Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Increase Donation Appeal at Your Church

Are donors cutting the cord? Is your church feeling the pain? Guess what, you're not alone. Donors are spending less and choosing more carefully how they plan to spend their hard earned dollars. Therefore, church leaders are having to adjust their spending habits. With shrinking dollar$, churches should focus on several issues, one of them being social networking sites.

Embrace Social Networking Sites
How about using Facebook as a tool to promote volunteer opportunities, worship services or online giving. One of the greatest features of Facebook is the news stories that are created within your profile. When you add someone as a friend, everytime , every time they do something in their profile, like add pictures or post a comment, a news story is created in your profile. Similarly, whenever you do something in your profile a news sotory is created in your friend's profiles. This is great because it allows people to keep up with what's happening in their friend's profiles without having to go and check every individual friend's profile one at a time. Everything is done from within your profile.

Be Transparent
Donors are more conscientious of their spending. In your communications, clearly explain how their money will be used, and how it will improve the church and community.

Build Community
Find new ways to integrate your community service events with fundraising. Attending events that involve tickets or products may not work in today's climate. Donors want to see their donated impact, so invite them to take part in a local-level event with a fundraising twist. Allow your donors to take part in your car washes, your singing events, your BBQ dinners or your basket giving.

Keep in Touch
Send monthly newsletters and updates. Donors like to read about what you are doing and who has benefitted from their sevices. Remember, the economy is forever changing. This a great time for churches to think creatively and pay attention to details in order to continue serving their communities near or far.

SO CONNECT AND BUILD RELATIONSHIPS