Americans check their phones 144 times a day! 1. That headline captured my attention as I scrolled through the morning headlines. The gist of the article at CNBC.com was on helping people break the habit of continually checking their phones. Good luck with that. I’m not discounting the advice the article gives; I know the pull cell phones have on Americans. I know because I probably check my phone a lot more than 144 times a day!
Given the undeniable surge in cellphone usage, it's clear that your church's response should be to meet people where they are. If we truly desire to reach America, we must understand that their attention is increasingly on their phones. If you're skeptical, just step outside and observe how people’s attention is constantly drawn to their screens. Any church aspiring to connect with its community must acknowledge the reality that we live in a society dominated by cell phones. By doing so, we show our understanding and respect for their preferences and habits.
At OnlineGiving.org, we quickly recognized the immense potential of cell phones and smart devices. Our meticulously designed platform is a powerful tool that can help churches reach their members where they are, on their cell phones and smart devices. Here are a few ways our system can empower you to better connect with the ‘Cellphone America.’
Mobile Apps – With over 90% of Americans owning some type of smart device, it's a wise investment for a church to have its own app. My OG associate, Justin Michal, OG’s Product Support Specialist, summed it up well when he said, “An app is the most dependable line of communication between you and your church body. With other forms of digital communication, you must fight to land at the top of a person’s feed or inbox. You don’t have to worry about an important message getting flagged as ‘spam’ when you send your church a push notification through an app. Members can even pick the categories of push notifications they want to receive. We believe the church app should be a tool for church engagement. No matter the size of the church, an app is the new bulletin board for information. The advantages of a church app over other forms of digital communication are clear and significant.”
To read more about the impact our app can have on your giving, read this post: https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/todays-church-bulletin-board
Chatbots – A chatbot is designed to allow the user to conduct an online chat conversation via text or text-to-speech. It operates on various channels, including websites, text messaging, Facebook Messenger, Google Voice, and Alexa. Our chatbot lets you connect with your members quickly and seamlessly for various purposes, such as baptism sign-ups, contact cards, volunteer sign-ups, salvation responses, care requests, and more.
Read more about this tool at https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/chatbot-for-church-growth.
Custom Form Builder – Our Custom Form Builder makes it easy to build web and mobile-friendly custom forms, deeply integrated with your Church Management System. With our Custom Form Builder, you can do all sorts of things, including taking attendance, collecting payments, group sign-ups, connection cards, special donations, and more. All this can be accomplished on your members' and guests' phones from anywhere.
Read more about this tool at: https://www.onlinegiving.org/support/remarkably-custom-forms
Our church partners can use these systems to immediately communicate with their members and guests. The above is one reason we say we are more than just a processing company. Our tools help you tell your story quickly to our cellphone society.
We give you the platform to engage and meet the challenges of living in cellphone America. With our platform and systems, you will always be on the cutting edge of cellphone technology, allowing you to better connect and communicate with your members and guests, no matter where they are!
Why not let us show you these features and how easily your church can utilize them? We would love to give you a free demonstration. To set up your free demonstration, contact us at (615) 206-4000 or support@onlinegiving.org.
The Stewardship Coach
It's been reported that "Americans check their phones 144 times a day!" Our powerful platform helps churches meet their members where they are, on their cell phones and smart devices. See how your church can do the same!https://t.co/KOIrdcyDij pic.twitter.com/vLaTSkwQuS
— Online Giving (@onlinegivingorg) April 23, 2024
