Relevant Marketing

We had a band come and play at Identity Student Ministries the other day and as they were setting up their merchandise they observed our youth t-shirts a made a surprising comment. They said, "These are the first youth group tees that we've seen that we actually like." They went on to say, "I even want to by one. So many youth groups have such cheesie tees." Remember, these are their words and not mine but I think is something we (those in ministry) can all think about. I have made it a point to create t-shirts and graphics that our students will wear and use. Too often people choose a cheaper priced tee and graphic and the quality of the product suffers. We have to remember..if they don't thinks it's fashionable then they will probably not wear it. And if they won't wear it then your ministry won't get the exposure that you probably are hoping for. A lot of people have asked me how do I make the graphics and t-shirts for our youth ministry and it always amuses me. The reason is...I can't take complete credit for everything that I do. I use graphics from everywhere: iStock, Google Image, wallpaper sites, graphics exchange, iChurch Photo, Relevant Magazine, Deviant Art, and more. A key thing that I tell everyone is to keep a library of starter graphics that can act as a base or foundational background and then add to those to make them your own. Who has the time to start from scratch? Anyone in ministry knows that your time is spread thin in many different areas of ministry and so we have to use our time efficiently. That's why it is important to always keep your eyes open for great graphics and fonts EVERYWHERE you look. Just a few types of medium and media that I have pulled inspiration and graphics from: Magazines, other church websites, other secular websites, clothing, photography sites, and so on...You can pull inspiration from everywhere. Just start collecting stuff that grabs your eye. Here are just a few things that I have created for our youth ministry in the past.