It’s incredible how God is using churches to expand the reach of the gospel through online services. The amount of people logging in to worship from home has been a much-welcomed blessing during this time of crisis.
With this extended reach, we are also seeing a larger population of new online givers. Retaining and engaging these givers is essential to increasing giving.
Follow these steps to retain these givers and ultimately engage them further:
1. Check out your ‘New Givers’ report from MortarStone.
(If you are not using MortarStone compile a list of givers from your online giving platform, identify your new givers from the last two weekends.)
2. Send each of these new givers an email or handwritten note.
(Remember to get all pastors onboard writing or sending thank you notes!)
If you are sending an email, be sure to include the following information:
A) Thank the giver for their generous gift.
B) Be transparent with how their gift is supporting ministry. (Choose one area that is being impacted by giving.)
C) Encourage the giver to continue attending services online and join you in-person once your building opens again.
D) Link to a short thank you video from your Pastor. (Make sure the video is 30 seconds or less)
E) Invite them to a virtual ‘Welcome Reception’ hosted in your Pastor’s home.
F) Encourage these givers to become recurring givers and provide the link to your online giving page.
3. Start planning your first virtual ‘Welcome Reception’ from your Senior Pastor’s house.
This is a great way to engage first-time givers and invite them to join the mission of your church.
4. Check back in 30 days from their first gift to see if these new givers became second-time givers.
(You can build a trigger in MortarStone to remind you to follow up with these givers. If a second gift was never received, send an additional email or call them to offer prayer or discipleship.)
When giving trends change, the church needs to understand and be able to adapt to these changes. This is why more than ever, it’s important to understand the giving analytics of your church. Who are your givers, why are they giving, how much are they giving, and when are they giving? If we identify these trends, we can apply a strategy that will help us thrive in times of financial uncertainty.
MortarStone is the solution to knowing your giving and givers, and we’re here to help! Schedule a FREE 30-minute giving consultation today! We’ll help you develop a plan to increase your giving now and build sustainable long-term funding for the future.