Why You Should Do an Easter Offering

Archive - February, 2012

February 29, 2012 in Taking Special Offerings & Church Tithing, Talking About Money With Your Church with 0 Comments

I did a quick Google search for churches and special offerings and found a lot of special offerings out there. I’ve heard of churches doing seven or eight different offerings a year, in addition to their weekly offering. Here are a few of the special offerings you could do:

Summer camp for students
Local food shelter
Christmas Offering
Easter Offering
Lottie Moon
Annie Armstrong
Offering for the Gideons
Disaster relief
Crisis pregnancy
School supplies
Winter coats
Canned food

If you have a special offering all the time, by definition, they will cease to be special.

When you emphasize a new giving opportunity all the time, you’re taking the focus off the bread and butter.

We believe that special offerings (like an Easter Offering) are great opportunities to fund special projects and engage new givers. People new to the church might be more attracted to a cause.

But too many special offerings can be dangerous.

Six days from now, I’m offering a free online event on how to do a special Easter Offering.

You’re going to get a six-step process, in less than 45 minutes, that you can implement this Easter.

Reserve your spot today. The increase you will have from your Easter offering will make a difference as summer approaches. Register now.

Jeff Foxworthy Wants You To Preach Better Sermons

February 28, 2012 in Uncategorized with 0 Comments

Have you heard about Preach Better Sermons, a FREE online event with Andy Stanley, Dr. Charles Stanley, Louie Giglio, Perry Noble, Jud Wilhite, Vanable Moody and Jeff Foxworthy. It’s happening on March 15 from 1-4 EST. All of these communicators will be sharing practical information on preparation and delivery, all to help you become a better communicator.

Check out this short video with Jeff Henderson and Jeff Foxworthy, and be sure to register for the event.

Jeff Foxworthy Wants You to Preach Better Sermons from Preaching Rocket on Vimeo.

The Missing Ingredient in Most Church Financial Language

February 28, 2012 in Follow Up, Talking About Money With Your Church with 0 Comments

If you use numbers to talk about the numbers, you’re leaving behind a ton of people. Most people in your church could care less about spreadsheets and charts and never open Excel.

Yes, information is important. But mind-numbing facts and stats are only going to communicate to the accountants and engineers. If you want to communicate to everyone, you’ve got to tell stories.

• Tell stories of how your church helped provide groceries for a local family in need.
• Talk about how your church has given money to a mission organization to feed the hungry and impoverished children in another country.
• Talk about how your resources have been used to walk hurting and broken families through healing and restoration.

Make sure you tell stories that inspire, encourage and inform people about the things happening in your church. Information is great, but if you combine it with a story, you’ll hit a homerun.

The key is to make sure you communicate that those who are giving to the ministry of the church are directly part of these stories. It gives people a place and point of significance. When people feel significant, they continue to invest!

Who Should Follow Up With Givers

February 27, 2012 in Follow Up with 0 Comments

When it comes to following up with givers, here’s one of the most frequent questions we get: Who should be the primary person to follow up with givers in my church?

I believe that it primarily should be the pastor, as a means of leading the way. After all, you are the person who needs to know the heart condition of your church. A lot of churches are struggling because the pastor doesn’t assume financial responsibility, confining himself to his office or study. The reality is the pastor is the pace setter.

Just because you’re the primary point person doesn’t mean you need to do all of the work. Utilize your staff and team of volunteers to get this done.
When it comes to follow up emails, you can write a note, but have someone else compile stories, create and send the final email. As for things such as quarterly newsletters, you create an outline, write a personal thank you and let your most creative person produce it.
If you’re creating videos, get your church’s techno genius to help you produce, upload and send them to the church. Let a creative guy have fun.

If you’re in a multisite church, you can utilize your campus pastors to handle these things as well. However, when it comes to the High Capacity giver, no one can follow up with them and have the impact that you will.

No matter what, take the time to invest and love the people in your church who are generous. Let Giving Rocket help you develop a plan and strategy for following up with givers in your church. If you join this month, you’ll get access to a ton of follow up coaching, samples and templates.

Lost People Will Give to an Easter Offering

February 22, 2012 in Taking Special Offerings & Church Tithing with 0 Comments

There are many ways to gain first time givers, but one of the best ways is to do a special offering (like an Easter Offering). Also, the Easter Offering is one of the quickest ways to build financial breathing room in your church!

Sometimes pastors freak out when we talk about doing a special offering on Easter. Pastors have an unfounded fear that every lost or unchurched person will leave their church and never come back.

We tested the special Easter Offering idea in many churches for the last 3 years and found that it was one of the best ways to actually reach new givers. Further, we found that the pastors who had the fear of not doing an Easter Offering TOTALLY changed their tune after seeing how effective it can be to move the church finances forward and reach new givers.

Contrary to popular belief, the lost & unchurched didn’t run away and never come back.

The key is to do the Easter Offering right & change the way the unchurched think about how the church talks about money.

Here are 3 tips many of our member churches have used to help find success:

1. Tie the Easter Offering to Community Service Project Funding

The lost & unchurched LOVE to chip in for something that will make a difference in the community. We also have seen that tangible needs motivate non-givers & non-church attenders to start giving.

2. Speak to the Non-Giver Directly

In fact, you might say something like, “If you don’t give regularly at this church, then you can still get involved with the Easter offering and help make a difference in our community.”

3. Follow Up Quickly

You have the BEST chance to change the way people think about church in how you handle money. Follow up quickly & make it personal!

