saw this today over on kevin watson’s deeply committed blog. its a promo for reclaiming the wesleyan tradtion from out of discipleship resources (a division of the general board of discipleship). i recognize one of the voices as my friend bill lizor who is part of the division on ministries with young people.
i like the over feel of the video and i like how it plugs reclaiming wesleyan tradition. it mixes the success of the guiness commercial ads without the moving mouths and a succinct history & message. well done. my big issue (as i always seem to have an issue) is that the video has been on youtube since the summer and only has 67 views (at the time that i viewed it). we need some help getting our agencies ingrained in the social media spectrum.
in other oddities, i noticed, what seems to be the ‘pee standing up pastor‘ (viewed over 200k times) talking about john wesley (viewed 1500x more than the reclaiming wesley video has).
You know, I was digging where this was headed until I realized it was just a stupid ad. What would have been great is for GBOD to have produced a series of videos using this format actually sharing some Wesleyan theology and history. This could have made Wesley “cool,” but instead it’s all about selling books (as it always seems to be!).
You know, I was digging where this was headed until I realized it was just a stupid ad. What would have been great is for GBOD to have produced a series of videos using this format actually sharing some Wesleyan theology and history. This could have made Wesley “cool,” but instead it’s all about selling books (as it always seems to be!).
i knew it was going to pitch a book, cause that’s what kevin was talking about, but i agree. this kind of thing can be so cool as videos to spread around, post onto facebook, use for quick worship videos, etc.
alas, like communications telling me to take down the cotton claymation methodist history video (which was getting great play and i’m sure generating links back to the confirmation curriculum it came from) there is some fear, or they just don’t get it, to creative commons and giving to build loyalty in customer base. i mean amazon only has 74 purchases per second these days and they started that way for two years.
i knew it was going to pitch a book, cause that’s what kevin was talking about, but i agree. this kind of thing can be so cool as videos to spread around, post onto facebook, use for quick worship videos, etc.
alas, like communications telling me to take down the cotton claymation methodist history video (which was getting great play and i’m sure generating links back to the confirmation curriculum it came from) there is some fear, or they just don’t get it, to creative commons and giving to build loyalty in customer base. i mean amazon only has 74 purchases per second these days and they started that way for two years.
In a time when you can rarely find anything on Wesleyan theology outside of a Cokesbury bookstore, we need to be doing everything in our power and using every technology at our disposal to get our word out. However, it seems that we are bound by a mindset that believes we must protect our turf… and we are served(?) by a communications division that doesn’t have a clue.
Sure, marketing studies may show that the United Methodist “brand awareness” has increased through the Open Hearts, etc ads that say absolutely nothing about our theology (or more accurately give the wrong impression about what we believe), but I don’t want to be part of a “brand”, I want to be part of a movement.
In a time when you can rarely find anything on Wesleyan theology outside of a Cokesbury bookstore, we need to be doing everything in our power and using every technology at our disposal to get our word out. However, it seems that we are bound by a mindset that believes we must protect our turf… and we are served(?) by a communications division that doesn’t have a clue.
Sure, marketing studies may show that the United Methodist “brand awareness” has increased through the Open Hearts, etc ads that say absolutely nothing about our theology (or more accurately give the wrong impression about what we believe), but I don’t want to be part of a “brand”, I want to be part of a movement.
Gavin,
Kevin’s book is very good. Another DR resource that teaches Wesleyan theology and practice is a DVD called “Opening Ourselves to Grace: Basic Christian Practices.” You will find some clips here: http://www.youtube.com/groups_layout?name=opentograce&join
Gavin,
Kevin’s book is very good. Another DR resource that teaches Wesleyan theology and practice is a DVD called “Opening Ourselves to Grace: Basic Christian Practices.” You will find some clips here: http://www.youtube.com/groups_layout?name=opentograce&join
hey steve, i don’t doubt kevin’s book is good (my respect for you & your endorsement solidifies that more). he’s got a good blog going. i even like the video created.
my critique is more of how little audience the video is finding. that is all. i don’t know if anyone, with the influence to make changes/decisions, really gets social media in spreading the work of discipleship resources to more of the church community.
hey steve, i don’t doubt kevin’s book is good (my respect for you & your endorsement solidifies that more). he’s got a good blog going. i even like the video created.
my critique is more of how little audience the video is finding. that is all. i don’t know if anyone, with the influence to make changes/decisions, really gets social media in spreading the work of discipleship resources to more of the church community.
