Greater Atlanta

Unitarian

Universalist

Congregations

Recommendations for Future Campaigns

• Greeters must become diligent about welcoming visitors and asking what brought them to the congregation. The information gathered offers significant insight into the congregation's visibility to the public. The data can be used for years to come, not to mention identifying and connecting with visitors on a personal level. One congregation that participated in this project has a system whereby the greeter emails weekly visitor information to the minister and board. This weekly email briefly profiles every visitor, including why he/she attended, personal interests, friends/relatives who attend the fellowship, children's names, ages, and interests, and general comments. This weekly email allows congregational leaders to easily identify visitors on a more personal level the following Sunday and the "visibility" measurements are available for future reference. It seems to be a powerful system.
• Advertising on PBS/NPR is not going to bring people to your door. Radio advertising efforts are important, but in the sense of promoting UUism and making it an identifiable and recognized religion to the public. With respect to bringing visitors to your congregation, your radio advertising efforts would be in support of other on-going promotional efforts, and not an independent tool.
• There is an altruistic value in supporting public broadcast stations, and many UUs are supportive of the often educational and liberal programs on these stations. Furthermore, PBS/NPR reaches listeners with demographics similar to many of our UU congregations and there is great value in making UUism an identifiable and mainstream religion. These subjective and qualitative aspects are immeasurable yet important to the decision whether or not to advertise on PBS/NPR stations.
• If advertisements are affordable on PBS stations in your area, consider expanding a campaign schedule for 52 weeks, instead of 12 (possibly with less frequency). This strategy might be affordable and feasible in smaller markets, where PBS stations are willing to work with the congregation and its budget, and constant advertising helps to build a brand name and public recognition. If this is the situation in your area, make your PBS/NPR ads in sync with your other promotional efforts (newspaper, flyers, brochures, etc).
• We recommend that there be a follow-up with the Metro Atlanta Ministers on the long-term impact of this advertising campaign on their congregations. The Mid-South District Communications Chair could check with each minister in June and November 2003.
• Improve, enhance, and keep vigilant focus on your congregation's website! Content is key and flash is not necessary. Photos and locators/maps ("Sense of Face and Place") are important as well as general information about UUism. Seekers are surfing and researching on the internet – make sure they can find your website and make sure it's current and inviting.
• Based upon the effectiveness of this project's website and the apparent interest that seekers showed with information on the project's website, we recommend that congregations, districts, and the UUA pay particular attention to their website's content and how it portrays them.
• We believe it would worthwhile and effective if UUA were to advertise on PBS/NPR programs again, and promote UUism on a national level, and this time provide their website address for more information.