church mystery guest program – Faith Perceptions Blog

lightstock_115845_full_kate This is the second post in a two-part series. In our first post, we discussed why church sign-in books are ineffective at collecting guest information. In summary, they’re limited in space, people forget to pass them around, and visitors may not want to broadcast their contact information to everyone. For these, and many other reasons, we recommend ditching the sign-in book in favor of something more meaningful: a connect card. One of our unchurched mystery guests visited a church and told us:

“There was a card in the bulletin where you could leave your information, request contact, and/or leave any other note needed to be relayed and someone would follow-up from the church office. I think this is a better idea than the sign-in book that some churches have because it allows one to write freely without having the next signer privy to the information.”

What is a Connect Card?

A connect card allows you to collect guest information in a way that makes everyone feel more connected (and comfortable!). Although a connect card still asks for basic information, such as their name and contact information, it digs deeper to find out why your guests are there and what next steps they’d like to take. You can include spaces to indicate aspects of your church they may want to learn more about, such as questions about faith in general, youth ministries, Bible studies, and more.

What’s in a Name?

Even if you ditch the sign-in book in favor of a card, you may be tempted to call it a “guest card”, “visitor information card”, “registration card”, or something similar, but keep in mind that words like “register” may confuse guests into thinking they have to sign up or register for something. The words “guests” or “visitor” can make someone feel like an outsider. None of these names really communicate your intent behind asking for someone’s contact information.

We recommend changing the name to “connect” card to more accurately convey the goal in collecting a guest’s information – which is to connect with them and help them learn more or take next steps when they are ready.

How to Use the Connect Card to Collect Guest Info

Once you’ve made the switch to a connect card, it’s important to use it in the most effective way possible. Otherwise, you may have some of the same problems you had with the sign-in book: few participants or incomplete information. Here are a few tips to help you effectively gather a guest’s information:

Explain What they Are: Make an announcement at the beginning and/or end of the service explaining what the connect cards are. Hold them up so there’s no confusion and explain where they can be found. Don’t forget to have pens or pencils in each pew in case someone is without one.
Make them Easy to Find: The connect cards should be placed in an obvious location, such as in each pew or an insert in the bulletin. Avoid the temptation to use tear-outs in your bulletins, as guests may be reluctant to noisily rip them out drawing attention to themselves or being disruptive.
Tell them Where to Turn it in: During your announcement, tell your guests exactly where they can turn in their completed connect cards. Should they bring them to a desk or table near the entrance or leave them in the pews? Turning them in is better, as it provides additional opportunities for connection and avoids the issue of someone else getting their information.
Provide them with Motivation: Although your guests may want to connect to your church, they may need additional incentive to go through the trouble of completing your connect card. Consider offering a gift to every guest who completes and turns in a card or state that a donation will be made to a local charity for every card received. Better yet, allow guests to select a preferred charity from a list.
Don’t Forget Your Website: Some potential guests may want to connect before they attend a worship service or following there visit, so it’s a great idea to include a digital connect card on your website. This also helps guests who forgot to fill their card out or turn it in before they left the service. One church we worked with gave guests an opportunity to get connected with a small group or meet with some congregation members before they visited the church. This made it less intimidating to visit the church for the first time.

By ditching the church sign-in book in favor of a connect card, you have a better chance at forming a meaningful connection with your guests. If you’re interested in finding out how well your visitor sign-in book or guest registration cards are performing, our church mystery guest program can provide you with unbiased, invaluable feedback. With the feedback from mystery worshippers, you’ll understand how to better connect with visitors. Contact us today to get started.

Why You Should Ditch the Church Sign-In Book

1. People Forget to Pass it Around

This one is pretty obvious, right? Your regulars may simply forget to pass the sign-in book to the person next to them, or they may give up trying to pass it if there’s a large

gap between people. Your guests may fill out their information but fail to realize it needs to be passed on to someone else, or they may not know who to give it to next. Also, if the sign-in book isn’t mentioned during your in-service announcements, guests may not have any idea what to do with it. One mystery guest told us:

“There was a sign-in book to be filled out at the end of the pews. I opened it but was unsure what to put in it. I assumed that at some point during the service if I was asked to write my name in it, I would. There was no reference to the book at any time during the service, so I didn’t sign it.”

In all these cases, you’re failing to do the one thing the guest book is meant to do: connect with your visitors in a meaningful way.

2. Everyone can See the Guests’ Contact Info

Many guests skip filling out a sign-in book that gets passed around the entire church because they don’t want everyone to have access to their personal information. Privacy is important for many people and they don’t want to openly share their phone number, email, or home address with the whole congregation. These visitors may only fill out their name, or may skip it entirely, leaving you without any means of connecting with them.

3. Collect Limited Information

We recently had a mystery guest that wanted to leave his contact information with a church he visited but was unable to. He told us,

“I didn’t notice a visitor sign-in book until I was leaving the church. I did sign my name but there was no place to leave any contact information.”

A guest book severely limits the amount of information you can collect. You may only

have space to get their name, phone number, and email address, plus a couple other details. What you really need to know, besides their basic contact information, is what interests them about your church. Maybe they want to learn more about your youth ministry or want to participate in a Bible study. Some may be newcomers to the faith and want to learn more about what it means to be a Christian. Without that information, you have no way of knowing what your visitors need from you.

The goal is meaningful connection beyond your Sunday worship, and a church sign-in book severely hinders your ability to do just that. Instead of a guest book, we recommend connection cards. Connection cards more accurately describe the reason you want to collect visitors’ information and has more positive connotations than a “sign-in book” because it indicates a chance to actually connect with the church rather than just writing your name in a book. In the second part of this two-part series, we’ll explore how a connection card can help you connect with guests in more meaningful ways.

At Faith Perceptions, one of the things our mystery guests evaluate when they attend a church is how guest information is collected and whether or not the church ever follows up with them. Our church mystery guest program can help you discover the effectiveness of your sign-in book, among other aspects of your service, such as parking, greeting, and more. If you’re ready to gain an outside, unbiased perspective to pinpoint areas of improvement, contact us today.

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