Summertime is the season of relaxation, days at the pool, and family vacations. What’s not to love? But summer can be a challenge for churches and for church staff. All the things that make summer great tend to have a negative impact on church attendance — and when attendance drops, church giving often drops right along with it.

The challenge for church leaders, then, is staying present in the minds of their members, even when those parishioners aren’t present. The good news: technology offers many ways to do just that, with avenues of influence that previous generations of church leaders didn’t have available to them.

Implement Mobile Giving (and Promote It Constantly)

If summer offerings are typically low at your church, point your congregation toward mobile giving as the solution. Open up this important avenue for giving right away so that members can give from wherever they are — even Hawaii! About 54% of offerings made through the Givelify mobile giving platform occurred two or more miles away from the church building, and on average the amounts are higher than those made by people who are located in church.

That’s why implementing a mobile giving platform like Givelify is a no-brainer and will make an immediate difference. For maximum impact, make sure you are regularly informing your congregation of the option and its benefits. Promote Givelify during services every week, in your bulletin and email newsletter, and by sharing social posts from Givelify that help remind your members to give remotely.

When the time comes for their summer vacation, they will be informed and prepared to remain faithful in giving.

Maintain a Digital Presence with Social Media

Think about the last time you took a vacation. Unless it was an ultra-remote getaway, you still checked your social media, didn’t you? Your members are doing the exact same thing. After a day at the theme park, families crash at the hotel and out come the phones and tablets.

Reach into your members’ lives digitally by maintaining an active social media presence. Post pictures with quotations from the week’s message or updates on recent church events. Better yet, post audio or video snippets from the week’s sermon. You can even use your phone to post a quick video of a leader sharing a devotional thought. Use a combination of these digital strategies to keep your ministry — and its message — in front of your members while they’re away.

Social media is also a great way to remind parishioners about your mobile giving solution. With Givelify, you can add a ‘Donate’ button to your Facebook profile that leads directly to your giving page. Using our convenient social giving link in your social media posts, you can also give members access to mobile giving with just one click. You can even include the link in your e-mail newsletter!

Promote Recurring Mobile Giving As the Optimal Method

Another fantastic Givelify feature that is perfect for summer travelers is recurring mobile offerings. Members who set up recurring giving don’t even have to remember to give from afar; it happens automatically! Users can schedule their gifts to coincide with their paychecks, which eliminates the temptation to spend their offering money between payday and Sunday.

When your members are traveling, they can rest assured that their offerings will come in regularly without fail. When you promote mobile giving to your congregation, be sure to highlight this important and convenient feature.

Just because people aren’t present doesn’t mean they have forgotten. Absent members really do want to continue their contributions and giving throughout the year — especially when they are away from Sunday service. Make it easy for them with Givelify and you’ll be able to stay connected year-round.