Lesson 6: Appeal to Accepted Traditions & Tastes

What does Jesus have to do with a Shamrock or Mary have to do with Guadalupe?

In developing its brand over the years, the Catholic Church has done an excellent job of appealing to (some would say co-opting) local legends and long-standing traditions, and refocusing them on key points of the Church's teaching. While the Catholic Church is rife with many examples, perhaps the most profound is the celebration of Christmas on December 25. The exact date of Jesus' birth remains a mystery, although the references to shepherds herding their sheep seems to indicate that the birth was in the summer or fall. In AD 350, Pope Julius I declared that Christmas would be celebrated on December 25. Why that date? Because it corresponded with an event celebrated by many established religions, the winter solstice. By taking an existing holiday and inculcating it with Christianity's message, the church was able to greatly extend the reach of its brand.

When developing a brand for your company or organization, you should not try to bulldoze existing brands or beliefs, but rather you should focus on how to promote your message while complementing or appealing to those things that the audience already finds comfort in.

Lesson 5: Engage All the Senses

The five senses are the gateway to the inner self. A strong brand should be a promise that appeals the inner self. To touch the inner self, all of the senses should be engaged to their fullest extent. The Catholic Church does a masterful job making the brand promise and then reflecting it in each of the senses. The Church engages the sight in big ways, such as monumental cathedrals with intricate stained glass to small ways, such as the sign of the cross. The Catholic sounds are reflected in Gregorian chants, simple hymns, and the bells. The smell of incense often fills the air during special ceremonies. Baptism and anointing with oils are a couple of the ways that the brand is communicated through touch. (Perhaps one of my favorite examples of touch is the blessing of the throat. What feast day does that represent?) Finally, taste is evoked in the communion, with the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the wine.

When developing your brand, it is important to understand your brand promise, and then find ways of reflecting that promises through each of the senses.

Lesson 4: Create a New Category

"The New Covenant"

In the early days of the Catholic Church, there was disagreement about whether Christianity would be an off-shoot of Judiasm, or if it would be something completely different. The Apostles were split on this point, and some preached only to Jews, while others preached to Gentiles (I will drop in more detail soon). After some time, it became clear that the Catholic Church was completely different from the traditional Jewish faith. By breaking away from Judiasm, the Catholic Church established a new brand category and was able to grow beyond its roots.

In their book, The Origin of Brands, Al and Laura Ries discuss the phenomenon of Brand Divergence, in which new, often stronger brands emerge from existing brands. In developing a branding strategy for your company or organization, it is important not to think about the current market but the potential future market to be served.

Lesson 3: Provide Consistent Service

A brand is not just a logo or a tagline. I once heard a brand described as a promise that is made to consumers. (Note to self – I will track down the source and properly credit the author). In order to make and keep the promise, it is important not just to have a consistent message, but also to have consistent services delivery.

As with the fragmented message, the early Catholic Church had different rituals and different ways of conducting the Mass. Pope Pius V (1504-1572) during his papacy issued missals that created a uniform way of conducting the Mass, so that worshipers could have a sense of familiarity no matter where in the world they attended services.

The Catholic Church has documented detailed processes and procedures for conducting all major rituals, from the Church’s seven Sacraments to Exorcism. In fact, the church reviews the procedures and will make changes from time to time, as it did in 1998 with Exorcism.

When developing a brand for your company or organization, consistent service delivery is critical to the success of keeping your promise to the consumer.

Lesson 2: Promote a Consistent Message

"Preach THE WORD"

While the Catholic Church operates all across the world in many different cultures, a consistent message is always promoted. The message was first delivered by Jesus Christ and documented in the many gospels. However, there was some confusion as different, competing gospels and dogmas were promulgated. In order to minimize the confusion and develop a truly catholic, or universal, church, Constantine convened the first council of Nicea in AD 325 to document and agree upon the official creed or beliefs of the church.

A brand that has more than one core belief has no true core belief. Just as with a religious organization, it is important to understand the message of the brand and to make sure that it is promoted in all touchpoints with consumers and potential consumers.

Lesson 1: Protect Your Intellectual Property

"Defend the Faith"

This is where I got the original idea. On Easter Sunday, I was watching Visions of Mary on The History Channel. There was a piece about how the Vatican would investigate and approve all Marian sightings. Once the sightings were review and approved, then they could be advertised as true miracles and a shrine could be erected. That led me to understand that the church was protecting its intellectual property. It did not want "false miracles" to dilute the power of the Catholic Brand.

After giving this some thought, it occured to me that there are many branding lessons that can be derived from the Catholic Church. Protecting intellectual property is just the first.

Dedication

This website and any works that are derived from it are dedicated to Ms. Alisa, who provided the initial spark.