Since Conversatio Morum is dedicated to Technology, Theology and Missiology we are taking time to talk about Church Relationship Management in Church (CRM in church) systems. When dealing with new visitors the most effective point of retention (i.e. having them come a second/third time and getting them to stay long-term), is follow-up. One of the biggest questions I find myself asking is “How do we get better at not letting visitors slip through the cracks?” “How do I make involvement in the life of a church easier?”
One day, while asking this question, since I’ve also:
- worked in a business world
- have a bent towards utilizing technology increase effectiveness in ministry
I thought of applying a tool that is used in business to increase effectiveness in ministry. A Client Relationship Management (CRM) system. I started with research. What I found out amazed me. I’m behind the curve, there were already a ton of companies that utilized CRM systems address this missiological problem of not following up. Many of them were re-branded to Church Management Systems, but essentially you’re dealing with the same things. The next several posts here will deal with:
- Different CRM’s and how to decide which are right for your organization
- Reasons not to use a CRM
- People Problems and Technology Solutions
The real point of this post isn’t to get into details with CRM’s, but to stress the heart behind it. CRM’s are tools to help fix a problem. The problem is that most church’s have a lack of follow-up/discipleship/body involvement. The heart behind this all is to follow-up. Follow-up fast, follow-up often, follow-up always. People want to go to your church. They want to be a part. That’s why they’re visiting in the first place. They are trying to see how they can be involved. How are you helping them answer those questions? How do you follow-up?