A Name Change?

News comes today from the Southern Baptist Convention that an internal task force is weighing the possibility of a name change for the Convention, and that a report will be given to the SBC Executive Committee in February 2012.  The purpose for considering a name change?  To "strengthen our ability to reach more people."  The task force's decision on making these recommendations comes on the same day that LifeWay Research released a study that indicates some 40% of Americans hold a less-than-favorable view of the denomination.  (news articles here, here, here, here)

"When you've got a culture where 35 to 40 percent of the people who repeatedly said they would not even consider an evangelical church, it's not surprising that 44 percent of the people said the Southern Baptist name would impact them negatively," stated Jimmy Draper, chairman of the task force and President Emeritus of Lifeway Christian Resources.

As a life-long Southern Baptist, I have one question: Why?

I don't understand the world of marketing and branding.  The American Marketing Association defines the term "brand" as a "name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."  Within the world of branding, Faith Branding is the concept of branding religious organizations, leaders, or media programming, in the hope of penetrating a media-driven, consumer-oriented culture more effectively." (source: Wikipedia)

"Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain." - Wizard of Oz

The Lifeway survey did not attempt to determine why people hold a negative view of Southern Baptists.  Without knowledge of the respondent's motivations or preconceptions, why should we feel that a name change would result in a more positive image?

Forgive me of the blasphemy of comparing the offerings of a church to that of merchandise:  I propose there are four major forces that determine a product's success in the open market.  Firstly, is the product something that is desired by the consumer?  Secondly, is there another source of the product or service?  Thirdly, is our version of the product or service superior in quality to that of the competition?  And finally, how widely and effectively is the product marketed?

Before we get to the point of branding and marketing our product, it is incumbent for us to first consider the other three questions.  If our product isn't wanted or needed, or if there is someone else offering a better product, then we should strongly evaluate our own offering.

If the Southern Baptist Convention is attempting to re-brand itself, we should get find out the "why" behind the negative survey results.  I doubt that simply a name alone is sufficient to turn away potential congregants.  As stated by Mr. Draper, some 40 percent of the population isn't even interested in an evangelical church.  Put in terms of business, they're not even interested in what we're selling.  And it's not just what Baptists are "selling" either, but churches in general.  It's akin to Ford Motors changing their name on car dealerships hoping to attract someone who's not in the market to buy a car at all.

These are my $0.02 worth.  The comments section is open, and I look forward to hearing from you.