The latest issue of Fast Company magazine just arrived and it features a multi-page article on Rainbow Marketing that profiles at least five major companies including Pepsi, Macy’s, Viacom and others and their efforts to attract the $700 billion dollar gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgendered communities.
This article is sure to infuriate a number of Christians who, I’m equally certain, will be mad at all the wrong parties. Most will blame Pepsi and Macy’s for reaching out to gays and probably threaten to boycott. But, why would we expect Pepsi to do anything else? Its motives are business related. It’s just trying to sell more cola and happened to learn that gays, who spend $700 billion dollars annually, also get thirsty. Pepsi cares about sales first and only begins caring about a group’s faith or sexual orientation once it understands that by caring it can increase its business at which point it cares. A lot!
Instead of faulting companies for trying to sell more of their stuff to customer groups whose behavior Christians don’t approve, Christians should be mad at themselves for failing to make inroads with those same organizations in the name of Jesus. Maybe the problem isn’t that Pepsi has a gay agenda. Maybe the problem is that Christians lack a business agenda. If those corporations knew that Christians spent $5.1 trillion annually and also got thirsty, then it might be Christians and not gays that they were trying to please. It might be the believer’s lifestyle featured on the cover of Fast Company.
But where are the believers? Oh, they are probably picketing in front of the building incurring a company’s wrath, while gays and lesbians are meeting in the boardroom trading brand loyalty for preferential treatment. That could be Christians. That SHOULD BE CHRISTIANS!
Faith-Based Marketing is more than a way for companies to reach Christians product news, it may also be the most effective way for Christians to reach reach the world with the Good News.
-Greg Stielstra
