Why Brand Clarity is Stewardship

It’s tempting to jump straight into designing a logo, refreshing the church website, or launching a new social media campaign. Those things matter, but if the message behind them isn’t clear, all the creativity in the world won’t connect with people. That’s why one of the key principles from StoryBrand is so important: “If you confuse, you lose.” Before you design, you need clarity. For a church, clarity doesn’t come from brainstorming catchy taglines or trendy mission statements. It comes from remembering the story we’re a part of: God’s story of redemption. From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture tells a unified story of a God who rescues, restores, and redeems. Your church is not creating its own isolated narrative. Instead, your identity, mission, and message flow from being a small but meaningful part of God’s larger story. That’s what gives your message both clarity and power. People don’t just need another community group or service organization. They need to know that your church exists because God is writing a story of redemption, and you’re inviting them into it.

There’s a dirty word in the church communications world: “Marketing”. We’ve all seen the clips of megachurch pastors dressing up like Disney characters or posting the latest memes on their Facebook page. Some people call it “outreach” or “creative evangelism,” but we all know what’s really going on. How do you cut through the noise, rather than blending in to the sea of generic marketing people are flooded with today? While you may not be recording TikTok dances for Jesus, you’ve probably been tempted to copy the latest church marketing fad at one point or another. After all, isn’t anything worth getting visitors in the doors to hear the gospel? This is how many churches get caught up copying one another’s marketing and advertising, hoping that people in their community will see it and be compelled to visit. My issue with these approaches is simple: What resonates with one church’s community probably won’t resonate with your own. A travel agency based in Hawaii would be foolish to copy the marketing of a travel agency in Minnesota. If your communications and brand strategy aren’t based on your local community where God has uniquely placed your congregation, you’ll be stuck in the cycle of trend-chasing and throwing outreach spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks. The alternative? Focus on the real stories of people in your community who have experienced hope and belonging in your midst. These stories are local. These stories are genuine. These stories are powerful because we serve a God who is powerful. With this approach, your community won’t be able to ignore or forget the powerful transformation God has worked in local people, to the praise of his glory. That’s why I emphasize community at the 3rd C of a kingdom-first brand.

Why are people at your church in the first place? If you’re going to motivate, galvanize, and unify your congregation, you need to know the answer to that question. On the surface it may not seem that hard to answer: “They’re here for the preaching.” “They're here because their family is.” “It’s close to their house.” Every individual and family has their own story that can seem different and unrelated, so what benefit could you gain from looking to your congregation for branding inspiration? Here’s the key that most pastors miss: Your congregation itself is a story. If you want your brand to be ownable for your people, it needs to connect with their story as a collective. Your congregation as a whole has its unique history, hopes, and hurts — identify with them! This is how I make sure each and every church rebrand resonates with the youngest new family and the most longstanding member.

Your logo isn’t a brand, nor is the name of your church a brand. Your color palette, word mark, fonts, and church website aren’t your brand either. These things only serve to ASSOCIATE your church with the big idea that is your message. Make this association enough times with enough people, and NOW you have a brand. Think about it like this: Branding is the vehicle for your message. It’s the wrapper! The packaging won’t change the chemical make up of the burger, but it can still make the burger taste better, and turn a meal into an experience worth sharing. So, to answer the question how much branding does a church need, the answer is none. None? Right. If you don’t have that big idea clarified and nailed down, you can design the most beautiful identity system and logo in the world and not have a brand.

It’s tempting to jump straight into designing a logo, refreshing the church website, or launching a new social media campaign. Those things matter, but if the message behind them isn’t clear, all the creativity in the world won’t connect with people. That’s why one of the key principles from StoryBrand is so important: “If you confuse, you lose.” Before you design, you need clarity. For a church, clarity doesn’t come from brainstorming catchy taglines or trendy mission statements. It comes from remembering the story we’re a part of: God’s story of redemption. From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture tells a unified story of a God who rescues, restores, and redeems. Your church is not creating its own isolated narrative. Instead, your identity, mission, and message flow from being a small but meaningful part of God’s larger story. That’s what gives your message both clarity and power. People don’t just need another community group or service organization. They need to know that your church exists because God is writing a story of redemption, and you’re inviting them into it.

Strip everything away, give your church a generic name, and make the logo a cross. Go black and white with your color scheme. Congrats - you have a timeless brand! I’m being a little bit sarcastic, but there’s an element of truth here. Over-simplification is usually the fastest, easiest way to a truly “timeless” look. However, it’s not the only way. And for churches, it’s almost never the best way. The history of the world is timeless by definition, but definitely not simple. God’s creative and recreative work is anything but minimalistic. The way God works is simple but deep, focused but rich with meaning. So too is the story being woven together in your ministry, whether it’s 200 years old or a brand new church plant. What is God’s perspective of your church? If you want a timeless brand identity, this is the question you have to answer. Once you start narrowing it down, your logo colors and fonts become clear and easy choices. Rather than trying to become timeless by using Helvetica and no colors in your brand guidelines, you should be looking for ways to incorporate the truth of who God says you are as a congregation. Does it take more work and intentionality? Absolutely. Is it hard? Anything worth doing is.

If a church is rebranding, it usually means they’re wanting to start something new. Sometimes that looks like focusing on a younger audience or rewriting the distinctives and core values. But many times, the goal is to create separation from a previous scandal, former leadership, or mission drift. If your goal in a church rebrand is to put the past behind you, you might not consider taking logo inspiration from your history… but maybe you should! In fact, it can be totally appropriate to draw on your history for branding ideas. Here are a few reasons to consider: Your past challenges were leadership-specific Your congregation and community still resonate with the legacy of your church Your church is especially old and its history is genuinely redemptive So what does taking logo inspiration from your church history actually look like? If your church has an archive of historical artifacts and documents, dig around and see if there’s anything interesting. You'd be surprised at how many times a simple artifact or document has been the inspiration for a killer logo design. Keep your eyes peeled for things like: Stamps and seals Building illustrations or paintings License plates Hand-made items Articles of formation Items that were important to the founding members/pastor I’ve personally seen all of these in a church archive at one point or another. And at the end of the day, you’ve gathered a greater appreciation for the legacy of your congregation, even if you don’t find something to integrate into your brand. P.S. If a rebrand is intended to create separation from the your past (especially a painful one) then drawing visual inspiration from that same past can send mixed signals. Even if the intentions are good (e.g., honoring long-time members or heritage), using symbols, colors, or design language tied to a difficult era can unintentionally reinforce what you’re trying to move past.