Bad marketing is everywhere. Cheap graphics, poor printing, and lazy campaigns abound when it comes to businesses in this country. I am just as guilty. I have sloppy signs and little time to take care of the hundreds of marketing things that need to happen in my little store. But what if I was running a national chain? What if I was in charge of marketing for a business that reached international customers? I am guessing I would probably spend a lot more time working on the things that would make a difference. I wouldn’t wing it.

The problem is that we all wing it from time to time, and the bigger you are, the more important it is not to wing it.

MercyMe might be one of the biggest bands on the planet when it comes to Christian music. I have never met Bart & crew but I respect them as musicians. I really admire what they are doing with the Go Foundation and I am sure that they are genuine and amazing guys. Honestly, this post probably has very little to do with the band as people, but when it comes to marketing, I was reminded recently how important it is not to wing it.

On May 4, 2010 MercyMe will be releasing a brand new album: The Generous Mr. Lovewell. I anticipate that it will be a much stronger CD than their last release which seemed rather disappointing for the high standards that MercyMe has delivered for the last decade. In an effort to promote the release of their new album they have launched a website featuring videos about the release of  The Generous Mr. Lovewell album. The videos are cute and creative. I really have no problems with the website.

What I do have problems with is this:

Okay, I might be extreme with the phrase “winging it” because it is obvious that effort went into producing this marketing strategy. More than one person had to sign off on the production and replication of this material. I guess I am just disappointed in the efforts of Provident-Integrity.

Lanyards and rubber bracelets? Really?

• The lanyards are for my staff to wear to promote the album: problem is that lanyards were cool in 2003. Now they are just tacky and get in the way.

• The rubber bracelets are for customers who pre-buy the new album: problem is that Lance Armstrong and the Livestrong team released them in May 2004 and have had a strong hold on cool ever since, copying cool is cheap marketing and to be honest, seems to be something that churches/ministries try all too often.

I understand that MercyMe needs to promote their new album because all new albums need promotion. (Do they? Or can a great band sell albums because they are great and skip the cheap tricks?) Copycat bracelets and cheap lanyards are not going to make a difference in the number of albums they sell, instead the amount of airtime and the quality of tour dates are going to sell albums. Provident please do us all a favor and eliminate the copycat ideas from you marketing plans. Be creative, try something new and push the envelope because a lanyard and a rubber bracelet aren’t going to cut it.

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About Benji Zimmerman

Husband, Father, Troubleshooter, Dreamer, Linchpin, Reader, Runner, and Bicyclist.