{"id":13431,"date":"2008-04-08T09:12:31","date_gmt":"2008-04-08T09:12:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/2008\/04\/08\/q1-8\/"},"modified":"2008-04-08T09:12:31","modified_gmt":"2008-04-08T09:12:31","slug":"q1-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianitytoday.com\/pastors\/content\/q1-8\/","title":{"rendered":"What are ways a church can boost attendance without raising its budget?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Growth in worship attendance falls into one of two categories:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Increasing attendance among those who already attend.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Increasing the number of people who attend for the first time.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    For those already attending:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
      \n
    • \nRenew membership vows.<\/em> Every four years, ask members to recommit, in a\npublic ceremony, to the vows they made when joining the church.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • \nSet personal attendance goals.<\/em> Members often are asked to make faithpledges\nwith their money. Why not with their attendance? Experience has\nshown attendance jumps by at least 10 percent.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • \nPreach to answer people’s questions.<\/em> Take a survey and ask three\nquestions: “What do you wonder about most?” “What do you worry about\nmost?” “What do you wish for most?” Then give them God’s answers.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • \nTell people they were missed.<\/em> When regular attenders miss a Sunday, drop\nthem a card or e-mail and let them know they’re an important part of the\nchurch\u2014and are missed when they’re gone.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      For new attenders:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
        \n
      • \nAdd a new service.<\/em> According to Lyle Schaller, half of all churches in the U.S.\nshould add a new service\u2014and most will experience growth as a result.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • \nHold more special-event Sundays.<\/em> We all know what happens at a special\nevent\u2014more people come. So, plan 15 to 20 per year!<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • \nImprove your website.<\/em> More than 60 percent of people visit a church’s website before they visit their physical site. Put a “Visitors & Guests” link prominently on\nthe home page.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • \nIncrease your community visibility.<\/em> Conduct 3 to 4 “Entry Events” each year\u2014\nhigh-visibility events of interest to unchurched people in your community.\nGet names and addresses and then invite them to relevant “Entry Paths,”\nwhere they can make friends and build relationships.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        Growth in worship attendance falls into one of two categories: For those already attending: For new attenders:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"tax_ctp_authors":[1081],"tax_ctp_books":[],"tax_ctp_categories":[154,160],"tax_ctp_field_guide_subcategory":[],"tax_ctp_field_guides":[],"tax_ctp_format":[131],"tax_ctp_multimedia":[],"tax_ctp_point_editor":[],"tax_publications":[156],"tax_ctp_tags":[3533,3604,3608,3609,4488,4652,4708],"tax_ctp_topics":[],"class_list":["post-13431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tax_ctp_authors-charles-arn","tax_publications-leadership-journal","tax_ctp_tags-business","tax_ctp_tags-church-attendance","tax_ctp_tags-church-finances","tax_ctp_tags-church-growth","tax_ctp_tags-money","tax_ctp_tags-planning","tax_ctp_tags-priorities"],"acf":{"scripture_references":null},"yoast_head":"\nWhat are ways a church can boost attendance without raising its budget? - CT Pastors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Growth in worship attendance falls into one of two categories: Increasing attendance among those who already attend. 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