6. Give visitors more than one way to get information.
Connection cards and tear-off perforations are great ways for visitors to request information. Don’t stop there; also allow visitors to request information from home via a website form.
7. Encourage members to invite guests out for lunch.
As a church, be willing to help pay for these lunches so that members can actively seek out new visitors and start relationships with them. So many people visit a church and then spend the rest of their week alone, but a church family can bring community into a visitor’s life.
8. Remove confusing church lingo from your printed materials.
From your brochure to your connection card, make sure everything is easily understood by visitors who may not be familiar with church in general. People who don’t understand the Lord’s Supper may be confused if you talk about drinking the blood, and if your connection card refers to “being saved,” a visitor’s first thought might be: “Saved from what, exactly?” Have multiple people, even unchurched friends, read your materials before you send them to press.
9. Invite the visitor back.
Their first visit may have happened simply because they wanted to visit, but will they come back? If they feel like no one noticed they were there, it’s not likely. Make sure every first-time visitor receives an invitation to come back next week. The greeters, welcome team, members and pastors can all be a part of this initiative.
10. Follow up, but not in a way that could come off as pushy.
However, if a visitor gives you their information, make sure someone follows up within 48 hours. (I’d recommend sticking to an email or quick phone call and avoid the house visit unless they specifically asked for one.) I once visited a church, turned in a connection card and never heard from the church. So a few visits later, I filled out another card. To this day, I’ve never been contacted by that church. It was weird, and I felt unwelcome and even rejected.
A lot of this you’ve probably heard before, but are you doing simple things like this for your visitors? If not, this Sunday is a great time to start.
