On Advertising and Promotion
John Michael Talbot

I have not changed my position on advertising and promotion much since I first rethought this in 1977, and wrote it in my Journals, Changes.It is fine to simply speak the truth about a new product, or concert, or event. It is wrong to hype these things to the point that they are not truthful, and appropriately humble and modest.

For instance, it is OK to simply say who you are, and what is available, but to call yourself the greatest artist or minister, or to blatantly misrepresent yourself or your ministry is not good. The scriptures present these principles when speaking about silence and speech. Silence is the mark of wisdom, but so is a word aptly spoken, We have attempted to stay close to this through the years, and have found that a simple statement of the truth is usually enough to sell a product. The advertisement, and especially the product or event, need to be of good quality.

The artist and the product need to have integrity. Authentically speak what is, first, in the soul of the musical artist, and then in the product or event. To do otherwise is to proliferate the fallen world's principle of not really, "seeing what you get," which builds up the worlds insecurities and fears, and the attempt to overcome them through inflated ego.

Jesus comes to set all of these things right. This affects style. To use overly trendy styles of music or graphic artwork places this integrity in jeopardy. To use styles that are overly dark or perverse in origin might gain popular listeners, but it compromises the integrity of the very spirituality we are trying to bring them to. It is ultimately self-defeating, though we often do not see it at the time.

Of course, we recognize that different types of ministry use different styles. For example, evangelism will use a more secular, or worldly musical style that is popular at a given time and place to reach those of the time and place of the secular world. Worship and praise, on the other hand, in manifesting the more catholic, or universal, spirituality of God and his People, will use a more diverse range of styles to simply express the richness of the Spirit with pure integrity of purpose as art. It is not utilitarian in this regard.

Liturgical music is, however, utilitarian in remaining singable by the masses.

Only devotional and meditational music is free of both of these limitations on a purely artistic and spiritual level. This is also reflected in our use of graphic art for covers and adds. So many covers represent graphic ideologies that are twisted and perverse, or simply dark, in origin, and the musical artist does not even know what is really going on.

We should make an effort for our graphics to remain expressive of pure spirituality while still remaining relevant to our culture. The above principles do not negate the genuine need for advertisement. If people do not know about our music, how can they know to buy it for their own listening use? It is not uncommon to spend at least as much on advertisement as one does on a product, and even then it seems that few know about the release of my collections when they are actually released!

Ultimately, word of mouth remains the best advertisement, and that ONLY comes when the product is genuine and GOOD. Bottom line, put out great music, and advertise it greatly without jeopardizing its integrity. Keep the faith. Hold on to integrity. And God will get your product to exactly whom he intends for it to be heard by, and to minister to.

John Michael Talbot