Think about this: Most churches on Easter are trying to get people to make a spiritual decision. I believe that when people GIVE, it IS a spiritual decision, not a financial one. Follow up accordingly.

Be sure to join me for the Easter Offering: The Easiest Offering of the Year event in a couple weeks. I’m going to go through the strategy of doing the offering the right way – to not offend people and help them actually grow in their generosity.

Announcing a Partnership with Portable Church

February 21, 2012 in Uncategorized with 0 Comments

Giving Rocket is pleased to announce a partnership with Portable Church Industries®, a company that helps new church plants, existing churches relocating to new facilities, and churches launching additional campuses by providing turn-key solutions for mobility.

We love the local church, and have a desire to serve brand new churches. Church Planters who are working with Portable Church® will be able to receive personalized consultative services from Giving Rocket at reduced rates.

Today, vision and funding are tied together in both ideology and practice. If a church vision isn’t funded, it might not get off the ground. We’re confident that we can help churches raise the money they need to purchase the equipment they need, and we’re excited about the opportunity to work with Portable Church®.

“We are committed to developing partnerships that help churches get the most out of their experience with us,” said Kevin Jones, Sales Director of Portable Church®.

More information about Portable Church® can be attained online at www.portablechurch.com or by calling 800‐939‐7722.

Your Online Giving Page is Probably Too Complicated

February 20, 2012 in Online Giving In The Church with 5 Comments

In our house, we’ve moved to instant downloads and AppleTV and we rarely use the DVD player. The other day, my kids got a DVD as a gift, but it came with a digital version, which would surely save me the trouble of having to rip it to my hard drive.

I found the registration code and went to the website. I entered the code, was prompted to download a program, asked to open the program then register the program. I needed to create an account and add the video to the queue. After about 10 minutes, I gave up.

My kids will not be watching this digital version. I rarely do this, but the process was so confusing and complicated that I emailed the company and shared my experience. “If you want people to use your service, you need to make it simpler,” I told them.

Online giving via your church’s website needs to be the same way.

It’s great that you give people the opportunity to create an account and set up recurring giving. But sometimes, people want to make a quick, one-time donation. If you don’t provide that option, you’re missing out.

Amazon learned that the fewer clicks they required, the more purchases people would make. So, here’s my question: How many clicks does it take for someone to make a donation to your church? If the answer is more than 3 or 4, then it’s time to simplify.

Go ahead and give people the option of creating an account and managing their donations. You absolutely need that. But you also need a “Click here to make a quick donation…no registration required” button. EVEN if it means you need to use an additional service provider, make this available to people.

5% of Churches Are Breaking the Law

February 16, 2012 in Church Finance & Ministry Money, Follow Up with 1 Comment

In a few months, we’re releasing the results of a massive giving survey, and some of the results are truly amazing. The entire findings will be available soon, but I was floored by one particular answer.

We surveyed more than 1,000 churches and found that 5% of respondents don’t send any form of annual contribution statement at all.

Not only is this not smart, it’s actually against the law. While each person is responsible for providing documentation to back-up their charitable contributions, 501c3 organizations are required to provide written documentation to substantiate donations. Since it’s usually not possible to provide “on the spot” receipts, churches send an annual contribution statement.

Not only should you do this on an annual basis as required by law, you should also do this on a quarterly basis to regularly communicate with your donor base and show them how their donations are helping ministry happen. Four times a year, send them something that connects their donations to the vision. Inspire and inform your donors. It’s good leadership.

Financial Breathing Room Is Possible By Doing This

February 15, 2012 in Taking Special Offerings & Church Tithing, Talking About Money With Your Church with 0 Comments

Attend our FREE online event entitled: Easter Offering: The Easiest Offering of the Year

The event is offered three times:

• Tuesday, March 6 at 1:00 PM ET
• Wednesday, March 7 at 2:00 PM ET
• Thursday, March 8 at 3:00 PM ET

Less than 45 Minutes + 6 Easy Steps = Financial Breathing Room Before The Summer!

• Six-Step Strategy To Implement The Easiest Offering All Year!

• All Content Delivered In Under 45 Minutes!

Plus, special offerings usually generate more first time givers than any other offerings of the year. Don’t miss the opportunity.

Register NOW!

Make Your Follow Up Personal

February 14, 2012 in Follow Up with 0 Comments

This month, we’re talking about following up with donors. We’ve provided a TON of coaching and documents for our members. But we’re also unpacking a few things here on the blog. Today, Michael Robison, the Lead Pastor of Uncommon Church in Austin, Texas, shares some thoughts about making follow up personal.

Personal Follow Up Is Better

The world is becoming less and less personal. With mass email, Facebook, twitter and more, there is less personal connection than ever. But, the reality is that people crave personal attention and connection.

So, the more personal, meaningful and memorable you make your follow up process, the better response you will get.

I come from a background in high-end retail sales. In that market, people are overwhelmed with mass mailing, television advertising, sales gimmicks and radio. They become numb to the efforts to get their attention and create a response. In fact, I would say that the less personal your contact is, the more likely you are to lose a person. One of the greatest ways that we increased sales was to personally give time, attention and invitation to people. Let them know you care about them more than you care about the sale, but be genuine! People can smell a fake for miles!

The same applies to follow up with givers in your church. The more personal you make the follow up, the better your return. The key is your intention and heart. People need to know that your follow up is motivated in helping them reach their potential as a follower of Jesus. That is meaningful to a person. What makes it memorable is the manner in which you approach it all.

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