Putting Faith Into Your Brand, and Vice-Versa

 

[ LONG READ ]

Client / United Church of Canada
Industry Sector / Faith Organization, Non-Profit
Services / Brand Positioning Research and Development

When a brand’s relevance is in question

Noted Canadian author and journalist Pierre Berton predicted in 1965 that organized religion would increasingly become irrelevant and that, in a rapidly de-Christianizing society, Canada’s United Church would cease to be the glue holding Protestant Canada together. But how do you reposition the brand of an institution of faith and a philosophy on which it rests when it is core to so many people’s lives, and yet thought by so many as being an anachronism? A most challenging question for a most atypical client.

No Greater Challenge

It is within this societal and institutional context that the United Church of Canada sought direction to recast its brand in preparation for its one hundred anniversary (2025). We were hand-picked by the UCC to help lead this initiative.

 One of the core challenges facing the United Church is its difficulty articulating “what we are and how we work in the world” in ways that are relevant in today’s society. The Church’s General Secretary (whose task, as CEO, is to contemplate strategy), was pushing for answers to questions she feels had to be addressed, specifically, that the Church is “missing the mark” and that it needs to understand why that is the case and what to do about it.

Key to the future of the Church is finding better, more flexible and more inclusive approaches to connect and engage with millennials in ways that are relevant in their daily lives and those of their families. We were mandated to help communicate the relevance of the United Church to a demographically, ethnographically and culturally shifting Canadian population. Our work would also crucially help answer the challenge of how the Church – thus far an entirely bricks and mortar experience – could evolve a broader sense of community and offer experiences to people who consider themselves “too busy” to sit in pews. 

 
 

OBJECTIVES

  • Develop the United Church of Canada positioning strategy moving forward

  • Confirm/Reaffirm/Re-assess key the United Church core values and points of differentiation

  • Refine/Restate/Redefine the expression of the United Church mission and purpose

  • Propose/Evolve/Adopt a more “relevant” positioning and value proposition for today’s Canadian Christian society

  • Develop ways to reach out to a broader and more diverse audience, across geographies,  demographic/ethnographic/cultural groups 

  • Create a brand/brand positioning and messaging that “appeals despite segments”, both internally and externally, and that gets everyone on the same page

  • Help congregations better understand the need for, and approach to, change

  • Develop positioning narratives that would lead to an “eventual” tagline and campaign leading up to the United Church of Canada’s 100th anniversary (2025) – Phase 2

Weighing the Risks and Rewards of Brand Repositioning for a Faith-based Organization.

Given its roots, traditions, and DNA as a faith-based organization, and fundamental mission, the United Church must carefully weigh the potential consequences and/or rewards an institutional rebranding such as this might have on the immediate and long-term health of its reputation and membership. The organization had to contend with a pervasive underlying sense of fear of doing something “wrong” or at odds with the precepts of the Church. Furthermore, the organization power structure being highly de-centralized, means the General Council Office exhorts only soft compliance power over its various congregations. These were only some of the internal cultural challenges that could become impediments to bring about and implement needed change at the United Church. 

APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY

PHASE 1 - DISCOVERY

We employed a variety of methodologies.

 This project began with a literature review to understand attitudes toward religion and Christianity in modern society, and a review of existing proprietary and syndicated research on the attitudes of the public toward the United Church specifically. It was followed by consultation process where we reached out to congregation members, and leaders, internal stakeholders and leaders – in cross-country consultations – and surveyed a number of individuals, in order to collect and analyze their views and attitudes toward the Church itself and other faith-based institutions, as well as various non-religious social justice and charitable organizations. 

 This research helped establish the basis for the brand repositioning and to get a firm grip on the key issues affecting the perception of the brand presently.

 
 

Outcomes_Key findings the discovery helped revealed the following:

 

  1. The United Church of Canada is an institution that has become somewhat disconnected from its own story?
    Change in any organization isn’t easy. This is especially true of a revered religious organization like the United Church of Canada. In a society that has lost much of its Christian memory and activity, reclaiming the position the United Church once held may require as bold a venture as “Church Union” once seemed in 1925. What would  be the creative force providing a new way for the United Church to evolve and become the church in the 21st century? Would there be enough people on a spiritual quest for meaning, guidance, and consolation who want to belong to an organized community of faith? What story must the Church successfully tell to find a place in a pluralist, multi-faith Canada? What is at stake is answering the Church’s question of what it means to be the  “United” Church of Canada, today.

  2. Members and congregants see the United Church as an inclusive community of faith
    The people of the United Church are anything but diffident; there is no lack of certainty, no lack of commitment to the Church, just quiet, confident strength. It is a welcoming and supportive faith where “belief is not a matter of dogma but rather a journey of questioning, debate, doubt, and ongoing discovery.” Members are “a seeking people” who see themselves “as travellers on a spiritual journey,” yet it is a journey and a church with a purpose. They want a church that is welcoming, supportive, action-oriented, engaging, and dynamic; diverse, intercultural, open, inclusive and are open to non-traditional forms of “being church.” And in an age where dialogue and reconciliation are considered important, these are important values to possess.

  3.  Members and congregants see the United Church as a social justice organization
    This is also a Church unafraid to stand up for what is right, regardless of repercussions. Members resolutely believe social justice is not just an essential facet of United Church faith it is “our very essence.” The principle of speaking out for those who have no voice, of advocating on behalf of the marginalized and dispossessed, of believing all people should be considered equal, and that all should have the opportunity to live full and abundant lives is a core identifier that contributes to making the United Church the most progressive church in Canada.

