According to Reising, branding is a biblical concept. In the New Testament, Paul shows how he adapted his style to fit his audience: "I become all things to all people. When I'm with the Jews, I'll talk as a Jew. When I'm with the Gentiles, I'll talk as a Gentile" (1 Corinthians 9 v22). Jesus, Reising continues, also shaped his messages and selected relevant examples depending on his audience.

The main reasons why churches shy away from branding is that they don't understand it. "They think branding is an elevated marketing term and only applies to mega-churches or [overly] forward thinking ones," Reising says. "Churches are also concerned about becoming commercial. But really branding makes them become strategic."

Some Christians may balk at the idea of a strategy, believing it gets in the way of the will of God, but Simon Jenkins, editor of the Ship of Fools website in the UK, argues that God works through people—and their plans. "Not much happens if people sit around and do nothing. It's up to us. God depends on people to do things and apply their gifts."

The process of church branding is just like in any other business—lots of research both inside and outside the organization. The end result is effective communication that tries to create a relationship with "customers." Once the brand is established then everything from the pulpit preaching to those who handle audiovisuals should meet it. Every point of communication needs to be done in accordance with the prescribed brand.

But Jenkins is quick point out some of the problems with church branding too. "The trouble with branding is that it is tied to globalization and homogeneous solutions to what people want. Personally, I don't like that. It feels like KFC religion: 'This is our God, the Burger King.' At the same time, in our post Christian age, a large proportion of people recognize branding and understand that it tells them what they will get, so branding could help people to familiarize themselves with church.

"But if you are going to brand it should be at the local level. If you believe that the local church is the incarnation of the Christian message in a community, then it should be the local church's brand, not a denomination's that is pre-eminent."

Reising says that church branding not only helps outsiders understand what to expect when they step inside. "We've seen some tremendous results, like people inviting friends and neighbors to church for the first time in ten years. People are not ashamed of Christ, but they are ashamed of their church. The brand creates a persona that the internal community is proud of. They become more inspired and more effective at inviting others."

In the end, it is the church members that make the brand work. Do they live up to what their church promises? "The brand has got to deliver," warns Jenkins. "The brand is let down if the Sunday service is irrelevant, or you feel unwelcome. If you fail to deliver, then people get hurt and put off. The brand is more than a logo. It points to a service or product, and the people inside the church have to deliver it."

Edwin Colyer is a science and technology writer based in Manchester, UK.