A Christian-oriented newsletter editor tells readers he’s found a great investment-shares in a personal communications services venture that could make people millionaires-something that had happened to him in the early days of the cellular industry. Many readers take him at his word, and now they are wondering how to get their money-as much as $200,000 per person-back.
Another Christian-oriented financial newsletter touts its relationship with a long-distance provider that not only saves it money but rebates 5 percent for use by the ministry’s special-projects division. Forty-five percent of the readers who call in for more information switch their long-distance provider instantly, and others request a bid.
One of the hottest untapped U.S. demographic segments now being mined by savvy marketers, organizations and financial advisers are politically conservative Christians. This vocal group has grown in power since the Reagan administration, flexing its political muscle, and promoting its thoughts and goals to global businesses via one of the largest motivators on earth-its wallet.
Companies and individuals seeking to align themselves with conservative Christian groups and, in many cases, their considerable personal incomes, have tailored their marketing messages to mirror common beliefs held by their prospective customers. Some of them are open to talk about this strategy; others wish to keep that part of their business plan under wraps.
While many telecom companies and financial advisers consider this demographic as just another business-to-business service sale and everyone is treated the same, others have devised ways of luring large Christian-related associations and special-interest groups into the fold by using a combination of political hot buttons and potential fund-raising perks as bait.
Most companies that count conservative Christians as customers have a commitment to these clients and truly do stand behind corporate responsibility and ethics, bearing this out whenever they can by making themselves and their companies’ values open for discussion.
There are others, however, who, by cloaking themselves in religion, have been made millionaires via less-than-ethical methods and who have no problem coercing others into possible investment traps that they themselves elude. On faith, many have sunk life savings into ventures yielding little or no return; one only need hark back to Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker. This is the other side of the conservative Christian marketing trend-one that doesn’t come to light often, especially where telecom service is concerned.
