Pledge Campaign: should you D-I-Y, buy the book, or hire a pro?
We often get asked which type of pledge campaign we recommend. There are a lot of options, and one size doesn’t fit all. Join us for a free webinar on pledge campaign best practices on September 18, 2024!
The “Do It Yourself” Pledge Campaign
Cesie Delve Scheuermann, author of our favorite stewardship blog Inspiring Generosity, writes: “This can be as creative as you like. I’ve heard about congregations who do their own NPR-like pledge drives. Or – I did this one year – base a pledge campaign on a series of videos (e.g. I Like Giving). You can line up spoken and written testimonials from people in and beyond the walls of your congregation who have been impacted by your congregation. Get your most enthusiastic givers together in a committee and unleash their creativity.” Other resources of Cesie’s that might be helpful if you’re considering this route include:
The D-I-Y approach may cost the least upfront (unless you have expensive ideas), but it’s not something to attempt without a solid team and a lot of volunteer energy. Like so many things in life, you get out what you put into it, and a lack energy in this area will almost always correspond to insufficient funding.
The “Buy the Book” pledge campaign
Rev. Dr. Ken Sloan, Director of Stewardship & Generosity at Discipleship Ministries of The United Methodist Church, put together a handy comparison chart of five stewardship programs (including his top three favorites:
Earn Save Give, Treasure, and Defying Gravity). He also offered a webinar called Making the Annual Campaign Your Own which may be a helpful resource, especially for leaders who are looking to adapt existing materials for their context.
Buying a book and following its prescribed program isn’t terribly expensive, and it generally takes less time, effort, and brain power for the leadership team than either the D-I-Y approach or the Hire a Pro approach, which is probably why these books are so popular.
The “Hire a Pro” pledge campaign
The sticker shock is real, but if you can afford it, outside expertise can be powerful. The Next Level Generosity program by Horizons provides church leaders with robust education and coaching, a personalized strategy, and a yearlong followup period. This process has helped more than 10,000 churches and faith-based nonprofits raise more than $10B for ministry for more than 30 years.
The lowest possible cost for this program is $10,000 (for a church whose budget is $100,000-$200,000). Bigger budgets correspond with higher costs; churches with annual budgets below 100K shouldn’t consider this type of consulting program. Keep in mind that this strategy’s higher price tag doesn’t necessarily correspond with a lower demand on the time of staff and volunteers; professional fundraisers need to work in close partnership with local leaders to get results. The team at Horizons is focused not only on raising the money this year, but on increasing your capacity to do so in future years. If you need to fund a large budget, the investment in expert consulting may be well worth the cost.