Each One Reach One
The “Why” Behind the Course
Are you tired of passing the plate and sending out reminders to give? Has it lost its spark, and maybe even its meaning? If so, then this innovative campaign is just what you need to get your donors giving with joy (and a little healthy competition). With this campaign we take the biblical call to witness, and use that premise as a way to further the work of God in our churches and community. This is a format that can be edited to suit the needs of your specific organization. Follow the guidelines below, and feel free to reach out to us with any questions or for inspiration! Just send us an email at Morgan@Donorwerx.com.
Table of Contents
What is Peer to Peer Giving?
Peer to peer giving puts the power back into the hands of your congregation! This format lets different groups of donors decide what cause is the most important to them. If they don’t know, just ask them what has been on their heart lately! Each peer group will compete to earn the most donations for their specific cause. It is always fun to celebrate the winning group, and all of the participants.
Presenting the Campaign to your Congregation:
As a church leader, it is entirely up to you as to how to do this. However, there are several suggestions outlined below for you to choose from, if you so choose.
1. Advertise with Fliers Around the Church
2. Meet with group leaders and let them decide how they want to introduce this campaign to the specific groups that they lead.
3. Start posting on your socials about giving
4. Start a Sermon Series about Giving with Joy
How to Choose my Groups?
This specific question is something that only you, or your ministry team, can answer. There are many different ways that you can roll out this giving campaign. There are several sample groups listed below, but feel free to make your own.
1. Divide by small groups within your church
2. Divide into groups based on the time that they attend the Sunday Sermon
3. By Sunday School Class
4. By age
5. By gender
Give your Groups Autonomy!
Letting your groups choose where their donations go is a critical part of this campaign. Whether it is the music ministry, a food pantry, or the building fund there is always a need. And where there’s a need - there’s a way! You can offer a list for groups to choose from, or they can choose themselves. If two groups choose the same cause, no worries, that just heightens the competition.
Length of the Campaign
The length of this campaign depends on how many groups you have and what you, as a church, want to do. Teams will need at least 5 meetings (Sundays or Wednesdays make this easy) to come up with a strategy!
Sample Introduction:
Once you have chosen how you would like to arrange your groups, then it is time to get this giving campaign started! There are several ways that this can be accomplished. The most important thing is to assign roles for the group. The group will certainly need a leader (who is in charge of leading the meetings, deciding who talks when, and making sure that the meetings are held consistently and that the group is meeting the goals). The group will also need a recorder, whether it is for a brainstorming session or just to write down what happens in each meeting - > this is a crucial piece as the notes should be sent out to those who didn’t attend. The group will need backup roles for each of these positions. Contingent on the size of your groups, you may want to divide the room up into smaller cohorts. If this is the case, you will need a leader and a recorder for each. For example, if your groups consist of ministry teams in a congregation of about 500, you should be fine with one leader and one recorder. If your base is much larger than this, it will be necessary to divide and conquer. Feel free to be as creative as possible with this piece. Then the donors need to choose a cause that is important to them. Again, there are many different ways that this can be done, but here are a few examples:
- List different ministries or causes and draw at random from a hat
- Have the members of the group brainstorm causes that are important to them
- Each group can choose one cause and stick with it - or the causes can rotate bimonthly
- The entire church can choose one cause and this could be made into a competition with some fun prizes for the group who raises the most money
My Congregation has been divided into groups and chosen their cause - now what?
Before we dive right into this section, I just want to say that this, like every section, is a suggestion. You may have enthusiastic planners who will take the reins and move forward with this without any other intervention. However, if this isn’t the case, the following is a road map that will help your organization surpass its donation goals.
Suggested Road Map: When Each Group Has a Different Cause
1. Teams pick their cause and assign leaders
2. Teams decide when their weekly meetings should be held (understandably many of these meetings will be held during Sunday School or on Wednesday nights, due to this, we don’t want the time frame to take up the entire hour of your Bible study)
3. At the start of each meeting, teams should give a weekly report of money raised and earned and have a quick team meeting about how to raise more
4. One way to make this “more fun” is to have team names or team t-shirts. We know that this may not work for every church, but if there is some money for this in the budget then it adds an extra flair to the campaign.
