“Authenticity is the thing consumers respond to the most,” says Diego Scotti, Vice President of Global Advertising for American Express.

Jim Gilmore writes:

In the Agrarian Economy, the dominant purchase criteria was Availability (price being set by supply-and-demand, and only influencing the quantity of materials purchased in the marketplace). In the Industrial Economy, Cost became the dominant driver of purchases as Mass Production made more and more goods affordable to the masses. In the Service Economy, Quality come to dominate, with the performance of offerings became most important as consumers increasingly rely upon others to perform certain activities on their behalf. And now, in the Experience Economy, in an increasingly unreal world of staged places and mediated events, consumers want Authenticity.

Those businesses trying to compete in the experience economy  with an industrial or service economy mindset will die a painful death. Perhaps this is one of the reasons for Starbucks demise. Apart from terrible coffee they attempted to provide an experience but in a mass produced environment. It seems to me that Franchisee’s and authenticity cannot coexist. Perhaps this is a reason for the attraction to the local growers markets which are springing up all over Sydney which create an impression of being a more authentic grocery experience to Woolworths or Coles. (This is not to say that all franchisees are in decline. Last week I took my car to get new tyres from Bob Jane T-Mart. But this was because they are operating within the industrial economy where cost is the dominant driver of purchases, not the experience.)

Applied to church planting, particularly within an existing denominational structure, the team must be wary of becoming a franchisee of an organization, whether that be Anglican, Presbyterian, Acts 29, en:trust, Geneva Push etc. Whilst they will seek to learn from and be supported by their organization, embracing an organizational mindset will be disastrous.  The church planting team should be thankful for their elders in the faith, but authentic to scripture, authentic to their calling and authentic to their missiological understanding of culture. The team even within a denominational setting, should see themselves as somewhat independent from the organisation. They should not be paralysed by the sluggishness with which the denomination moves towards mission. They should not expect financial investment from the organisation. They should get on with the mission, prayerful that the denomination would change, and being the kind of change that is required. Should the denomination have no cash for mission—the team will raise their own. Should the denomination have no demographical information on mission—the team will research their own. Should the denomination have no people for mission—the team will develop their own. One of the dangers of being a denominational church plant is waiting to receive strategic direction and support from the organization. Church plants will rejoice should they receive some, but get on with mission should none be provided. In doing so they will be authentic to their calling.

God help us!