Can you help with some market research? -If a company advertises their faith on their website...

[greyl]

Poll question: Can you help with some market research? -If a company advertises their faith on their website...

does it give you a good impression, or not?

An example of the particular wording might be "Our faith has given us this opportunity help and assist with your individual needs whether it is being a first time buyer or if you are..."



Thanks.

[Random_Australian]

1. Turned off a bit. I don't like people saying I should make assumptions

about people based on their membership to a group, which is what these very often say.

It's not going to matter, *at all* if they have lots of other stuff.

In other words, if they have all this stuff and information about themselves, and are clear about it, and have that line somewhere, I won't care in the least.

If they are not advertising prices, or they make a big deal about "trust me, I'm from group 'X'" feel to it is not going to earn my respect.

Finally, the main reason this applies even outside the stuff I was talking about above is that I prefer to work out how people feel from their actions, NOT from what their business logo. Fancy words mean little to me.

If they were asked about their motivations, and said it's part of their belief system, then of course that would be 100% a-ok to say.

[qnr]

2. It's a big no-no for me, but I know that some people like it. n/t

[chknltl]

3. Of course it depends on who their potential market may be.

If for example they are advertising the DVD "Bible For Preschoolers" for this may be a good thing. I would not, on the other hand, recommend this in an ad for marketing the "Morning After Pill"

I voted for mildly amused

[Oeditpus Rex]

4. Bad impression

I don't care about a merchandiser's faith. I care about the quality of its products and services.

Such a statement would give me the impression I may get less than your best service because I don't share your faith.

The same goes for politics. Keep 'em where they belong — out of my face.

[Connonym]

13. That's how I feel too

I've actually sent email to a company thanking them for plastering their website with their religious convictions because now I know that I don't want to patronize them. A couple small local companies in my city put up republican political signs and I'll never shop there as a result.

It may be true that Xtians are the majority in the US but there is a really gross assumption that everyone should share their beliefs and if we don't there's something wrong with us. I resent that. I wonder how these people would feel about companies that promote Islam. I bet they wouldn't like it at all.

[onager]

5. Bad impression

In the U.S. it's invariably the Fundie Xians who do this. Any business that feels the need to trumpet its Divine Goodness immediately sets off my BS Detector.

And based on testimonials I've heard/read, my BS Detector is pretty reliable in this area. Companies who advertise with Buybull verses or that cutesy little fishie symbol are just as likely to rip off customers as anyone else. Maybe even more likely.

Ambrose Bierce got it right over 100 years ago: The first Christian businessmen were the contractors who dug the post-holes on Mount Calvary.

Sort of on-topic: I recently got around to reading Thomas Frank's great book What's The Matter With Kansas. He mentioned that his father was always a sucker for any handyman, itinerant contractor, etc. who came knocking on the door claiming to be a good Xian who needed work. And invariably, the work was either shoddy or not finished at all, while the Xian worker wasted a lot of time yammering about Jesus or just plain goofing off.

My mother lives in the rural South and has the same soft spot for a religious sales pitch. Last year she hired an unemployed preacher to replace the air vents underneath her house. He took forever to finish the job, bumped up the price because it "took longer than I thought!" (DUH!). And my Mom got stuck babysitting his vast brood of rug-rats when he brought them over with no warning on several work days.

And after all that, the asshat put the vents in BACKWARDS. One of my Mom's friends had to do the whole job all over again once the Christer moved on to other suckers.

This friend-of-Mom's, BTW, looks and sounds like a stereotypical Southern cracker--pretty much like me. :-) Except he will not go to church. Any church. Ask him why--and my Mom has--and he just says: "I'm not religious." And like my Mom, he's in his 70's and pretty set in his ways. Interesting guy.

Full Disclosure: I'm not only not religious, but an atheist. And according to some of the morons in R&T, a Fundamentalist Atheist.

[Guava Jelly]

6. Since I don't believe in "faith" I sure can't believe in them

just imho

[XemaSab]

7. Shyster alert

n/t

[AllegroRondo]

8. I dont like it.

If you have to advertise your religion to try to get my business, you must not be very good at what you do.

[LaraMN]

9. Bad impression. Immediate turn-off for me. n/t

[MissMillie]

10. glad to respond, but

you know this poll isn't scientific, right?

[greyl]

18. Thanks, absolutely.

I'll interpret the limited results as scientifically as possible, though. ;)

[youthere]

11. I have reached such a level...

of distrust and dislike for fundamental christianists that if I see any of the christianist "tells" (the Jesus fish, the small unassuming cross in the yellow page ad, the "Closed on the Lord's Day" etc) I immediately discount them as a business possibility as I assume they are out to screw me over. That being said, I don't refuse to do business with people who are Christians, just with those who make a point of saying they are Christian.

[Left Is Write]

20. Exactly. It reminds me of someone praying loudly in public, so everyone will know

what a good person they are.

[quiet.american]

12. Perversely, it gives me the impression that they will scam me. n/t

[NoPasaran]

14. It gives me a bad impression

I'd rather deal with someone who is guided by sound business sense than faith.

I just don't recall the Bible having much to say about customer service.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

15. unless i am buying a bible/gita/koran, why would i need to know about the faith of the company?

[Tyo]

16. I think it's useful

Whenever I see a company displaying the little fish in an ad I know I can cross them off my list.

[greyl]

17. I think a trend has emerged... Thanks a lot for the votes and comments so far, people! :)nt

[Left Is Write]

19. It bugs the hell out of me.