Is your church struggling to make decisions given all the uncertainty of the times? Can you afford to move forward with your building plans, or should they be delayed for another year? Should you be expanding your youth ministry staff or the programs and services for the seniors of your church? The decisions you’re making now could seriously impact the future of your ministry.
How can you be sure that you’re making the best decisions and not just addressing the “squeakiest wheel” on the committee? The answer is data. Data from your church and community will help you make informed decisions based on real information. Your church may be using church management software that allows you to track online church giving, attendance (by service, groups, or programs), church volunteer rates, family and congregant information, etc., but is that enough? What about the data on your community overall? And how does your church information compare to your community data?
If you had this data, how could you use it?
- Identifying population growth could help determine where to build a church or where to move resources (dollars or staff) to accommodate the needs stemming from growth.
- Knowing where your donors and volunteers live (or cluster) could determine your outreach efforts’ best areas.
- Understanding the area you serve would better enable you to provide services and programs that are best suited to meet the needs of those who live there.
- Identifying areas where gaps in presence or services exist enable you to focus your mission’s efforts.
- Understanding your congregants beyond the necessary information they provide allows you to tell your story related to each demographic.
It is easy to see how this data would help with decisions around making investments in your facilities, programs, and staffing. It would also help make decisions regarding the future growth and focus of your ministry. Take a minute to see what other information can be unlocked to further your ministry.
