Text Messaging Overview Report: Your Ministry’s Engagement Dashboard
Every text your church sends—whether it’s a Sunday reminder, a midweek prayer chain update, or an invitation to respond to the gospel—tells part of your ministry story. But without the right analytics, that story stays scattered. How engaged is your congregation with text messaging? When are people most likely to read and respond? Is your subscriber list growing or shrinking? And what does it all mean for your staff meetings and board reports?
From Sending to Understanding
The Text Messaging Overview Report gives you a comprehensive snapshot of your text ministry’s health in one place. Instead of guessing, you get clear data: an engagement score that combines activity metrics, an activity heatmap showing which days and times your congregation is most active, subscriber growth trends, delivery rates, carrier breakdown, and cost statistics. Every metric is designed to answer real questions: “When should we send our weekly reminder?” “Are our messages getting through?” “How much are we spending on text ministry?”
For church staff preparing reports for leadership or board meetings, the report includes an AI-powered executive briefing. The AI analyzes all your data and generates a plain-language summary highlighting key wins, watch items, and actionable insights. No need to translate spreadsheets into ministry language—the briefing does it for you.
Real Ministry, Real Decisions
Imagine a youth pastor wondering when to send the small group sign-up reminder. The activity heatmap shows that Tuesday and Wednesday evenings see the highest engagement. A children’s minister planning a VBS text campaign can check subscriber growth to see if the list is healthy. A finance team reviewing ministry costs can pull the cost statistics for the quarter. And a senior pastor preparing for a staff meeting can open the AI briefing and get a one-page summary of how the text ministry is performing.
The report supports flexible date ranges: This Month, Last Month, Last 90 Days, This Year, or a custom range. Quick links like Last Week, Last Month, Last 90 Days, Last Year, and Year to Date make it easy to compare periods. You can export the AI summary, schedule automated email delivery to key staff, or print a PDF for board packets.
In this article, we’ll overview the OnlineGiving.org Text Messaging Overview Report feature.
Text Messaging Overview Report User Guide:
The Text Messaging Overview Report at /admin/textmessagingreports/engagement provides a comprehensive engagement overview of your church’s text ministry. It combines engagement metrics, activity patterns, subscriber trends, delivery performance, carrier distribution, and cost estimates into a single dashboard. An AI-powered executive briefing distills the data into a narrative summary ideal for staff meetings and board reports. Access requires the Text Marketing plan and a courtesy number.
Key Takeaways
- Engagement Score: Overall engagement metric combining activity data to show how your text ministry is performing.
- Activity Heatmap: Visual grid showing which days and times your congregation is most active with texts.
- Subscriber Growth: Trend data showing how subscriber counts change over time.
- Delivery Rates & Carrier Breakdown: How many messages are successfully delivered vs. failed, plus distribution of subscriber phone carriers.
- Cost Statistics & AI Briefing: Estimated messaging costs for the period and an AI-generated executive summary for leadership.
Table of Contents
- Report Overview
- Reading the Report
- Engagement Score
- Activity Heatmap
- Subscriber Growth
- Delivery Rates
- Carrier Breakdown
- Cost Summary
- AI Summary Panel
- Email Scheduling
- Date Range Controls
- Export and Print
- Frequently Asked Questions
Report Overview
How to Access the Report
To open the Text Messaging Overview Report:
- Log in to the control panel.
- Click “Text Marketing” in the left navigation menu.
- Click “Reports”.
- Click “Text Messaging Overview” (or navigate directly to /admin/textmessagingreports/engagement).
Plan and Role Requirements
Access to the Text Messaging Overview Report requires the Text Marketing plan and a courtesy number. Users must have the role Text Marketing Admin or Donor Admin. If you do not see the report, verify your plan and role with your domain administrator.
Reading the Report
The report is organized into several sections. At the top, you’ll see the period selector and date range controls. Below that, summary cards display key metrics: engagement score, total messages, conversations, subscribers, and delivery performance. The activity heatmap appears in the center, with subscriber growth, delivery rates, carrier breakdown, and cost statistics in dedicated sections. The AI-powered briefing panel sits at the bottom and can be expanded or collapsed.
Engagement Score
The Engagement Score is an overall metric that combines activity data from your text ministry. It reflects how actively your congregation is interacting with texts—sending messages, responding to keywords, and engaging with chatbots. A higher score indicates stronger engagement. Use it as a quick health check: if the score trends up over time, your text ministry is resonating. If it drops, consider reviewing your messaging frequency, content, or keyword setup.
Activity Heatmap
The Activity Heatmap is a visual grid showing which days of the week and times of day your congregation is most active with text messaging. Rows typically represent days (Sunday through Saturday), and columns represent hours. Darker cells indicate higher activity. Use this to:
- Choose the best times to send broadcast messages.
