5 Best Practices to Organize Holiday Service Projects with Your Mobile App

It’s time to start prepping for those holiday service projects. In the past that meant laying out sign-up sheets in the foyer and talking about it for weeks during announcements. And while that still works, a native mobile app can make it a whole lot easier.

Here are five ways your mobile app can make service planning a cinch this Christmas:

1. Put it on the church calendar  

It’s nice to have a church calendar that shows you everything that’s coming down the pike. It’s even nicer when that calendar is in your pocket all the time. By scheduling all of the elements that go into a service project on the church calendar, nothing needs to fall through the cracks.

Everyone can clearly see when decorating needs to happen, when they need to show up to prepare, and what time the event is scheduled.

2. Send push notifications

Push notifications allow you to communicate with people who have downloaded your app, even if the app isn’t open. Studies show that push notifications have high open rates (meaning people see your notification and open your app) and increase app retention (meaning people who receive the occasional notification from an app are more likely to keep using the app).

While you don’t want to overuse this feature, push notifications can be a powerful way to increase visibility on an upcoming project. Imagine being able send a simple reminder on a Wednesday afternoon that a lot of your church will receive and open immediately.

3. Use your digital bulletin

Churches spend a lot of money every year on creating and printing paper bulletins. In the end, they all wind up in the garbage or tossed in the back window of a sedan. A church app experience allows you to create bulletins that people actually read—and won’t throw away.

You can use this digital bulletin to communicate all the particulars about your upcoming event. It can be used to let people know about supplies they need to bring or roles that still need to be filled.

4. Find out who can make it with a quick poll

A polling tool in your app can be used to do a brief, anonymous check on how many people plan on coming to decorate, carol, or whatever you need them to do for your holiday project. The nice thing about a quick poll is that it’s compatible with push notifications, so people don’t need to open the app to use it.

It’s a simple multiple-choice format that you can use to get a yes or no answer, or even add a couple more options if you need more detailed information beyond “yes” and “no” like, “Yes, and I’m bringing a dessert.”

5. Don’t forget the geofencing reminders

A geofence uses a GPS satellite to create an invisible “fence” around a specific location. You can use this feature to send messages to app users who step onto the church property.

This can be used to send all kind of prompts to people who are showing up to church. Right in the parking lot they could receive a reminder to sign up for set-up or to meet for final instructions for your event.

Don’t Have an App?

All of these features are available with a custom app experience from Pushpay. If you don’t currently have an app, it’s time to revolutionize how your ministry communicates, connects, and even gives!