More Details About Ministry Metrics
3. Pickup
Having to wait after worship can be even more frustrating than before service. Families are ready to see their kids…ready to go eat…ready to get home. How long do parents have to wait to get their child? Are they getting impatient?
One way to shorten pick-up time is by being prepared. Have someone inform you about how far along the adult service is so you know when to wrap up. Also have someone give you 10- and 5-minute warnings.
When parents arrive is not the time to start organizing take-home papers or start wrapping up the lesson. Have everything wrapped up and ready before the first parent comes to the door.
Another solution: Place the take-home papers outside the classroom. We hung clotheslines on the wall outside the door, where we hang papers for parents.
Finally, honor volunteer-to-child ratios and room capacities. If a room is overcrowded and volunteers are overwhelmed, pickup takes longer.
Recently I timed how long it took parents to pick-up 4-year-olds at one of our campuses. It took 6.5 minutes from the back of the line to the door. Not good! The big reason? The other 4-year-old room wasn’t open. We corrected this, and last week it was down to 3.5 minutes. Better, but I hope to get it down to two minutes or less.
Why do ministry metrics matter? Guests decide in the first eight minutes whether or not they will return to your church. You don’t want them spending those minutes waiting in line.