- Understand when people are most likely to respond to keywords.
- Plan follow-up timing for prayer requests or decision responses.
For example, if the heatmap shows strong activity on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings, schedule your most important messages around those windows.
Subscriber Growth
The Subscriber Growth section shows how your subscriber counts change over the selected period. You can see trends such as new opt-ins, opt-outs, and net growth. Healthy lists grow steadily or stay stable; declining trends may indicate list fatigue, outdated keywords, or deliverability issues. Use this data to assess whether your text ministry is reaching more people or losing ground.
Delivery Rates
The Delivery Rates section shows how many messages were successfully delivered versus failed. High delivery rates (typically above 95%) indicate healthy messaging. Failed deliveries can result from invalid numbers, carrier blocks, or opt-outs. If delivery rates drop, review your subscriber lists for stale or invalid numbers and ensure you’re following carrier best practices.
Carrier Breakdown
The Carrier Breakdown shows the distribution of subscriber phone carriers (e.g., Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile). This helps you understand your audience’s carrier mix. Some carriers may have different delivery characteristics or cost structures. If you notice delivery issues, the carrier breakdown can help identify whether a specific carrier is causing problems.
Cost Summary
The Cost Statistics section provides estimated messaging costs for the selected period. It may include total estimated spend, cost per message, or cost per subscriber. Use this for budget planning and stewardship reporting. Costs vary by message type (SMS vs. MMS), carrier, and volume.
AI Summary Panel
The AI-Powered Briefing (or AI Summary Panel) generates an executive summary of your text ministry performance. The AI analyzes all report data and produces a narrative highlighting key wins, watch items, trend comparisons, and actionable insights. The briefing is ideal for staff meetings and board reports—no need to translate raw numbers into ministry language. You can expand or collapse the full analysis. The briefing is cached per domain and date range for performance.
Email Scheduling
You can schedule automated delivery of the report (including the AI briefing) to selected administrator emails. Use the email scheduling modal to choose recipients, frequency (weekly or monthly), and delivery day. Recipients receive the report by email without logging in. This is useful for keeping staff and leadership informed on a regular basis.
Date Range Controls
Period Selector
The report includes a period selector with preset options: This Month, Last Month, Last 90 Days, and This Year. Selecting a period updates all metrics and charts. A custom date range picker is also available when you need a specific start and end date.
Quick Date Links
Quick links provide one-click date range changes: Last Week, Last Month, Last 90 Days, Last Year, and Year to Date. Last Week typically covers the previous Monday through Sunday. Last Month is the previous calendar month. Last 90 Days is a rolling 90-day window from today. Last Year is the previous calendar year. Year to Date runs from January 1 through today.
Export and Print
The report supports print and PDF export. Use your browser’s print function (or the report’s print button, if available) to generate a PDF for board packets or staff handouts. The AI briefing can be included in the printed output.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can access the Text Messaging Overview Report?
Users with the Text Marketing Admin or Donor Admin role can access the report. Your domain must have the Text Marketing plan and a courtesy number. If you don’t see the report, contact your domain administrator to verify your plan and role.
How is the Engagement Score calculated?
The Engagement Score combines activity data such as messages sent, conversations started, keyword hits, and subscriber interactions. The exact formula may vary, but the score is designed to give you a single number that reflects overall text ministry health. Use it as a trend indicator rather than an absolute benchmark.
Why does my activity heatmap show low activity on certain days?
Low activity can mean fewer messages were sent or fewer people responded during those times. It may also reflect your church’s schedule—for example, if you don’t send messages on Mondays, that day will show less activity. Use the heatmap to identify when your congregation is most responsive and align your sending schedule accordingly.
Can I export the AI briefing to share with staff?
Yes. You can copy the AI briefing text, include it in a print or PDF of the report, or use the email scheduling feature to send the full report (including the briefing) to staff on a recurring basis.
What if my delivery rates are low?
Low delivery rates often indicate invalid or stale phone numbers, carrier blocks, or high opt-out rates. Review your subscriber lists and remove invalid numbers. Ensure you’re following carrier best practices (e.g., opt-in consent, reasonable send frequency). The Subscriber Lists report can help identify lists that need attention.
Does the report support multi-campus?
The Text Messaging Overview Report may include campus filtering depending on your setup. If you have multiple campuses, check for a campus selector in the report header. Selecting a campus filters the data to that location.
Need help setting up or interpreting the report? OnlineGiving.org offers courtesy setup assistance. Contact us at support@onlinegiving.org or (615) 206-4000.