Tim Ellens is a brand strategist passionate about helping clients “live” their unique story. Viewing everyone in an organization as a storyteller he facilitates and develops strategies that get the story out of the board room and into the back room. As a student of branding, he understands that people relate to brands in ways that shape their identity and connect with the values of an organization. Additionally, Tim is motivated by helping leaders of organizations gain clarity of vision through “aha” moments and pulling simplicity out of complexity. He has worked with Fortune 500 companies and those who view $500 as a fortune but has a heart for those who are making this world a better place. Check out the CHANGEffect website.
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- Branding is a promise, big idea, and the expectation that resides in customer’s mind about a product, service, or company. – Alina Wheeler
- Brand = Story
- An organization’s brand is it’s story.
- Are they telling their story in a compelling way?
- Cowboys all know you can’t brand nothin’ til you tie three of its legs together, slam it to the ground, and sedate it. – Bart Crosby, brand designer.
There’s three aspects to your Story…
- Story – mission/vision; personality; key messaging.
- Culture – behavior/rituals; structures, process
- Expression – brand identity, events, print/web/media
- Check out the book Church Unique
- You live your Story through planning, mobilization and tactics.
- Give them something to believe in.
How the story has changed…
- In the pre-internet days a company put out an image and people related to the image… they didn’t need to relate to the company.
- The internet created glass walls for companies.
- There’s a new dynamic where people can circumvent the image and see the company for what they are.
- This new trend has called company’s values into question.
- A brand culture is created. People associate themselves with which brand they are loyal to. (i.e. Starbucks, Mac, Prius).
- The brands we choose say a lot about who we are.
- We are mosaics of brands.
- A brand culture attracts employees and customers.
Storytelling Pyramid.
- Strategic Level: core story creates consistency in all communications internally and externally.
- Operational Level: stories, anectdotes, behaviors, riutuals, etc.
From Consumers to People.
- Consumers buy. People live.
- We have transactional customers in church… they take part in service, they partake in the services that the church offers.
- And then we have citizens. Citizens take ownership. They get involved in serving, they are evangelists for the church.
How do we turn customers into citizens?
- When we invite people into relationship with God in a customer/transactional kind of way… i.e. “pray this prayer, you get…” we shouldn’t be surprised that people act the way that they do (as consumers).
- If they truly understand the Gospel, they should see it as themselves entering into a Redemptive Story.
- The biggest communication event of all time was God sending His Son to live out His Story of redemption for the world.
- Jesus was God’s invitation for us to participate in His Story.
- If we are going to understand how to communicate who the church is, it has to have a firm theological foundation from the beginning.
- People in our culture are already interacting with brands and organizations in new ways today.
- Check out the book Emotional Branding by Mark Gobe
Are the people attending your church customers or citizens?
Can your church be a place to belong?
- We live in a globalized world and people now want to tribalize.
From Quality to Preference.
- Quality is a given.
- Preference creates raving fans.
- There’s things that are just “givens” in the church… kid’s ministry, relevant preaching, etc.
- How do we move beyond commoditized ideas and get into what’s specific about your church.
- What is your church telling that’s compelling.
From Products to Experiences.
- Products fulfill needs.
- Experiences fulfill desires.
- Look at your Sunday services at experiences.
- Sunday services are a branding experience for your church.
- What are you communicating to your people about what’s important to your church through how you structure your services?
From Ubiquity to Presence.
- Ubiquity is seen.
- Emotional presence is felt.
- How is your church providing an authentic experience that touches people’s souls?
From communication to Dialogue.
- Communication is telling.
- Dialogue is sharing.
- What does a two-way, conversational atmosphere look like at your church?
- Effective communication isn’t telling, it’s creating opportunities and space for dialogue to happen so citizens of your church are creating and part of telling your church’s story.
From Service to Relationship.
- Service is selling.
- Relationship is acknowledgement.
- Does your church’s atmosphere feel transactional or relational?
There are no simple solutions, only intelligent questions.
What business are you in, really? The answer is the seed to your unique story.
- Starbucks… appears to be in the business of coffee. Their genuine brand is a Third Place.
- Dunkin Donuts sells coffee from a different angle… “run!”
- FedEx... appears to be about delivery. Their genuine brand is “don’t worry about it.”
- Cinnabon… appears to be about selling cinnamon buns. Their genuine brand is sensory exploitation.
- Many times your genuine brand isn’t made public, but it’s held internally to be a guiding filter in decision making, etc.
Finding your church’s Genuine Brand Questions…
- What can your church do better than 10,000 others?
- How would you fill in this blank: OUr church exists to glorify God and make disciples by ___________.
- What is your Kingdom Concept?
Your Kingdom Concept is made up of three things…
- Local Predicament – What are the unqiue needs and opportunities where God has placed us?
- Apostolic Esprit – What particular focus most energizes and animates our leadership?
- Collective Potential – What are the unique resources and capabilities that God brings together in us?
Local Predicament Questions
- What are the unique needs where God has placed us?
- What are the immediate opportunities found within a half mile?
- What are some of the largest community events?
- What one positive change in our community would have the most dramatic effect in people’s lives?
Collective Potential Questions
- What would a guest say is best about your church?
- What promise can you make day-in, day-out?
- If your church left your community tomorrow, who would protest and why?
- What capabilities tend to cluster in your church?
- If we only did one ministry, which would it be?
- If your church was an automobile, what year, make and model would it be?
Apostolic Esprit Questions
- What one thing bothers you most about the world?
- If you know you couldn’t fail, what one thing would you pursue for God?
- What do you tend to pray for the most?
- Who are your heroes?
- What gives you energy?
- What gives you deep satisfaction?
- What do you want people to say at your funeral?
Living your Story
- It’s about the process.
- It’s about consistent re-alignment.
- If it’s going to really happen, there has to be one person who takes ownership at looking at everything you do and asking, “Does this align with who we say we are?”
- It’s about telling the story daily.
