This post was last updated on July 25th, 2024 at 01:05 pm.
Here is the second part of the 2 part series for Communication and Church Donations. If you haven’t read the first part you may want to read it first. 🙂
5 Reasons People Don’t Donate (continued)
4. Clear communication also dispels the ‘other person syndrome’. The old story of — why should I donate when someone else will step up? Some clear factual information can dispel this during presentations.
Let’s use two scenarios:
A. Say the goal is $20,000 for some water wells and the congregational room has 125 people listening to the presenter. That boils down to about $160.00 per person if everyone gives or $320.00 per family. Most people listening to the presentation can take a quick conscientious inventory of the goal, approximately how many people, and figure out the amount per person. Many, if not more, of these observations will determine if they give or not.
B. What if the presenter gave clear information about the percentage of people (e.g. 65%) that gave last year and the average donation amount ($250.00) along with the information in scenario 1? The family’s amount quickly climbs to about $493.00, instead of $320.00. Knowing these additional facts informs potential donors about what’s needed for the cause.
When the average donations are less than what’s needed per family, it shows that everyone has to pull together to help. This information helps dispel the ‘other person syndrome’ quickly.
5. a.) The lack of commitment may be present because the maturity hasn’t grown to the point where the person is comfortable committing. The person hasn’t moved from the ‘Maybe I will become a (…) when I grow up’, to laying out the specific steps needed to execute. In churches, one example is pledging. Even though a pledge is not legally binding and your circumstances could change, a commitment shows maturity. Another reason is maybe the person doesn’t have that personal connection, yet.
b.) The lack of spiritual maturity is unique as it could be the amount of time the person spends with the organization. Or, it could be their own spiritual walk. The organization shouldn’t make it any harder with unclear communication.
c.) Unclear communication. If the church can’t present a clear need for its mission to potential donors, that’s a large hurdle to overcome. A lack of understanding could be mitigated by asking, ‘Would an outsider understand our message if presented to them? Would the literature, PowerPoint slides, presentation, etc. tell the story and allow them to be personally invested in the cause?’ As mentioned in the points above, a person gives when they feel connected to something. The story must make that connection.
Summary:
Communication with donors is paramount. It helps ensure they don’t lose interest, and understand the goals for the donations, as well as what makes a successful campaign. Has your ministry team sat down and discussed how each mission will communicate to their donors? When has the organization last sent anything about the donor support missions and projects aside from the annual statement for donations? These are just some questions to start the communication conversation, as every church must take its own communication inventory.
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