Creating a thriving culture of generosity: inspire those who have never given before to bridge the divide between good intentions and real sacrifices.

Join us over the next three months as we take an honest look at the ways our churches handle the topic of giving with this 5 part Church Giving Audit series from Kindrid.

Part 3: Are We Engaging New Givers?  

So far, our audit’s looked at whether we engage in giving monologues vs. giving dialogues and what barriers to giving are present in our churches.
This month, we’re examining whether we’re reaching new givers.

Creating a thriving culture of generosity goes beyond encouraging existing givers to give more; it inspires those who have never given before to bridge the divide between good intentions and real sacrifices.

It’s a lot easier for current givers to keep giving than for new givers to start. Are current givers just hard-wired to be more generous?  Probably not. Existing givers continue to experience the joy of generosity and know how giving works at your church. Reaching new givers means we must empower them with those same two keys.

Communicate the Why

Many business leaders agree that if they want their employees to deliver exceptional customer service, the company and leadership must provide that same level of service to their employees. In the same way, our churches should be the first in line to demonstrate what overwhelming generosity looks like to a new giver. Depending on the church, that could look like a free book or devotional, an invitation to lunch, or a warm smile and hot cup of coffee.

Every gift has a purpose. Communicate the importance of generosity by being 100% transparent about the vision and values of your church.  First-time givers are curious about where their gifts will go, especially if they haven’t been part of your church community for a long time. Make the connection for them!

Communicate the How

Giving for the first time to a church is like going to a new gym.  You don’t know where the locker room is, or how to use any of the fancy machines. So you act casual for your first few visits, but end up awkwardly watching what everyone else is doing instead.  

Without a simple way to give and a clear communications strategy behind it, new givers feel just as awkward and hesitant. Consider some of the questions we asked last month to see whether your church’s giving experience invites new givers to engage with the mission of your church:

  1. Can new givers be generous without a checkbook?
  2. Can new givers give in less than 30 seconds with a text or online giving option?
  3. Are we communicating the ways a new giver can give in more than one place (i.e., bulletin, slideshow, announcements)?

Engaging with new givers boils down to two key principles: providing a clear and powerful why and offering a simple and understandable how. We want to help you engage new givers by equipping 100% of your church to give. This Engagement Toolkit is our gift to you. Download it now:

DOWNLOAD THE TOOLKIT

Kindrid unleashes generosity by equipping churches with inspirational and actionable content and Smart Giving—a complete text, in-app, and online giving solution.