How To Beat the Church Giving Summer Slump
If you work in a church environment, you have likely heard plenty of discussion about the “summer slump.” This phenomenon occurs when church members spend more time than usual away from church during the summer months. Whether they’re traveling for vacation, spending weekends at the lake, or simply focusing on family time, many people have reasons to miss Sunday service during June, July, and August.
Unfortunately, their lack of attendance brings with it a dip in church giving. That can be a significant problem for a church’s finances, particularly if a place of worship is already having trouble making ends meet.
The Struggle Is Real
As much as we may like for it to be fictional, the summer slump is not an old wives’ tale. Many places of worship do experience a significant dip in church giving during the summer months. Take these statistics for instance:
Church contributions in summer 2013 were down 13% (Fellowship One)
Check offerings in July are generally 40% below April and December levels (Vanco)
What is the answer? How can you stop the summer slump from happening — or at the very least make the slump less drastic for your church?
What You Can Do
It may seem like the most logical approach, but asking for more money during summer church services is not going to help. Why? Because you would literally be “preaching to the choir.” The people who are currently in church are not the reason your funds are dipping low. It is because members who normally attend and give regularly are not present.
What other options do you have? Well, here are a few that could help you reach members while they are away:
- Encourage giving in your church’s social media posts
- Discuss giving options in your email newsletter
- Offer a mobile giving option to your members
The latter would be particularly helpful for your churchgoers, because mobile giving apps allow giving from anywhere at any time. Your most devoted members could pull out their smartphone while on vacation and still make their offering, despite being miles away.
Boost Summer Church Giving With Givelify
By using Givelify to stimulate church giving at your place of worship, you can decrease the summer slump effect. In fact, Givelify member churches have reported a 20-30% increase in church giving, even during the summer!
Dr. Robert Scott of Central Baptist Church in Saint Louis had this to say about using Givelify at his church:
A 20% percent increase in giving in summer months is not a trend we predicted at the start of the year. Our members are very grateful to us for providing them with this easy and convenient option to give on the go using Givelify.
Pastor Raymond Walker of Greater Paradise Worship Center in Phoenix, Arizona had a similar story to tell:
The members love [Givelify]. It’s boosted our giving 20-30%. It beats credit cards, it beats over the table giving. It’s blowing everything out of the water.