Target Run and Done.

**I'm currently taking a History of the Christian Movement course that required me to spend some time immersed in my local culture and connect what I observed to how the gospel can best reach the kind of culture I observed.  Naturally, I chose Target.  I thought it would be fun to share what I wrote, since I had fun writing it :) Nothing profound here, just fun!

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As a busy mama, I decided to kill two birds with one stone with this assignment.  I went to Target.  I had to pick up a few things anyways, so I thought it was appropriate I also observed what was around me.  I started with the parking lot, and moved my way through the store slowly, making an effort to look around me at things I normally would not notice if I was only there to shop and if I had my children with me.  Just for reference, this Target is located in the center of my city.  Our demographic in Hampton, VA is mixed, but the majority of the population is African-American. 

Target is a one-stop-shop for everything someone might need.  What I have noticed more recently is the “drive-up” curbside pickup services offered now.  I can order my items on the Target app on my phone, tell the app when I’m on my way, park in a designated parking spot, and someone magically comes out of the store to deliver my goods.  The transition our culture has made in the name of convenience is quite remarkable.  If driving to the store and sitting in your car is not convenient enough, Target will also deliver your groceries right to your door within hours.  How lazy can we be?

Once inside the store, the marketing strategies attract a culture that never pays full price.  Offers for new discounts with their app (again with the app!), dollar bins right at the entrance, and a plethora of BOGO signs around the store suggest America is always looking for a deal.  From my perspective as a mother, this store offers convenience with their shopping carts designed for toddlers, Starbucks, and wide-open clean aisles to maneuver through.  They have everything I need, from eggs to printer paper to a new sweater (yes, I bought them all on this particular trip).  Our culture as reflected Target is that we like convenience, we like cheap goods, and we like our shopping experiences to be just that: an experience.  The employees were even wearing shirts asking if I’d like a “more rewarding Target run?”  The millennial culture especially values experiences over goods, so it is important for stores to appeal to this generation.  Personally, I visit Target to get out of the house.  But it means I can get a coffee, grab a $1 bag of popcorn to satisfy my children, and probably find everything I need all at once. 

The gospel can speak to this kind of culture by being quick and accessible.  This culture needs an easy-to-understand message that serves them first.  This is how they will be hooked.  Do not ask for money for the church (they’ll ask if they can get 5% back on their tithe).  Do not ask them to compromise their “truth” (for the record, Target also endorses gender-neutral restrooms in some states).  Just lure them in with a message that they are loved, and do not owe you anything.  The gospel will be attractive to this kind of culture when it is presented as an experience, but only one they can journal about in their cute new notebook from aisle 16.