5. Additionally, thinking of little “door prizes” for specific teams is also important. These should not just be based on which team raises the most money (even though that it the goal) but should be broader than that. Some suggested categories are:
a. Most energetic
b. Most punctual
c. Most creative
d. Most organized
Prizes can be anything from a church bracelet, cup, or even coupons from businesses in
the community.
But how does - Each One, Reach One really work?
Session Two:
1. The second meeting (in the first you decided which cause your group wanted to prioritize and picked leaders) is all about strategy.
2. Entrance Slip: Hand each group member a sticky note. As they sit down, have them write down their goals for this giving campaign.
3. Read all of the goals out loud and try to put them into a few main categories. This will be an activity that is repeated each section (don’t take down the post-its if you don’t have to - it will be a fun activity to chart all of the progress your small groups have made)
4. What is your monetary goal? Dream big! This should be a discussion that is facilitated by the leader and recorded by the recorder. Some sample leading questions to get the group thinking:
a. If you had a limitless amount of money, but could only accomplish one giving goal - what would that be and why?
b. Is there something about ________ that you have always wanted to change? Could a giving goal help do this?
c. What are some easy ways to make _______ more fun? Approachable? Modern?
d. If you had a finite amount of money (name what works for your organization) what would be the top three fixes to _________ that you would focus on - and why?
As always, feel free to come up with your own questions - or have the group members submit sample questions as well. Remember at DonorWerx, we want your giving groups to be involved, feel seen, feel heard, and give with joy! Giving them the reins with this campaign is a great way to start rebuilding your relationship with your donors. Each member of your congregation has a God-given talent and this is the time to let those talents shine!
5. Now that you have addressed some of these issues - come up with a number. Write it down on the board, and leave it there to stay. A fun activity for this (if time allows) would be to have the group construct a giving thermometer. These thermometers will help keep the group motivated and engaged and will be something fun and tangible to update at the start of each meeting!
6. Close the meeting - but send your members home with the job of brainstorming new donors to help with your cause! Thank them for their work, and be sure to emphasize that you could not have done this without them! Get them excited for the next session!
7. On a white board, or virtually, each member of the team should list out suggestions as to people in their community who might be passionate about their specific cause.
8. Start Out by writing down: What makes a joyful donor? When do I feel the best about my offering?
Session Three:
1. Have each member of the group try to think of at least three answers to the question about.
2. Afterwards, read the entire list outloud to your group.
3. Address the group: “Now that we have identified our joyful donors, let’s think about the opposite.” On the board write down: What makes donating frustrating? What are some of the reasons that I haven’t given as much as I should or could have?
4. Explain that this is a judgment free zone. However, if you are worried about people shying away from answering these questions, then you can have them write their answers on identical slips of paper, fold them, and place them in a container. For this activity to work, you will need to read each answer out to the group. Have the recorder write the reasons on the whiteboard.
5. After the “negatives” are listed, this is a good time for prayerful consideration. Don’t have your members raise their hands to chime in different ways to immediately “fix” these issues. As a group, you must acknowledge that these are legitimate feelings and also lived experiences by other members. These have value, and we cannot grow as a church if we do not face the hard questions and think about how we can bring about change.
6. The group's “homework” for the next meeting will be to pray on, and think about, these negatives. Allow God to speak and to direct their path as to the best way to handle or address them. Your next weekly session will begin with an anonymous entrance slip where these questions will be addressed.
7. End on a high note! Every day is not easy, and neither is a giving campaign. Redirect your members’ attention to the “joyful donor” board. These are already donors and givers in your community. For the last activity of this session, have your group members brainstorm where they may be able to find “joyful donors” in their communities. Think about where they go to school, work, volunteer, where their children attend extra-curricular activities - the sky's the limit!
