Four Marketing Tips From a
Canadian Convent
Sister Elaine
Lachance—vocation director for the Good Shepherd Sisters of Quebec—had a
problem. She needed a better way to raise awareness of her dwindling order. And
then the PR firm she hired gave Lachance a two-word solution: social media.
A Facebook page
and a blog did the trick. "The story [of Internet-savvy sisters] has been
covered by more than 300 newspapers," writes Verónica Maria Jarski.
"The BBC interviewed Lachance. So did MarketingProfs." It's safe to
say young women who feel a call to vocation are now very aware of the Good
Shepherd Sisters.
Here are a few of things you can
learn from the sisters' experience:
Know where to
find your audience. A young woman planning a life of
religious service will research her options like any other young woman—online.
Meet your audience where they gather, and be prepared with the content they
want to see.
Budget for
start-up costs. Creating content costs the
sisters nothing at all—but they did budget for professional website design.
"Don't go cheap: It shows," notes Jarski.
Maintain a
consistent design aesthetic. Be recognizable
wherever a prospect or customer encounters your brand. "Lachance's blog,
for example, looks like the order's website, which in turn resembles its
Facebook page," she explains.
Go beyond your
comfort zone. The world of social media felt
awkward to Lachance, but she knew she had to risk it. In the same way, you
should press forward with new ways of reaching customers even if it makes you
uncomfortable at first.
Conclusion: It isn't often that we turn to a nun for
marketing advice—but this nun knows what she's
doing.
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