I want to share with you how saying thank you can add to your Easter offering!
My goal for you this Easter is that you have one of the largest offerings of the year. Hey, somebody needs to think about these things! I will keep encouraging you to plan out your offering so that people, even guests, will WANT to give to your offering. The question is what do you do after someone gives the first time? Here is my answer, thank them. As soon as possible! Why? Because according a post by GuideStar…
“Research has shown that first-time donors who receive a personal thank-you within 48 hours are four times more likely to give again. Yes, thanking in 48 hours equals a 400 percent improvement in renewal rates.”
The same post recorded this…
In 2013, Roger Craver reported in The Agitator that “a three-minute thank-you phone call will boost first-year [donor] retention by 30%.” In 2017, Leah Eustace at Good Works confirmed this phenomenon: “A one-minute thank-you call to new donors increased conversion by over 30%.” The Agitator chimed in again that same year with fresh data from America’s public radio stations: “In its first year, the ‘thank-you call’ program generated 56% increase in first-year donor retention, 72% increase in first-year retention revenue.”
Why are we in the church NOT doing this? Before I get to the hows of a first time donor plan let me give you a real life example from one of our members who sent me this note in an email a few years ago.
Pastor Brian Hughes of Powhatan Community Church wrote me the following. “I send a thank you card to every first time giver every week. Got this note and thought I’d share it with you.”
“WOW! Everything about PCC continually blows me away and exceeds all of my expectations! I never, in a million years, would have ever expected a hand-written, personalized thank you note from the pastor of a church (especially one as large as PCC) for my gift. You are a class-act through & through and I feel so incredibly blessed to be a part of your church family! Thank you and may God bless you for the gifts you bestow upon our hearts & souls every week!”
A couple of things I want you to realize with this example. First, if a pastor of a multi-campus church running around 1,500 or so can take the time to personally write first time donors what is your excuse? Secondly, this and other hard work allowed PCC to increase giving that year by 32%! Finally, do you not think that the woman who wrote this note is primed for another “ask?” Of course she is!
Here are four reasons why you need a first time giver plan.
First, it shows you value their gift and that they are not simply another number. Few people ever show true gratitude. Do you say thank you enough when it comes to your donors?
Second, it sets you apart from the crowd. Saying thank you is one of the biggest overlooked needs for churches. Charities out do churches in saying thank you. Let’s change that.
Third since you are continually losing donors you MUST add new donors every year. We track clients giving and most average anywhere from a 15% to 20% loss in givers EVERY year. You have to have a larger front door than your back door to stay fully funded.
Fourth, it paves the way for the next gift! Your thank you note letter or call builds a bridge to the next “ask.”
Quick Step First Time Donor Plan – The following is my easy quick step donor plan towards garnering additional gifts from donors. I recommend that you…
- Have some system in place to track when someone gives a first time gift to you. I also think you need to track when someone gives a first time gift online. I also encourage you to note if the gift was some special cause or was simply to your general budget.
- Follow up a month or two with another appeal letter about some need of your church and how a gift would make an impact for the Kingdom.
- One year from when they gave you their first gift write another letter or card to them thanking them for that gift and asking for another!
Make it your goal to have a first time giver plan so that you can get the second, third and then multiple gift! It make take time and effort but it will be worth it.
Mark Brooks – The Stewardship Coach