Uncommon Denomination

  Interested in learning more about attracting and keeping more visitors to your church? Start at www.uua.org/uncommondenomination. The UUA’s Congregational Services staff group has just developed a three-tiered program of resources designed to help congregations grow.

  The program begins by inviting congregations to examine the way they greet and include visitors. It also helps them discover ways to reach out into their communities, ways of explaining Unitarian Universalism, and finally, it offers resources for those who choose to do advertising campaigns. These resources are based on the successful media test conducted in the Kansas City metro area a year ago.

  Tier 1—The first, most basic resources are in Tier 1. These resources are about building “in-reach” in the congregation—developing a strong relationship among all parts of the congregation with the goal of reaching out to non-UUs. These resources include ways to explain Unitarian Universalism, ways to assess the congregation, and workshops on growth. “These resources will not cost you a lot of money but can make deep and lasting changes in your congregation and its members,” said the Rev. Tracey Robinson-Harris, director of the UUA’s Congregational Services staff group and the coordinator of the Kansas City area media test.

  Also included in Tier 1 resources are methods that other congregations use successfully to attract and keep visitors and ways that congregations use the development of small groups to help connect visitors and members.

  Tier 2—The Web resources in Tier 2 are about reaching out into the community, raising awareness of Unitarian Universalism, and inviting guests to visit. Tier 2 resources include advertising templates for small newspaper and magazine ads and generic public service announcements. The cost of Tier 2 resources depends on how comprehensive a marketing plan is adopted and the cost of buying media in specific markets. Use of these resources may require budgeting additional funds for media purchases and developing a more extensive communications strategy.

  Tier 3—Resources in Tier 3 constitute a major marketing campaign similar to that done in the Kansas City metro area, where radio and television ads were combined with billboards. These resources will be most useful to clusters of congregations and large congregations able to commit significant funds. The media buying budget for the moderately-priced Kansas City market was $135,000 for the four-and-a-half month campaign a year ago. Tier 3 resources include:
  • large-space print ad layouts for magazines and newspapers (4 x 6 col. inches);
  • radio messages in various lengths;
  • tv ads in various lengths;
  • five billboard designs, with space for your congregation/cluster’s Web site address to be inserted;
  • music backgrounds of varying lengths supporting the radio and TV ad messages;
  • articles, generic photos, and guidelines for creating a tabloid-sized advertising insert (a special section on Unitarian Universalism and your congregation) for inclusion in a major daily newspaper.

  Congregations that want to use any of The Uncommon Denomination resources are required, as a first step, to sign a covenant with the UUA that they will agree to use the resources in a responsible and consistent manner; that they will evaluate their ability to welcome and include whoever comes; and that they will share results of their marketing efforts with the UUA.

  Said Robinson-Harris, “Sharing our good news of Unitarian Universalism and inviting folks to visit their local congregation is most effective with a consistent message shared in many ways over time. It’s important to develop a strategy that will keep our values and our open invitation present in the community.”