Does Gift Frequency Matter for Online Giving?

Greater frequency generates higher levels of giving:

I was just reviewing some data for the most recent quarter regarding the relationship of annual dollar volume to the frequency of giving.  Several months ago I wrote about this topic, noting that the largest annualized gifts were from bi-weekly givers.  This trend has continued.  Our most recent update to our data, which has been compiled since 2009, indicates that those who donate bi-weekly give $2012 on an annualized basis.  This is closely followed by weekly givers donate $1819.   The numbers drop significantly for monthly ($1278) and quarterly ($737).

So even though there are more donations to reconcile for the parish,  the numbers suggest that greater gift frequencies provide more income for the parish.  While the amount per individual gift is smaller for the greater frequencies ( average weekly gift is around $34 while the average monthly gift is $106), the annual gift to your parish is larger.

Is your parish experiencing this?

Both ACH (direct withdrawal) and Credit Card work:

We also continue to see a fairly even distribution of contributors who elect to use credit card or ACH methods of payment.  About 60% are using credit cards and 40% use ACH transactions.  Gifts from credit card donors are about 7% greater than for ACH.  See our indicator.  The effects of frequency are consistent regardless of the choice of donation.

Which method do you prefer to use?

Online Giving exceeds $100 million

We have exceeded $100 million in processing for Online Giving and parishioner use continues to increase.  You may want to join the growing group of parishes who have over 30% of parishioners using Online Giving.

 We are grateful that you have chosen to use Online Giving.  It's a great way to improve service to parishioners.  We remain committed to serving the church through all of our offerings and materials.  please contact us with your thoughts and ideas.

Get more parishioners signed up and using Online Giving

This account comes to us from Bruce Richman, the Customer Sales Retention Supervisor for OSV Offertory Solutions.

Recently I was visiting a parish when the question of how to get more people to use Online Giving came up. This particular parish had over 3,300 families with only 5% of the parishioners signed-up. In contrast, another parish in the area with about 1,000 families had 17% of parishioners using Online Giving.

When visiting with the smaller parish I was asked to find out what they were doing differently to be more successful. I knew as soon as I walked in the door -- the differences were apparent. The first thing I saw was an Online Giving poster mounted near the main entrance. Every person that came through those doors saw the poster the moment they entered the church. That action reinforced the parish’s support and need for Online Giving.

Also, when talking with some of the parish staff, I came to understand they had two additional efforts to help them entice more parishioners. First, they talked about Online Giving at the pulpit on several occasions. These weren't long lectures but short statements and testimonials about how easy Online Giving is to use and how it benefits the parish and the parishioner. Second, they used OSV’s Online Giving marketing package. This package helped the staff to announce and acquaint the parish to the convenience of the service. Included in the package were the posters, an announcement letter, an FAQ pamphlet, and the Online Giving mailing card for inserting into the offering envelope packet.

Promoting and communicating the Online Giving message at the pulpit, on boards, and through various mailings has helped to increase contributions for that parish and others, and can foster the growth of your parish’s Online Giving program, too. 

Share your story about how you get parishioners to use Online Giving!

4 points about increasing parish contributions through electronic giving

One of the great expectations we have from our parish electronic giving is that we will see an increase in contributions for the parish. And it is true that parishes see an increase in contributions.  But this number varies dramatically. Here are 4 points to consider:

1.  Some individual gifts do increase dramatically.  A gift online is a conscious choice which requires some level of thought and commitment.  If your parish was not engaging in pledge renewals in the past, then using a tool like Online Giving can provide that motivation to give more.  This increase has been demonstrated to be as much as 30%.
2.  A few drops of rain don't raise the level of the water in the ocean.  While you should expect individuals to give more,  if you only have a small percentage of parishioners using your Online Giving,  then the overall impact to contributions may be imperceptable. Don't expect a huge increase for the parish without encouraging people to use the system and helping them to get set up properly.
3.  Memory is unreliable.  Most of us have good intentions about our contributions to our parish.  However,  when we do miss Mass we don't always make up that contribution the way we think we do.  Online Giving can help correct this through scheduled automatic deductions based on the preference of the parishioner.
4.  If its not easy, people won't use it.   If you are making parishioners search for your website URL, or where to find it on the website, or you don't have your Online Giving on your Facebook page...  then you are missing opportunities for parishioners and even other community members to give.  Be easy to find.  Put the URL on your envelopes.  Tweet about Online Giving and put the link on Facebook and keep it up at the top of the page.  You want to attract your regular Mass attendees and also those who aren't as disciplined about their attendance.  Remember students away at school, or people who travel a great deal.

