Like many churches, your organization probably has a strict budget. While regular tithing during services can help cover many of your expenses, more and more churches are earning additional funding through online giving.
Online fundraising makes giving more flexible, letting your community make donations however and whenever they prefer. This can lead to bigger gifts and even donations from your congregation’s family friends during special occasions.
To inspire more online gifts, try these seven strategies.
1. Streamline your donation page.
Your donation page’s design and user experience often make a huge difference in whether an online visitor gives or not. Bonterra’s donation page design guide provides a few tips:
- Keep the donation form simple by asking only for necessary information, like the donor’s contact and payment information.
- Use compelling donation button text, such as replacing generic “Submit” buttons with “Donate Now” or “Support My Church.”
- Prioritize accessibility to ensure everyone can contribute to your church. Check your text and background’s color contrast, make sure your page is navigable by keyboard, and mark all required fields with text rather than just color.
- Add your brand elements, such as your church’s logo and color scheme, so your congregation knows they are supporting your organization.
- Optimize for mobile by limiting the number of visuals, including large buttons, and ensuring there’s no need for horizontal scrolling.
2. Share your impact.
Your congregants, especially young members, want to support organizations that make a positive difference in the world. Let them know about all the good work your church is doing in your community to attract additional donations.
For example, on your website, you might post pictures of your last community food drive or proudly state how many warm coats, hats, and gloves your congregation donated to a homeless shelter last winter.
3. Leverage storytelling.
Many donors give because they feel an emotional connection to your church or your mission. You can reinforce this connection and inspire emotions by sharing stories online about your church’s impact.
UpMetrics’s guide to storytelling shares a few tips for using stories in fundraising:
- Be descriptive. Details help readers imagine themselves in the situations your stories describe, helping them identify with the people in your stories. Be selective about details to create a memorable, emotionally resonant story without bogging down the reading experience by describing every little thing.
- Add visuals. Pictures tell a thousand words and can go a long way toward grabbing potential donors’ attention and building an emotional connection. With permission, take pictures of your congregants, staff, and people your church has aided and feature these photos alongside your stories.
- End with a call-to-action. Motivate supporters to act in the moment by providing them with clear directions on what to do after reading your story. For most fundraising appeals, this will be a donation request and a link to your online giving page.
4. Offer suggested giving amounts.
People are more likely to donate when they don’t have to think about how much to give. For example, during a church service, you might mention how everyone giving just $25 can make a major difference.
Give your online donors guidance by providing suggested giving amounts. Additionally, encourage recurring giving by listing lower monthly donation amounts next to higher one-time gift amounts. This way, donors can make gifts that comfortably fit their budget, and your church can earn increased revenue over time.
5. Run a peer-to-peer campaign.
Online fundraising helps your church reach a far wider audience than you would be able to through in-person fundraisers. In particular, peer-to-peer campaigns empower your congregation to fundraise online on your behalf, connecting you with donors who may otherwise not interact with your church in their day-to-day lives.
To run a peer-to-peer campaign, you’ll need to:
- Invest in fundraising software. Peer-to-peer fundraising software allows your church to create individual donation pages for each of your fundraisers. This can increase donations as their friends and family can give to them specifically, rather than to an organization they may be unfamiliar with.
- Recruit peer-to-peer fundraisers. Reach out to your congregation for volunteers to fundraise. Individuals who are passionate about your church and those with large social media followings will likely be the most effective at bringing in online donations.
- Keep your fundraisers motivated. Peer-to-peer campaigns are mostly self-directed as individual fundraisers reach out to their friends and family on their own time. However, your church can still help out by keeping them motivated. Thank them regularly, help troubleshoot problems they run into, and provide prizes for the top fundraisers.
6. Experiment with multiple channels.
The more communication channels you use to reach potential supporters, the higher your earning potential. Even sharing the same message across multiple channels can be useful, as each time a supporter sees it may be the one where they decide to give.
Expand your church’s marketing strategy by using these channels to stay in touch with your congregation:
- Email is a strong all-around communication tool for all types of messages, including fundraising appeals. Use email to provide updates, send event invitations, recruit volunteers, and make donation appeals.
- Text messages are effective for short, urgent messages. For example, if your church has an immediate funding need, you might send out texts reminding congregants to give.
- Your website should be the central hub of information about your church. Along with your donation page, maintain an about page that provides general information about your church, a volunteer information page that explains open roles, and a news page that shares all current goings on at your church.
- Social media helps you reach a wider audience. Choose a few platforms that help you connect with your local community. For example, you might create a Facebook page and encourage your congregation to create a group for your church so they can connect with one another online.
7. Vary content format.
Church and nonprofit content marketing is most effective when you regularly change up its format to engage a wider audience.
This means that instead of sending out only written messages, your church should try experimenting with adding photographs and graphic design elements to content. You might even make video fundraising appeals to help recipients feel an emotional connection with your church.
Online fundraising can bring in valuable additional revenue for your church. Make giving easy by improving your church’s website to streamline the donation process, exploring fundraising tools, and creating fundraising appeals that inspire connection even through a screen.