 14 signs and lots more. One pastor said, “You guys were a catapult for our church.” Applications are now being accepted for the 2016 Creative Missions trip to Vermont.
Certification Lab
This year we had two Certification Lab training events in St. Louis and Dallas. This continues to be a powerful opportunity to push communicators to the next level. Here’s what one attendee, Jeff Brown, had to say: “Make it a priority to attend a Certification Lab. Awesome content, both strategic and tactical, presented by great people.” We’ve got three Certification Lab events scheduled for 2016. (Use code “2015” and register before Dec. 31 to save $650 on the advanced lab and $200 on the regular labs.)
#cmsucks
We were thrilled to have Steve Fogg launch a Twitter chat for us this year. Every Thursday at 9 p.m. ET Steve hosts a conversation around church communication topics using the #cmsucks hashtag on Twitter. It’s been a great opportunity to engage the community and hear new voices. You can check out the transcripts and even blog posts that have come out of these chats.
Board Members
We welcomed three new board members this year: Cleve Persinger, Jenny Rain and Andy Swart. We’re thrilled to have these three. Jenny Rain is looking out for church communication directors and making sure they’re heard. Andy Swart brings pastoral insight to the table and gives us that shepherd perspective. Cleve Persinger is the co-founder of Creative Missions and continues to focus on that project as its officially brought into the fold as a CFCC project (though we’ve supported it since the beginning).
Thank You
Thanks for allowing us to serve the church community for another year.
We don’t mention it often, but we do accept donations. We’re a nonprofit that works to help churches communicate better. We offer a ton of practical resources, many of them for free. And we help specific churches every year through Creative Missions—this year’s trip delivered an estimated $45,000 in free labor and services to local churches in Boise.
We often hear from church communicators who were able to find their footing thanks to our resources.
If that work is valuable to you, we’d appreciate your support. Please make a tax-deductible donation.
Thanks for a great 2015, and we’re looking forward to what’s in store in 2016.
