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The threads about Missionaries approaching people on buses got me thinking that the church's marketing department sucks. I do have to admit that it is impressive they are able to baptize hundreds of thousands of people a year with only 50 thousand salespeople. But door to door sales is so 100 years ago. What's the average new customer per sales rep? 2 per year? Their recent "i'm a Mormon" TV and Internet campaign is doing well, and they need to think outside the box with other marketing ideas. Here are some:

1) Product placement. I've never seen a person on TV or in the movies casually reading a Book of Mormon or Ensign, or kids playing with Book of Mormon action figures, or a portrait of Thomas S. Monson on the living room wall.

2) Flash mobs. Use text messages to organize guerilla marketing campaigns in shopping malls. A group could gather to sing hymns to unsuspecting shoppers.

any other ideas?

DarkHelmet wrote:The threads about Missionaries approaching people on buses got me thinking that the church's marketing department sucks. I do have to admit that it is impressive they are able to baptize hundreds of thousands of people a year with only 50 thousand salespeople. But door to door sales is so 100 years ago. What's the average new customer per sales rep? 2 per year? Their recent "I'm a Mormon" TV and Internet campaign is doing well, and they need to think outside the box with other marketing ideas. Here are some:

1) Product placement. I've never seen a person on TV or in the movies casually reading a Book of Mormon or Ensign, or kids playing with Book of Mormon action figures, or a portrait of Thomas S. Monson on the living room wall.

2) Flash mobs. Use text messages to organize guerilla marketing campaigns in shopping malls. A group could gather to sing hymns to unsuspecting shoppers.

any other ideas?

Great points. Classic Mormon Missionary strategy was most DEFINITELY based on the effective sales techniques of 50s and 60s. But you don't see too many door to door vacuum salesman anymore, and for good reason.

Your ideas are good. I'd also say viral marketing, which they're already attempting to do (poorly) with the "I'm a Mormon" campaign (stolen from the Scientologist "I'm a Scientologist" campaign). Just improve on it.

They should really call a successful head of brand marketing as the next Executive Director of the Missionary Department. I think the guy in there right now is only there through nepotism.

I have seen some of the "I'm a Mormon" adds and they seem pretty good. I would like to see different personality types though. Sure you have people from different jobs but they all seem to have that "organizational" look to their faces. What people should do is make some of these videos and include people who actually are different - earth mothers, goths, emo looking types, laborers, ethnic types (not just based on race), pagan spirits, etc. As long as we just have the "faith center" sort of look in our outreach that is the only type of people who will respond. And I doubt Jesus only mingled with those in Israel who fit a particular mold.

DarkHelmet wrote:The threads about Missionaries approaching people on buses got me thinking that the church's marketing department sucks. I do have to admit that it is impressive they are able to baptize hundreds of thousands of people a year with only 50 thousand salespeople. But door to door sales is so 100 years ago. What's the average new customer per sales rep? 2 per year? Their recent "I'm a Mormon" TV and Internet campaign is doing well, and they need to think outside the box with other marketing ideas. Here are some:

1) Product placement. I've never seen a person on TV or in the movies casually reading a Book of Mormon or Ensign, or kids playing with Book of Mormon action figures, or a portrait of Thomas S. Monson on the living room wall.

2) Flash mobs. Use text messages to organize guerilla marketing campaigns in shopping malls. A group could gather to sing hymns to unsuspecting shoppers.

any other ideas?

If what we've been hearing over the past few weeks is true (re Mormon.org), then Church authorities are currently allocating quite a lot of money to at least two PR firms to help improve the Mormon brand perception. I'd say that's a good start. Though, I hesitate to call it a start since it seems to me there's been a serious effort underway on this front for many years now. I don't think there's any denying it, Mormon.org is a pretty nice looking website.

Lose the white shirts and ties. And lose the dresses and nylons (horrors!) It is such a dated look, people think we're straight out of a 50's rewind.

Majorly reduce the number of proselying missionaries (take it down at least 90%) and ramp up the service missionaries. Live the word, instead of just talking the word. SERVE the people, instead of teaching anyone who is standing at the bus stop.

Teach only those people who request it (what good does it to baptise 100 people, if 99 of them fall away?) And teach it all. (Isn't it the Catholics who require a year of study in order to join their church?) Let people know exactly what they're getting into.

harmony wrote:Lose the white shirts and ties. And lose the dresses and nylons (horrors!) It is such a dated look, people think we're straight out of a 50's rewind.

Majorly reduce the number of proselying missionaries (take it down at least 90%) and ramp up the service missionaries. Live the word, instead of just talking the word. SERVE the people, instead of teaching anyone who is standing at the bus stop.

Teach only those people who request it (what good does it to baptise 100 people, if 99 of them fall away?) And teach it all. (Isn't it the Catholics who require a year of study in order to join their church?) Let people know exactly what they're getting into.

Only problem with those wonderful suggestions--you'd have to convince Boyd K "living in the 19th Century" Packer of their merits. Deal killer.

Hi Dark,

No. No other ideas; it's over. A mission is little more than a right-of-passage shell today and there is no way to get people interested anymore.

And this explains why city creek is so important. The church has pumped all the converts out of the ground it can and now has switched industries to real estate and retail.

Gadianton wrote:Hi Dark,

No. No other ideas; it's over. A mission is little more than a right-of-passage shell today and there is no way to get people interested anymore.

And this explains why city creek is so important. The church has pumped all the converts out of the ground it can and now has switched industries to real estate and retail.

That was Dean Gad with another spot on observation.

DarkHelmet wrote:The threads about Missionaries approaching people on buses got me thinking that the church's marketing department sucks. I do have to admit that it is impressive they are able to baptize hundreds of thousands of people a year with only 50 thousand salespeople. But door to door sales is so 100 years ago. What's the average new customer per sales rep? 2 per year? Their recent "I'm a Mormon" TV and Internet campaign is doing well, and they need to think outside the box with other marketing ideas. Here are some:

1) Product placement. I've never seen a person on TV or in the movies casually reading a Book of Mormon or Ensign, or kids playing with Book of Mormon action figures, or a portrait of Thomas S. Monson on the living room wall.

2) Flash mobs. Use text messages to organize guerilla marketing campaigns in shopping malls. A group could gather to sing hymns to unsuspecting shoppers.

any other ideas?

Concentrate on the illiterate and uneducated. Move all missionaries from Europe (they are doing very poorly there) and relocate them to third world counties. Preferably ones with very inadequate education systems.

The less educated the populace, the more likely they are to accept the Mormon message. If a country has very low internet access, it's a prime missionary target.

I disagree with you -- uneducated people will not be looking for a religion that stresses study and commitment on the scales that the LDS faith requires.

The people who I have found are most interested in talking about the LDS religion are actually those with a lot of education, high IQs but also tend to be classified as outsiders. These are non-conformists who the teachings of Joseph Smith would be received by quite well; the only problem is that Mormons as a whole do not relate to such people. I have seen it -- someone sincerely interested in asking gospel questions but happens to have his neck graced with tattoos -- and trying to carry on a sincere conversation with a 19 year old missionary from Provo. The man may as well have been naked as the missionary was totally shut off and seemed more interested in ending the conversation than doing his work. I then took over and had a very good conversation with the man and I believe he has since visited our services a few times.

I have discussed the church with gays, goths, hippies and red necks. It takes guts to be different in today's conformistic USA and these are the people who would be most likely to connect to our teachings.