Unlike their cousins on the other side of the Atlantic, the British are notoriously not keen on going to church.
The number attending has been dropping steadily ever since World War II, and today it is merely about 7.5 percent of the population of the United Kingdom who go to church on Sunday.
Thinking about this, and recalling all the advertising he passed on his way to work every day, the editor of the evangelical monthly Christianity + Renewal, John Buckeridge, had the idea of asking two advertising agencies to devise a series of advertisements that would encourage people to go to church.
Interestingly enough, none of the two teams involved were churchgoers.
Link ICA opted for a campaign built round the slogan “Get a life — go to church.” The agency’s joint creative director, Jonathan Wilcock said the slogan was because “most people come to a point in their lives when, although they may have a nice car, home and partner, they feel something is missing.”
He said he was thinking particularly of those in their 30s and 40s.
“Teens think they’ll live forever, 20-somethings are busy getting a career, a partner and building their life, but when like me you get to 30-something you start to feel something is missing. Others fill it with something else like alcohol or sex or loads of holidays. For some people the church can shed light on what life is all about.”
Make up your own mind
At Khameleon the agency’s managing director, Guy Lupton, said they wanted to steer away from the typical image of church and religion. “We don’t think people like to be preached at, and we didn’t want traditional images like a picture of Jesus or a cross. We felt the key was to get people through the door of the church and let them make up their own minds.”
Khameleon’s campaign promoted the values of community life at a church, the chance to have a good “sing,” hear a good sermon and have a heart-to-heart chat. So one of their ads pictured a solitary goldfish at the bottom of a goldfish bowl and asked: “When did you last really need someone to talk to?” with the answer: “You’ll always find someone at your local church — you don’t know what you’re missing.”
But both agency men agreed that even the best advertisement would be unlikely to turn around someone who is anti-church or not interested in church.
However, Wilcock thought ads promoting a church could work. He said he thought they were particularly likely to affect people who had recently had a spiritual experience, helping to push them over the edge to decide to go to a church. (RNS)
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