In the recent Stewardship in the Moment Workshop, Vanco's Peter Johnson and I shared practical tips and strategies to enhance your church's online donations. Click here to view the full Workshop.
Some key takeaways:
Moving your "Give" Button to the top navigation bar
Place your "Give" button in the top navigation bar: To make online giving easy and accessible for both regular parishioners and guests, ensure that your "give" button is easily visible and accessible within seconds of clicking on your website. Placing it in the top navigation bar ensures it's available to viewers wherever they go on your website, rather than hiding it in a drop-down menu.
Another way to make it stand out: a different color
Use a different color for the "Give" button: Make your "give" button stand out by using a bright color. However, don't assume that a different color alone is sufficient. Always place it in the top navigation bar.
Taking the mystery out of QR Codes
A QR code is a visual representation of a site's URL, and they are easy to set up. If you've never done it before, here's a free option, super-simple: qr-code-generator.com and a quick "How To":
- Go to the specific page you want to send your visitors to. Move your cursor over the top URL and COPY it.
- Go to qr-code-generator.com.
- In the box, press PASTE, and your URL will appear
- Press ENTER, and like magic, your QR code will appear in the box to the right which then can be downloaded as a jpeg and used on print materials.
QR codes make sense for printed materials
Since a QR code sends you directly to a link, they work best on printed materials, rather than online --If you're sending someone to a link online, you can just use a regular link. Materials that would benefit from a QR code include your Bulletin, letters mailed home, and other printed pieces. If you haven't used a QR code before,, remember Easter is coming up and that would be a great time to make it easy for guests and less-regular attendees to make an online gift!
Let your Vanco Tiles tell a story
The Vanco "Tiles," are a considerable aesthetic improvement over Vanco's old form, and Vanco offers a selection of attractive images to pick from. But even better is to personalize both in image and in text. When your church asks if you'd like to give to altar flowers, it's more compelling to see an image of your own church's altar, rather than a stock photo of a flower arrangement. The text can be personalized as well, to make the different giving options more meaningful.
The workshop video contains more useful tips and insights, so I encourage you to watch it and share it with others. And let me know if you have any suggestions for future Stewardship in the Moment Workshops!