Is it just me, or did Steve miss the point of the post? It’s not about the book… or any other resources.
Is it just me, or did Steve miss the point of the post? It’s not about the book… or any other resources.
just to note. since kevin posted the video and i posted mine here. the views have gone up 30, from 67 to 97 (mind you, i’m one of those) but that is a 50% increase in just 3 hours. its not that hard.
just to note. since kevin posted the video and i posted mine here. the views have gone up 30, from 67 to 97 (mind you, i’m one of those) but that is a 50% increase in just 3 hours. its not that hard.
The short answer to the question posed in this post is: No, the powers that be at GBOD do not understand social networking and the opportunities it offers.
As an example it took me months of prodding and convincing to get the Opening Ourselves to Grace clips posted on Youtube.
DR is producing some excellent resources for the church, Kevin’s book and Opening Ourselves to Grace are two prime examples. The problem is too few people know what’s available to them.
When I return from study leave one of my projects will be to develop a blog focused on the a conversation about the General Rules and how congregations can live into the mission of “making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”
The short answer to the question posed in this post is: No, the powers that be at GBOD do not understand social networking and the opportunities it offers.
As an example it took me months of prodding and convincing to get the Opening Ourselves to Grace clips posted on Youtube.
DR is producing some excellent resources for the church, Kevin’s book and Opening Ourselves to Grace are two prime examples. The problem is too few people know what’s available to them.
When I return from study leave one of my projects will be to develop a blog focused on the a conversation about the General Rules and how congregations can live into the mission of “making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.”
I wondered where Clayride had gone. What is so crazy is that both UMCom and UMPH have made their money back on those projects . . . and then some. At what point do these resources revert to the domain of the church that paid for them in the first place?
I wondered where Clayride had gone. What is so crazy is that both UMCom and UMPH have made their money back on those projects . . . and then some. At what point do these resources revert to the domain of the church that paid for them in the first place?
Gavin, I think you are (unfortunately) dead on. The main reason I posted the video was because I had no idea it existed. I was surprised that Discipleship Resources would go to the trouble of making a promo video and not clue me or the other co-authors in on it.
To add to your comment about the number of views, there were 44 when I discovered it Saturday and today (Monday) there are 145 views.
Steve Rankin (http://SteveRanking.blogspot.com) recently posted about his initial surprise at finding a book by Discipleship Resources in a Barnes and Noble in Oklahoma City, and reflecting on how sad it is that his first reaction was surprise. Generally speaking, we should be doing much better getting our message out there… whether it is getting Wesleyan books in places like Barnes and Noble, or just getting Wesleyan theology a broader hearing in the Church. I appreciate folks like you who are taking the time to make an impact through blogging and other media.
By the way, I agree with Jay… I think it would be awesome to have a series of videos that weren’t about selling anything, just trying to creatively present Wesleyan theology and the history of Methodism.
Gavin, I think you are (unfortunately) dead on. The main reason I posted the video was because I had no idea it existed. I was surprised that Discipleship Resources would go to the trouble of making a promo video and not clue me or the other co-authors in on it.
To add to your comment about the number of views, there were 44 when I discovered it Saturday and today (Monday) there are 145 views.
Steve Rankin (http://SteveRanking.blogspot.com) recently posted about his initial surprise at finding a book by Discipleship Resources in a Barnes and Noble in Oklahoma City, and reflecting on how sad it is that his first reaction was surprise. Generally speaking, we should be doing much better getting our message out there… whether it is getting Wesleyan books in places like Barnes and Noble, or just getting Wesleyan theology a broader hearing in the Church. I appreciate folks like you who are taking the time to make an impact through blogging and other media.
By the way, I agree with Jay… I think it would be awesome to have a series of videos that weren’t about selling anything, just trying to creatively present Wesleyan theology and the history of Methodism.