Session Four:
1. This session is arguably one of the most important. It is where everything starts to come together!
2. First - you can either have an entrance slip activity for suggestions regarding the negative feelings that can sometimes be associated with giving, especially when donors do not believe in the organization or when money may be too tight.
3. The suggestions can be written on slips of paper, or if your group is composed of a dynamic that is compatible, have these suggestions listed on the whiteboard.
4. Now may be a good time to facilitate a discussion around some of the things that your group members have listed.
5. After your discussion, it is time to make connections!
6. If you were able to save the information from your joyful donor sessions, take this information and put it on the right side of the board and the negatives on the left.
7. As a group brainstorm and draw physical lines between the two with the connections and solutions.
8. Have your group discuss these connections.
9. After this discussion, start brainstorming how your giving campaign will be organized. You have identified your joyful donors, your not-so joyful donors, and you have come up with solutions for both.
10. By the end of this session you should have a rough idea of how your giving campaign should work. Homework for today’s session is to think about the logistics of the campaign and to come to the next session with concrete ideas and open minds and hearts.
Session Five:
1. This is it! You’ve made it! It is time to put boots on the ground and create a road map.
2. This part of the journey will look very different for each group, and some groups may need extra help thinking about how to bring this to fruition.
3. There are a few basic types of outreach that your groups can focus on - if they are struggling to come up with them:
a. Virtual Outreach
i ) Virtual outreach can be done via social media, email, or texting.
ii ) Once your groups have identified their target donors, they can begin posting on their facebook, instagram, etc about the campaign (some of these sites will even help you set up a fundraiser)
iii ) Older participants may feel more comfortable going through their email contacts and cell numbers - sending a quick text or email is a quick way to reach out to potential donors, but also to reconnect with friends with whom you may have lost touch
b. Physical Outreach
i ) Take to the streets!
ii ) Pick a time and location (or several)
iii ) Have your team show up with posters ready to promote their cause
iv ) Canvas the area, promote your cause, and collect donations
c. Circle Outreach
i ) This is one of the easier ways to reach potential donors
ii ) Group members are encouraged to think of a certain number of people in their
different communities or circles - someone from the gym, from school, from work, etc
ii ) Group members will reach out to these people in their preferred way and discuss their cause
4. Some additional things that the group may want to consider is the way in which they want to collect their donations.
5. Different ways to collect donations:
a. Venmo/Paypal/Zelle, etc
b. Crypto
c. Cash/Check
d. Another online platform
6. Questions to consider when construction your groups “Road Map”
a ) How long will this campaign last (this should be relatively the same among all group types in order to make the competition fun)
b ) Write down what each member plans to do each week
c ) Will your team members work together or individually
d ) How will you “advertise” your cause (online, physically, with posters, with fun promo videos at church, etc)
7. Once your team's roadmap is completed (this may take more than one session) it is time to get to work!
Something fun that you can add here or at the end of your campaign (or both) is to have certain groups share their process and also share their roadmaps. This chance to present and share with the other groups or with the congregation. Sharing and Enthusiasm are contagious! Make others excited about what your church can accomplish during this campaign!
Session Six:
1. This may be your second session working on your roadmaps, or it could be your first session after a week of campaigning and giving! The following notes are the suggestions for your first session after your first week of giving!
2. The important thing here is to keep the momentum going! You want your giving groups to stay motivated, enthusiastic, and passionate about raising money to further the kingdom of God
3. There is no room for negativity in this session, that will be built in to later sessions, where group members will be encouraged to reflect on failures and work on solutions.
4. Tell your group members that today is all about celebrating. There is nothing so small that it isn’t worth sharing!
5. On the board you can write something like: “Accomplishments” “Joyful Jobs Well Done” “Look What God has Done” “Celebrate” and then give each member a different color marker.
Have the members come up to the board and write AT LEAST three positive experiences they have had this week with joyful giving.