  4.  Members and congregants are united in being “United”
    There is considerable consensus around the kind of Church people say they would like to belong to, and a sense of hopefulness about what the church and its people might be able to accomplish in the world. The prevailing assumption has long been that members feel a greater sense of membership to their local church, yet data showed the United Church to be more cohesive nationally than many people think. Moreover, there is “unanimity that renewal of the church as a national organization is an important goal”: 63.1% say very important, it has important work to do. This unity will be key to developing a national brand. The crucial challenge will be in how the Church can expand form a bricks and mortar experience into a broader community experiences for people who consider themselves “too busy” to sit in pews.

  5.  Members and congregants are united in the Church’s need for renewal
    Ever the dynamic and progressive outlier, the United Church doesn’t stand on dogma. It is aware and understands that many people seek their own pathways to spirituality and are hungry for non-traditional forms of church. The United Church does not seek to de-ligitimize the personal journey of faith people are on, but rather to welcome these voices to help build a more inclusive institution, so they can live their faith in contemporary ways that may not include worshipping within the church’s four walls. There is general acknowledgment and alignment within its membership of the significance of the Church as it relates to the big issues of faith, values and the living of life.

  6.  Members and congregants are united in giving youth a more important voice within the organization
    Youth’s significant commitment to openness around diversity puts them at the vanguard of the United Church and suggests they must play vital role in propelling the Church to realize its intercultural vision. The United Church is committed to defining new ways of “being church” by inspiring new ministry and congregation renewal that effectively builds a bridge from the past to the new millennium by leveraging the ideas of its young people.

    This thoughtful, younger generation – a small but highly engaged group dedicated to a search for meaning – is seen as the creative force that ultimately provides a new way for the United Church to evolve and become a church for the 21st century. Profoundly open and progressive, they see the United Church as open, liberal, welcoming, inclusive, and accepting. Young people in the United Church are amenable to non-traditional forms of church and living their faith in contemporary ways that may not include worshipping within the church’s four walls.

 
 

Additional Findings

These findings led to a series of discussions with the United Church executive team and its board. Following these discussions, we distilled those findings into a series of concepts describing how the United Church of Canada could move forward to better articulate its identity. Through these consultations we have been able to refine the concepts and help the Church see itself in a clearer light. The data collected served as a roadmap for building positioning options and establish the foundation of a new brand-messaging platform.

Fortunately, for this particular organization, there is considerable consensus around the kind of church people say they would like to belong to, and a sense of hopefulness about what the Church and its people might be able to accomplish in the world.  No longer looking to evangelize and assimilate, the United Church is now called to celebrate diversity and promote dialogue between different cultural and social groups. This is a church of storytellers embracing dialogue and discussion about ideas and spiritualism.

We developed a series of positioning that we workshopped with the leadership of the Church and surveyed with a broader set of stakeholders across the country.

PHASE 2 – IDEATION

 Identifying New Narrative directions

The following must be considered in the context of an overall revitalization initiative of the United Church brand. Options and Scenario generated (which may not be exposed within this document at this time) would represent what can be surmised as the de facto brand communications platform for the institution.

Each option placed the emphasis on a different aspect of the brand. however. However, in combination, each also helped define what the United Church stands for and begins to form a basis on which we can build a communications framework that will affect how people (Church Members, Staff, Ministers, the Council, Members of the Public, Donors and Supporters, the Media, Governments, Charitable / Social / Relief / Organizations, Other Churches, the Christian Community as a whole) think about the organization, where its values lie and what its true core offering is.PHASE 2 - IDEATION

 
 

The chosen approach thus becomes the de facto Brand Promise. The positioning of the Church (and tagline) would then be built around that brand promise.  

 Positioning Key Criteria

  • Reflect the character of the United Church of Canada as an organization (adaptive, pragmatic, wrestling with tough questions, redefining faith)

  • Conveys it core set of values as an institution of faith (diversity, inclusion, unity, courage)

  • Demonstrate its  sense of purpose as a social justice organization (fairness, moderation, kindness)

  • Renew its story for a new generation (ignites/shapes conversation; sets minds soaring; aspirational; says where it is prepared to go)

  • Stretch people perceptions of itself that takes it on the edge of its comfort zone

 
 

Additional Operational Objectives

  • Create “a brand that appeals despite segments”, both internally and externally, and that gets everyone on the same page

  • Help congregations better understand the need for, and approach to, change

  • Develop a positioning idea (words) that will lead to an “eventual” tagline

Phase 3_Ideation – Pending

Next Steps/Considerations

The program, which began with an extensive consultation process remains a work in progress.

  • Formalize Tagline

  • Develop a Brand Communications plan

  • Brand ”culturalization” (internal)

  • Messaging to closely targeted audiences

  • Brand Execution Pillars: Relevancy, Consistency, Execution and Proofpoints

  • Create audience personae (think demographics)

  • Develop message matrix (message architecture)

  • Strategies and Tactics

  • How to deploy, use, support

  • Leverage key milestones e.g. Centennial

  • 100-year anniversary initiatives and events programming (unique opportunity)

Note: With the COVID-19 Pandemic imposed restrictions and safety measures regarding indoor gatherings, , this work with the United Church has taken on an even greater importance. We will look to ensure that the United Church of Canada is well-equipped to continue to minister to the population by any means at its disposal in traditional and non-traditional ways.

 
Jean-Pierre Veilleux