The Impact of an Effective Annual Giving Statement
CommunicationIt’s that time of year again! With the busyness of the Christmas season, we need to be preparing an effective mailing of annual giving statements for January.
Elevating the giving conversation in your church by saying thank you to your givers is huge. Don’t miss this natural moment to invest into the spiritual life of your people. It’s worth the focus and the work to demonstrate a spirit of gratitude!
As you prepare this annual communication to your givers, there are two main ideas I encourage you to consider: the mailed statement itself, and how you communicate directly to your people on the weekend. Let’s take a look at both of these to help you get this off the ground and running!
THE MAILED STATEMENT
Please don’t take lightly the content and form of this mailing. It’s not “just another mailing” – in fact, it can have a huge impact on the generosity of your church. So here are a few practical pointers:
- Type the recipient’s name on the envelope. (Avoid window envelopes with the name showing through the front. Remember this is about building relationships, not about sterile communication of a transaction.)
- Use a church envelope so the recipient quickly realizes this mailing is from you. This will increase the likelihood it will be opened right away.
- Include a statement showing the giver’s giving data for the last year.
- Include a cover letter from the senior pastor on church letterhead that exudes gratitude and shares vision. Please keep this to one page for maximum effectiveness. (This should be the first page they see when they open the mailing.)
- Use a large, colorful, first-class stamp for this mailing. Envelopes using this kind of postage are opened at a much greater rate than metered mail.
Content of the cover letter should include the following segments:
- Several statements that highlight values of your church and celebrate what actions you want more of. “We are a church that…”
- A version of your mission statement, but generally not the actual mission statement that is often written in business language rather than faith-inspiring words.
- At least two facts that demonstrate power in the ministry and value in their financial investment. “We grew by 28% in 2014. We baptized 130 people last year.”
- One brief story of a person to personalize the ministry and mission.
- A reference to the exciting quarter or year ahead.
- An affirmation of the spiritual value in their intersected faith and finances.
- An alert to read their enclosed statement.
- A relational affirmation to conclude.
- An inspirational closing.
WEEKEND COMMUNICATION
The week before the annual statements go out in the mail, we’ll want take two or three minutes within the worship service to alert people to watch their mail and to highlight the statement. The time around the offering is a natural place to make this work. This can be accomplished via video or live announcement.
There are several objectives in this announcement, including:
- Saying thank you to your givers.
- Normalizing the conversation of faith and finances in a small way that will help to craft the larger spiritual value of giving.
- Making the connection once again with the giver, saying, “Your giving makes an impact. You give and great things happen!”
- Telling a brief story of how your church has made a difference this week.
- Alerting people that the statements are coming soon.
- Affirming that the church financial leadership takes their work seriously. We manage funds well, honor your giving, and guard what has been entrusted with us. (If you have an annual independent audit, here is another perfect moment to remind the givers of the integrity around the church.)
- Making this moment so fun and informative that those who have yet to give are more likely to give. (It is appropriate to mention that if you have yet to invest into your church, why not start today?)
- Asking the people to open and to interact with the communication that comes this week.
LOOKING FOR MORE?
Generis has created a resource to help you surprise and delight your givers through their newest e-book called 2016 Annual Giving Statements Guide. And it’s available for your free download today!
Please use this resource to frame your work. This e-book will walk you through several important steps to engage with your givers on a new level this year. Engaging them like this opens their hearts and develops deeper roots in their church engagement.
GET MY FREE COPY
About Rusty Lewis
As a church leader, there’s nothing more frustrating than not having the funding to do what God’s calling you to do. But when you think about trying to address that problem, you feel overwhelmed, you dread the potential pushback from your congregation, and you’re not sure where to turn for help. Over the last 18 years, I’ve helped more than 120 churches close the gap between their current financial reality and what they need to move forward in ministry.