“Preachers are packrats.” I was at a conference many years ago and heard Pastor John MacArthur make that comment. He meant that pastors often file away what they see others doing and then put that to work in their church. When I started in the ministry, I regularly went to larger churches to observe how they were doing things. I was looking for ideas that I would then figure out how to make that work in my church setting. Back in the day, I would have to drive to these churches. Now, with a click of the mouse, church leaders can “visit” any church in America to learn how their church can implement these practices.
A church website has now become the front door of the church. We know that most guests attending a church first visit that church’s website before they ever drive onto the campus. Churches are thus spending time and money assuring that their websites are user-friendly, informative, and, most of all, compelling to create a desire to attend. Churches today spend a great deal of time, money, and planning to make sure that the home landing page of their website pulls people in. I rarely have to coach a church about the importance of its home page. However, the same is not true regarding the primary giving page. Too often, that page is an afterthought. Let’s change that. Here are my three keys to an effective giving page.
Make online giving easy to find and easy to use. While this post is about your primary giving page, let’s back up to your home landing page. If people can’t easily find where to click to arrive at your giving page, you risk missing their gift. The give button doesn’t have to be a flashing blue light, but it does need to be highly visible. Also, in this day of smart devices, you must ensure that your entire site is mobile-friendly. If people have to pinch to enlarge your verbiage, the likelihood of them staying on your site decreases significantly.
When someone lands on your giving page, is it easy to navigate? Once a person lands on that page, can they quickly understand how to begin the giving process? I recommend multiple giving buttons on your giving page so that wherever my mouse takes me, I am close to a clickable link to begin the giving process. The easier you make it for people, the more likely they are to give.
Provide informative content about the process and importance of giving. Your primary giving page should be an informative place about stewardship and generosity. I look for informative content first around the various ways people can give. Remember, we provide thirteen giving methods. Each giving option, from text to recurring giving, should be clearly listed and explained, making it easy for people to utilize their preferred way of giving. At the same time, your giving page is a great place to introduce people to other ways to contribute, such as through estate planning.
Share inspiring content that helps motivate others to give. One of my goals as a stewardship coach is to see people start the generosity journey. I have found that the best way to increase giving is to show the connection of how a gift to your church impacts life change for eternity. So, use your primary giving page to tell the story of the amazing things happening in your church.
Periodically, we post stories of how our church partners use our platform to build and enhance a culture of generosity. Our systems are designed to integrate seamlessly with your existing systems, like your church management software and your website. To illustrate the three keys listed above, we thought it would be interesting to share the giving page of one of our church partners, Northridge Church, in Rochester, NY. https://www.northridgerochester.com/
First, notice that their giving link is visible alongside other key links. For Christmas 2022, they listed two options for giving in the pull-down menu: one for their primary giving page, which we will discuss later, and the second for the year-end Christmas offering, Home for the Holidays. Clicking on this site, you’ll see Northridge fulfills all three of the keys mentioned in this post. Go do thou likewise!
Then check out Northridge’s primary giving page here, https://www.northridgerochester.com/give. Again, they have made it easy to use, informative about how and what kind of gifts can be given, and most of all, compelling. Click on the embedded video and be prepared to be inspired. What stories do you have that could be used to motivate others to generosity? Again, Northridge has hit all three keys for an effective giving page. If Northridge can do this, why can’t your church?
I love being a part of the OnlineGiving.org family, because our tools work for any size church. Don’t miss out on using these tools to establish and advance a culture of generosity for your church. Look at your website now and evaluate it for the three keys listed here. The time and effort you put into ensuring your site meets these three keys will be worth the effort.
For more information about how our platform can advance generosity at your church, contact us at (615) 206-4000 or email us at support@onlinegiving.org.
For more information about best practices for your church’s website, read this post, https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/guest-friendly-website.
The Stewardship Coach
Your website's Giving Page can help establish and advance a culture of generosity in your church. Take the time to consider and apply these Three Keys to your Giving Page. It will be worth the effort! https://t.co/psXZ0sPHO5 pic.twitter.com/Nr4ofbLSxG
— Online Giving (@onlinegivingorg) December 12, 2022