Sessions Seven, Eight, and Nine
1. These sessions will all be similar.
2. Your number one goal is to keep the momentum going!
3. It is up to your church as to how you continue working through this giving campaign and below are a few examples.
Example One:
1. Start each meeting on a high note! Leave a space on the board for your members to write their biggest achievements in attracting joyful donors for the week. At the start of each meeting you can review all of the positives.
2. Incorporate these positives into your Bible study sessions!
3. You can create your own lessons based on the teachings of Jesus and how He encouraged us to give with joy!
4. If you want to add an extra challenge to your Bible study, encourage your group members to find verses that are meaningful to them and have really stood out throughout the course of this journey.
5. Remember, the purpose of each Donorwerx campaign is to be donor centric - give your giving groups autonomy and let them share and testify during these sessions.
Example Two:
1. This example is relevant if your church is beginning a new sermon or Bible study series.
2. Start each meeting with a show of hands and let your giving group members share what God has done this week.
3. After sharing, continue on with your Bible study or sermon series.
4. Even though this example is a more hands-off approach, it is important to start each of your meetings with a recap - keep the momentum going!
Example Three:
1. This example works best for groups that are driven or are part of your ministry teams at the church.
2. Follow the steps from example one, but add the following as well.
3. It is very likely that this is one of your first DonorWerx giving campaigns. As easy as it is to follow these campaigns, there is still the element of customization - remember, every church is different!
4. While you have the positives listed on one side of the board, designate two other spaces where your giving group members will be able to write.
5. The second space should be a place where members can list frustrations with the campaign and the third will be designated for new ideas or solutions to these frustrations.
6. Think of your “classroom” as a museum. It is important to get your group members up and walking. Have them tour the room quietly, reflecting on the positives, the frustrations, and the solutions.
7. If each one of your ministry teams are working on their own caveat, it is also helpful to hold a church wide museum walk for your ministry teams. This will help them brainstorm and collaborate with other group members. You can choose to do this once, or every week contingent on your church and your specific needs. ***we highly recommend having your ministry leaders participate in this museum walk first so that they can properly model this for your next campaign, or future iterations of this campaign.
Closing thoughts for these sessions:
1. There should be time set aside during each session to go over money raised and giving your group members time to share their triumphs.
2. It is important to focus on meeting your goals, but on the off chance you do not, there is still room for celebration. Remember what the Gospel tells us in Luke 21 “He [Jesus] also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 'Truly I tell you,' he said, 'this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.
'
3. Implement little ways to reward your groups as they make progress. This could be as simple as highlighting their successes in your sermons, or allowing them to share their lived experiences with other groups.
4. Keep that donation thermometer (or however you choose to keep track of your donations) visible and updated. This will create enthusiasm within your groups and also within other members of your church who may not be participating in this campaign. Let them see the good work that everyone is doing!
5. Set a firm stop date. At DonorWerx we recommend that your giving campaigns last no longer than 60-70 days. This helps to avoid burnout and repetition, which can lead to apathy in giving. Even if you are seeing tremendous results, remember that another giving campaign is just around the corner!
Final Session and Concluding Remarks
1. This session should be a CELEBRATION!
2. Your giving groups have worked incredibly hard these past few months and deserve to be recognized.
3. This is a good place to use the Donor Personality Types - assign each group a type and create awards based on this! See our sample awards folder that you receive with the purchase of this course or make your own!
4. This session should be filled with positivity, humility, and appreciation.
5. Group members should have the chance to share their experiences with the larger congregation as well - get your other members excited to be a part of this experience!
6. Remember - joy is contagious!
7. It is always fun to end on a cliffhanger, so let them know that this campaign was just the beginning and that in a few weeks they should ready themselves to Do More Good. Better!
Thank you
As always, thank you so much for choosing DonorWerx! We sincerely appreciate all of our clients and hope that completing this giving campaign was just as fulfilling as it was for us to create! Be blessed!