17/10/2024
Christmas is a time when we normally see more people attending our church services, perhaps for the first time. You might have extra events – from carol concerts to crib services – and so you will be planning for an increased footfall throughout the Advent and Christmas weeks. Along with the joy and bustle of Christmas, there is also a sense of generosity and often people are grateful for an opportunity to give to their local church and community.
Read on to find guidance and ideas to encourage that generosity through digital giving in your church during the festive period.
Getting started with online giving
While we aim to celebrate where we can in one place, we also need to engage with a wider community that wants to join in the celebration but may not be able to attend. Online giving enables people to give to your church without having to physically visit the building and also allows you to create QR codes to share on posters in church and on flyers to take away.
Parish Buying offers a choice of two affordable and simple providers for online giving: Give A Little and Parish Giving Scheme. There’s plenty of guidance and step-by-step videos on the Parish Buying website to help you get set up. For all the information you need to get started, please see our webpage dedicated to online giving on Parish Buying.
Please note that if you choose to use Give A Little, you will also need to set up an account with a payment processor. Stripe facilitates online giving/QR codes and SumUp facilitates both online and contactless giving.
Get creative with QR codes
QR codes are images that, when scanned on a phone or tablet, take a person directly to a specific website page. QR codes are a contactless and safe way to share your online giving page. If you have a Give A Little online giving page, the platform generates a QR code for you that you can download and advertise to send people to your giving page.
You can add your QR code to posters, pew cards, order of service sheets, Christmas cards – in fact anything printable – or even display it on a screen. Make sure you include your QR code on a PowerPoint slide to encourage giving for those streaming services from home. For extra creativity, why not try using Canva to make colourful Christmas posters with your QR code! Below we have shared some creative, festive templates created by York Diocese.
Consider contactless giving
Christmas is a time when churches host many visitors, some of whom may have never attended a church before. Having a contactless donation device creates an easy opportunity for visitors to donate, particularly if they aren’t carrying cash.
It’s worth considering the benefits of contactless giving, especially the instant and spontaneous donations it allows. If your church wants to invest in a contactless donation device, please visit our Parish Buying page to browse a range of options that you can purchase at a discounted price.
Email a giving appeal in your newsletter
Make sure to share a link to your online giving page in your email newsletter or digital service sheets if you have them. Below is some suggested wording that you may wish to use:
Giving to St Barts this Christmas
We are grateful for all that you have given this year to sustain the life, mission and ministry of this church [Include a sentence here about what giving to the church has funded this year, or what the annual running costs of the church are]. If you are able to give at this time, we would be really grateful for your support. Please visit our online giving page to make a donation. Thank you.
Make a gift to St Barts this Christmas (include link to online giving page).
More giving tips from St Peter’s with St Mark’s, Furze Platt, Maidenhead
Does your church use a CollecTin or other contactless giving device? Furze Platt is a church in the suburbs of Maidenhead that received a CollecTin in the Digital Giving Rollout in Oxford in November 2022. They share some top tips on making the most of the device:
"Experiment with the best position for the machine to optimise visibility with adequate privacy when giving. We usually put the terminal in a corridor, but in an area where people usually circulate during coffee after the service. This means it is always visible, and therefore a reminder after the service, with people using it at convenient moments. We found that putting it immediately near the door out of which people stream when they leave a service, meant that many people just swept past it... For events with many visitors who are not staying, such as special services, we do however put it outside of the nave doors. Positioning needs careful thought for each type of service.
Use 'Fast Mode' to reduce required level of interaction. It can be very painful to see people trying to enter text, such as email addresses, or names etc. on the small screen. This process is also very slow, during which the opportunity for others to use it is lost.
Encourage regular ad-hoc givers to use the online system, or regular giving system, where submitting gift aid details etc., as this does not block the terminal.
Despite having instructions near the terminal, have someone available to help if required, or if someone is seen to be struggling.”
Downloadable resources
The Dioceses of York and Ely have put together a range of Canva templates which you are welcome to edit and download. Click here for a poster template for QR code giving, here for a sample post card with space to share your QR code, and here for a background for a Give A Little campaign background.
The National Giving team are here to support you as you encourage giving in your church at Christmas or at any time in the year. Visit Building a Generous Church for a wide variety of resources, guidance and inspiration.
- Digital Giving Team
