As we head into Advent and the Christmas season, there will be a host of services and fundraising events taking place in our churches. These opportunities, from carol services to Christmas fairs, and everything in between, are a great way to reach out to the community, as well as helping you raise vital funds.
Here we will explore effective strategies and creative ideas to help you make the most of your Christmas fundraisers.
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Embrace the Community Spirt.
Christmas fundraising events can present an excellent occasion to engage with the community and build long-standing bonds. Work with your congregation to build a team of volunteers to run these events, but also think about whether there are others outside the church but in the community who might like to help.
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Leverage digital tools.
The two biggest reasons people don’t donate are because they are not asked or it is too complicated to do. Make sure you are making it clear and easy for your visitors to donate to your church. Not everyone carries cash anymore, so only being able to take cash donations will limit what you can receive. It is easy to set up one-off giving through QR codes, and it may help to have a contactless payment device. Find out what’s right for you, your church, and your community by talking through what’s available with the stewardship team . The National Church are running a webinar around giving at Christmas, on Thursday 23 November at 3pm. It is free to attend and you can book your space here. We also have access to templates for your contactless devices, so feel free to get in touch with Chris or Robyn in the stewardship team to provide these for you.
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The power of social media.
Let your audience see the impact they have through the fundraising - share your stories on social media and let them be part of the church’s story. Use social media to create events and share far and wide so people know what’s happening, use it to build up excitement, but also to share what happens after. Let them see what a difference their generosity has made.
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Engage with local businesses.
This could be a great opportunity for you to reach out to local businesses and let them know how they can support the church and your the local community.
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Make a plan and set some goals.
Think about how the event will run, how you will promote it, how you will follow up and what impact generosity from the event will have. Decide what the donation will be for – are they for a specific cause or for the general mission of the church? Letting people know this will give them confidence in donating to you. 
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Have fun!
Make sure that your fundraising activity is something you would want to do, if you do not find it fun, others won’t either and so they won’t give.
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Say Thank You
It’s so important that people know how grateful we are for their generosity, a simple thank you can go a long way.
And don’t forget to share your good news – let us know the successes you’ve had so we can celebrate with you. We would love to feature you on the diocesan news channels too!
Contact the stewardship team on stewardship@cofe-worcester.org.uk
