Personalization: The Secret of Giver Connection

This is the second is a series of 6 posts on growing generosity in the digital age. Start at the beginning: How to Nurture Generosity in the New Digital World.

We all know that when it comes to connecting with your givers in our highly technical world, even the best software can’t replace the personal touch. But knowing every member well and staying connected isn’t easy. So, what’s the secret to accomplishing it? Personalization.

The Power of Personalized Connections

Ever wonder what’s behind the unprecedented growth of the largest companies in the world? It’s clear that personalized communications and recommendations enable them to successfully engage with consumers online.

Think about Netflix, Amazon, Google or Facebook, for instance. We’ve all been moved to take action by brands that strategically put the specific products and services that interest us where we will see them.

And here’s the surprising truth: Your givers don’t simply accept that their data will be used by brands they interact with to deliver personalized communications that enhance their experiences. They expect and embrace it — even from the church. Givers believe technology can deepen their engagement with the church they love. And they know it will help them connect with initiatives in the church they are most interested in.

Regardless of what you may think of these organizations’ tactics, they offer valuable lessons that churches can apply to givers’ spiritual and stewardship growth. That is to say: It’s time for churches to harness this technology for the kingdom.

How Personalization Works

When organizations tailor their messages to each individual person’s specific interests and needs, they grow … organically and sometimes exponentially.

Commercial brands manage this connection through complex algorithms that follow and can even exploit consumers’ online behavior in every area of their lives. In the church, however, we’re not talking about anything so potentially sinister and invasive.

Instead, this simple diagram offers a surprisingly deep understanding of your givers. It also contains the strategy for using technology to reach them at each stage of their giving growth. We call this journey the Giver Lifecycle.

The Giver Lifecycle applies biblical principles of giving along with your own church’s impact to move members at every stage not just to give, but to invest in their church’s mission. Above all, if you want them to grow their generosity to that level, they must be connected!

In our next post, The Giver Lifecycle: How to Encourage New and Infrequent Givers, we’ll take a dive into the first two phases of the Giver Lifecycle.

Or download How to Nurture Generosity in the New Digital World to get access to the expanded version of the entire series in one printable PDF.