Collection › LCMS Convention Workbook (St. Louis, Missouri) › 2019 · 67th Convention, Tampa › Page 68

LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2019, Page 68

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
••

••

Created the look and feel for the 2019 Convention
theme, “Joy:fully Lutheran.” Rather than creating
graphics just for the convention, we wanted Synod
employees, congregation members, and visitors to see
and be familiar with a variety of visuals reflecting the
triennium theme before the convention.
Created a unique vision for LCMS Life Ministry
and the March for Life events. Through our “Eyes
of Life” branding, we lead with a winsome and
intriguing campaign. Now in its third year and everevolving, “Eyes of Life” continues to be a positive
declaration of the sanctity of life.
Created the look and branding of the Lutheran
Young Adult Corps. By creating graphics and branding for this group, we are contributing to reaching
a demographic that the church desperately wants
to retain—young adults who all too often leave the
church as they are less influenced by their families
and churches and more influenced by secular culture.
Created the “Free to Be Faithful” branding, enabling
us to show how Lutherans need to be aware of the
many ways our freedoms are being challenged by a
secular culture bent on an aggressive agenda. Our
newsletter and other communications contributed
to the Lutheran Center for Religious Liberty being
created and gave us a way to keep our members informed and interested in freedom-of-religion issues.
Created “You Get to Tell Them,” the branding statement for missionary recruitment, which has enabled
us to quickly and memorably reach those who may be
considering becoming missionaries. Colorful displays
and ads with a simple, heartfelt statement bring the
viewer to the reason he or she might consider a missionary path.
Created infographics as a way for the Synod to break
down complicated or misunderstood issues: “Steps
to the Mission Field,” “How Disaster Dollars Are
Used,” “Steps to Specialized Pastoral Recruitment,”
and the restructuring of the Synod’s relationship with
Recognized Service Organizations.

Our graphics people design the publications that are the
official voices of the LCMS. Design doesn’t stand still. The
monthly Lutheran Witness and Reporter, and the quarterly
Lutherans Engage the World, are opportunities to create and
strengthen bonds with our target audiences to deepen their resolve and heighten their experience.
We’ve also branched into work with the CTCR’s publications. Finally, we work with Web and Social Media to bring
powerful visuals and design to strengthen our voice and image
to our audiences.

Public Relations/Media Management/Marketing
Promote the Synod’s work and stances on societal issues
by fostering positive public and media relations through the following means:
••

Press management.

2019 Convention Workbook

••

Media training and coaching for ministry leaders.

••

Press releases.

••

Marketing of key initiatives and ministry efforts to
the public.

••

Exhibit creation and presentation (in collaboration
with our Production Unit) at Synod and district
events.

Social Media
By far and away, social media continues to be the most immediate and far-reaching tool to disseminate news and information and discover audience opinions and trends. It’s also very
economical. LCMS COMMS constantly monitors our presence
on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, even as we research and
consider new platforms where we might reach more people with
the church’s messages.
Facebook—facebook.com/thelcms
••

We have a global audience of 147,000-plus followers.
In terms of “page likes,” the Synod has the largest
Lutheran denominational presence on Facebook.

••

More than 25,000 of those followers come from
countries outside the United States, with the Philippines, Brazil, India, and Indonesia rounding out the
top five, as well as significant followings in non-Christian countries like Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam,
and Malaysia.

••

Our most popular post reached more than 2 million
viewers and was shared 20,000 times.

••

Our most requested and helpful content is the prayers
of the church and weekend church-service posts
we create each week. Dozens of congregations and
individuals share these posts to encourage fellow
members in the faith.
Twitter—twitter.com/thelcms

••

Twitter as a platform has stagnated and struggled to
grow. Nonetheless, we maintain a robust presence
there and continue to be one of the largest Lutheran
denominational accounts.
Instagram—instagram.com/thelcms

••

As a storytelling platform for sharing the work we are
doing around the world, Instagram is unparalleled.
Since the last convention, our account following has
grown by 400 percent, and while a following of 8,800
does not seem like a lot compared with our Facebook
numbers, the quality of engagement is much higher.

Other Services Provided
Photojournalism—photo.lcms.org/#!/index
Since adding an award-winning professional photojournalist to our staff in late 2013, we have visually shaped the national
and international Witness, Mercy, and Life Together mission
work of the LCMS through documentary photographic storytelling in some 28 countries and commonwealths and 36 states.