RESOURCE
Church Tech Check
It’s a well-known fact that the Christmas season brings with it church growth and an upswing in church attendance, particularly among those who aren’t regular church-goers. But a study from Pew Research Center revealed that Google searches for “church” also spike around Christmas. These patterns mean that churches are attracting visitors—very likely those who attend church irregularly or only on holidays—that they have the opportunity to keep ministering to in the new year.
Is your church prepared with a strategy for church growth? Read on for ways to keep those Christmas visitors coming back, encourage regular attendance, and impact your community throughout the year.
Church Growth Strategy #1 Follow up with visitors
Collecting contact information from visitors will give you the means to welcome them to the church and invite them back—and an invitation is a powerful thing. A recent study from LifeWay Research about holiday-season church attendance determined that 57 percent of those who don’t attend church regularly would go if someone invited them. You might build on that tendency by encouraging congregation members who asked a friend or neighbor to church over Christmas to offer another invitation once the holiday rush is over.
Fortunately there are also great tools that make it easier for church leaders keep track of and follow up with new visitors. Pushpay offers a Church Management System with features that can help you know, grow, and keep your people. Some of those features include:
- Group Management that helps you connect people to groups and other congregants.
- Process Queues that automate the steps in your connection process, so no one falls through the cracks.
- Metric Dashboards that allow you to view the engagement of every individual.
Strategy #2 Create a welcoming atmosphere
Yet, once invited, visitors aren’t likely to feel inclined to return unless they feel welcomed, noticed, and included. More than receiving a friendly greeting at the door and being handed a bulletin, a welcoming experience for visitors is ideally something that’s been built into the culture of your church.
Do visitors know where to go when they walk in? Is there a welcome center or information desk where they can ask questions? Is it easy to find the nursery or children’s areas? Do staff and church members make an effort to notice and reach out to guests? These kinds of considerations help make your congregation a more inviting place.
Strategy #3 Develop opportunities for fellowship
But it can be hard to feel welcome and comfortable in a large room of strangers. One way to prevent visitors (and even regular attendees) from getting lost in the crowd of a Sunday service is through smaller groups or gatherings, which provide an opportunity for one-on-one interaction and discipleship as congregants grow in their relationships with each other and with Christ.
