When everything changes as quickly as it has, most people will crave for some sort of normality. Even though the church is closed, your church family will still want to hear from you. They will want to know how they can help – so tell them.
- Explain that in these very troubled times, you need on-going financial help to keep your foodbanks and homeless projects going. Ask if they can support this with a donation or regular gift.
- Encourage those who make their regular gifts by cash in envelopes to consider giving by standing order, direct debit or donating on-line as appropriate.
A template form for setting up a standing order can be found here.
Information about using the Parish Giving Scheme for Direct Debits is here.
Click here to see more about on-line donations
- Set up a fundraising page
There are a variety of providers to help you do this including:
All have different terms and conditions and charging terms so you will need to check that you use the right one for you.
Make the most of the hints and tips they provide to make your page as inspirational as possible.
- Share as widely as possible.
- Include a link to your page on all correspondence, leaflets, door drops and digital channels.
- Raise your digital presence
More than ever before your digital presence is your presence
If you’re not already digitally active, get this sorted as quickly as you can. More and more people of all ages are looking for information and keeping in touch in this way.
Use a combination of channels to reach as wide an audience as possible:
- Church website
- Face Book
- Twitter
- Instagram
Look for volunteers to set up and manage the different channels. Young people are really good at this – and with so many people now being furloughed and confined to home, some will really appreciate an opportunity to use their skills and assist in this way.
Look here for info on setting up a Church website.
If you’re already using digital channels – KEEP UPDATING THE INFORMATION!
Use online messages from church leadership to explain how they are using weekly donations and the impact this is having – especially important if you’re running projects such as foodbanks.
Look for volunteers to manage the different channels and post regular updates.
Remember to include a link to your fundraising page so those reading to enable people to click and donate straight away.
Be proactive. There are different ways of ‘giving’.
In this fast-changing environment, people are being encouraged to take on a new challenge. One way to do this is to bring together a virtual team to research prospective grant makers who might donate now or for future projects.
Churchgrants – a searchable database of grant funders that supports church building projects and Christian mission (social outreach) is a free resource for parishes in the Diocese of London. To access the database, use this link London.churchgrants.co.uk, enter your unique 4 digit parish reference number (the one used to identify your parish for the finance team) – 1234 – and then click your church/parish name from the drop-down menu.
This database can be used as many times as you want. It will flag up some of the big funders, but you can also restrict the search to find funders that will only support projects in your area. A great resource to help parishes start to identify those that may potentially support their project.
Help your local neighbourhood think about the future (post Covid–19). Some people will make a donation to say thank you simply because you’ve shown you care!
Lots of people who are now confined to their homes will have additional time on their hands. Engage with them. Prepare a door drop (to go out at a later date if you feel that’s best) to let them know that as their local parish church you:
- are there to assist in any way you can.
- would you like to know what they want from their local church in the future.
Consider hosting a ‘when this is all over’ event at the end of the year to:
- show people around the building
- find out more about your wider community and ask them what they want
