How NOT to Witness Through Your Business
Posted by Russ Ray on June 9, 2008
In previous posts, I’ve discussed how Chick-Fil-A and other businesses use their Christian faith to draw in customers. After all, a good testimony as a trusted servant is a good reputation to have in business.
However, here are four different accounts about how a car dealership in California advertised on the radio to non-Christians: they told non-Christians to “sit down and shut up.”
California Ford Dealership Radio Ad Tells Non-Christians to “Sit Down And Shut Up”
The ad reads: Did you know that 86% of Americans say they believe in God? Now, since we all know that 86 out of every 100 of us are Christians who believe in God, we at Kieffe & Sons Ford wonder why we don’t just tell the other 14% to sit down and shut up. I guess maybe I just offended 14% of the people who are listening to this message. Well, if that is the case, then I say that’s tough, this is America folks, it’s called free speech. And none of us at Kieffe & Sons Ford are afraid to speak up. Kieffe & Sons Ford on Sierra Highway in Mojave and Rosamond: if we don’t see you today, by the grace of God, we’ll be here tomorrow.
Car Dealer Regrets Ads Urging Non-Christians to “Sit Down and Shut Up”
Rick Kieffe, owner of Kieffe and Sons Ford in Mojave and Rosamond, insisted Wednesday that he does not remember approving the ad, which he said was written by his longtime advertising writer and producer in Oklahoma. “It’s just something that went by us,” said Kieffe, who does not attend church but considers himself “a Christian spirit.”
Kieffe said he has received “an incredible amount” of calls from people as far away as Australia and England, most but not all of them from “very articulate, nice people.”
“Some of them just call and just use four-letter words real fast and then just hang up,” he said.
All the Details of “Sit Down and Shut Up”
I wanted to get the attention of the 86 percent of Americans who say they believe in God. That includes Jewish Americans, Muslim Americans and Christians. I wanted to gauge their response. The ones who chose to be a part of the 14 percent spoke first. Calls were loud, vulgar and profane. After a few days, the believers started to contact the client. The positive calls and emails were far greater in number than the loud obnoxious ones. The majority woke up and responded. Included among them were the TV stations, the radio stations, other automobile dealers and people from all walks of life. I wrote the ad and produced it to get the attention of the believers. It is as simple as that. It worked and the atheists helped. Thanks.
Ford Says ‘Shut Up’ Ad Was a Mistake, But Dealer Stands Behind It
Rick Kieffe, president of Kieffe & Sons Ford, said he didn’t regret the ad but was sorry if it had offended anyone. “I don’t regret the sentiment at all,” said Kieffe, who bought the 48-year-old dealership from his father in 1974. “It’s what we believe.”
The dealer’s Web site Thursday bore a statement about the ad that included an apology “to all who were offended.” Kieffe said he’d been contacted by Ford Motor Co. after the manufacturer heard complaints from numerous “blog-lo-dites.” The company asked him to post something saying he was sorry if he’d offended anyone, Kieffe said.
I think the lessons to learn from this (well, besides giving a sincere apology, letting your “yes” be “yes” and your “no” be “no”, such as in James 5:12, or speaking the truth in love, such as in Ephesians 4:15) is that you should know your marketplace. The dealership might have thought their marketplace was the local community (which might have tolerated the commercial), but once the word about this spread on the internet, their marketplace got considerably larger and considerably less tolerant of their views. You have to respect the power of the internet these days and remember that anything you think you’re posting privately can be hacked or publicized and get out of your control.
