Church Contribution Statements – Reasons To Communicate

Sending church contribution statements with a letter from the pastor at the end of the year.

Most churches only do the minimum.  At the same time, they struggle with great reasons to communicate with their congregation.

But we can do better!

You saw The Notebook, right? The movie based on the romantic novel by Nicholas Sparks.  In the movie, there is a scene where Allie, the lead female character, learns that Noah, the male lead, had written letters to her for a whole year! 365 letters!  Each letter contained not only the love that Noah had for her, but also stories of what he had been up to and how much he missed Allie. 

So, what does this have to do with our Annual Contribution Statement?

Don’t send the boring annual contribution statements. We want to challenge you to do something far more meaningful (and helpful).

Send Quarterly Contribution Statements. Four times a year, communicate with your donors and let them know where they stand. Take the time to tell them how their contributions are making a difference, show them what’s happening with the money. Say thank you.

It’s just that simple. 

Here are some tips for sending quarterly contribution statements:

1. In April, send a letter from the pastor along with a year-to-date contribution statement. Let them know they will get an official statement at the end of the year for tax purposes, but you just wanted to let them know what’s happened so far.
2. In July, send a one-page letter that’s mostly a picture. Find a picture that communicates your vision…maybe all of the students on the mission trip or a small group serving in the community. Write a caption that says, “Just wanted to let you know your giving makes this happen.”
3. In October, send a testimony or a story from someone who has been impacted by the church. Leave off the bullet points and let someone talk in their own words. Include a giving update.
4. In January, send the official statement along with an annual report. People kind of expect this so work hard to make it meaningful. Just think about what YOU would want to get from an organization you support.
   Do you see how powerful this can be?
5. Instead of communicating boring information once a year, you are connecting the dots for people. You are expressing the joy that their donation brings.