I was spending some time in the library as I do every now and then, and after checking out my normal sections, I wandered the aisles looking for something that might catch my eye.

You see, I believe you can judge a book by its cover. To a degree. While you may not be able to tell how good a book is just by looking at it, you can tell, just by the cover, if a book is marketed for you (or towards you). This is one of the ways I discover new-to-me authors.

Here’s some examples of some book images I grabbed off the internet. Do any of these catch your interest?

I would say the first row, does not look attractive to me, while the second row does. I might go so far as to say I am one of the target markets for the books in the second row, but I doubt if I am the target of the books in the first row.

If you believe that first impressions matter, than you also believe that you can judge a book by its cover (or at least you acknowledge  people do it, even if it isn’t ideal). Conscious marketing is a good thing. But unconscious marketing is all around us.

So here’s the potential  “Jesus juke” — we know it’s important to respect the first impression we are sending when people drive up to the church campus, but what about the first impression we are sending on our tech team?

Does it look like we are hurried and harried? Or focused, yet relaxed and competent?

As techs, are we worshipping or detached? Do we look like we’re bored and would rather be elsewhere? Are we engaging in the service at an appropriate level? A Pro Presenter operator with both hands raised and eyes closed is not at an appropriate engagement level. But neither is a lighting operator on their mobile device during the sermon.

Here’s the real question, would anyone want to join the tech team after watching you and what you do during the entire  service? What are you unconsciously marketing as the tech team?

What is your tech team’s book cover and will it attract the right people who just might be walking the aisles looking for something that grabs their attention?