With a little attention,  your parish should see financial benefits to Online Giving.  And you may hear about how much people like the convenience of the tool!  Let us know your experience...

New study results: Online plus direct contributions are best

I was very interested to read the 2011 donorCentrics Internet and Multichannel Giving Benchmarking Report that was released recently from Target Analytics.   While this research is focused on fundraising of all types,  I think it applies to parish contributions.

Several points in the summary of findings are what we would expect:

• Online-acquired donors are significantly younger and tend to have higher household incomes that mail-acquired donors.
• Online-acquired donors tend to give much larger gifts than mail-acquired donors.

But here was one of the big points to note:

• Robust direct mail programs drive up the retention and long-term value of new donors acquired online. Without the ability to become multi-channel givers by renewing their support via direct mail, this group of donors would be worth far less. Other than monthly recurring giving programs, established direct mail programs area the best method for gaining repeat gifts from online-acquired donors.

 This next chart shows that while there is a significant percentage of online donations there is still a far greater percentage of donations from mail:

 

  So why do I think this is pertinent to parishes?  

          1.  Online giving attracts a younger and likely more affluent group of people.  While our data indicate that every age group uses Online Giving,  this is still our best way to engage younger people to contribute financially to our parishes.

          2.   We should continue to emphasize envelopes.  Think of them as ongoing direct mail.  Parishioners may want to use both Online Giving and Envelopes for various reasons. And if the parish has other projects then mail is a very effective medium. 

This is all kind of analytical -  in the end we must engage our parishioner base in our parish by focusing on our formation and by accomplishing our mission as Church.  At a more superficial level,  we do need to make the best use of the tools available to us.  This is also good stewardship!

Tell me how your parish makes use of electronic services, envelopes and direct mail...

 

Increase the Effectiveness of Online Giving; Advantages of Merchant Accounts

It's exciting to hear how parishes are using Online Giving!  Many are incorporating Online Giving with their new Faith In Action websites from Our Sunday Visitor for maximum impact.  We held a customer advisory panel meeting recently and heard an idea to get parishioners to give to special collections.  The parish sends out an email at the beginning of each month explaining which special or one-time collections are available that month for contributions.  This gives them an opportunity to encourage parishioners to give to those collections while also reminding them to sign in to make their donation.  Works great!.  That particular parish has seen steady growth and acceptance of Online Giving.

Also remember to thank your parishioners for using Online Giving.  Oh,  and while you are at it thank them for using envelopes!  This is an opportunity to explain why the parish encourages the use of these tools,  and how they help the parish.  Explain what's printed on the envelope and why.   Note the special box to check indicating "gave electronically"  so parishioners can participate in the liturgy.  Its possible to add other types of gifts to the envelope,  such as prayer or shared time that parishioners would like to note in addition to giving electronically.

Merchant Accounts

If you are evaluating your Merchant Account setup,  then remember to look at the cash flow and the timing of processing for your account.  With Online Giving you are assured that parishioner contributions are processed immediately and funds are not stored in escrow.  You also are assured that your parish risk is minimized.  In an environment where your provider is serving as the parish merchant of record, a problem at any parish is a problem for ALL parishes.  Its compounded if funds are stored in escrow.

As the merchant you also can incorporate other services to support your bookstore or possibly credit card scanners and be confident that you are both compliant and secure.

How are things working at your parish?  let us know!

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