IMPORTANT STEPS TO YOUR COMMITMENT CAMPAIGN #1

          It is mid-summer; new pastors are in place in a new appointment year; and meetings generally aren’t occurring like they will in the fall. Nothing we have to worry about relative to those fall campaigns, is there? 

          Sorry, yes, there is. I found “Ten Commandments for Commitment Campaigns” on the United Methodist Stewardship Foundation of Michigan website, and it makes some very good points about things that are vital to a successful commitment campaign, or pledge drive, or pledge campaign, or stewardship campaign, or fall campaign, or whatever we call them.

          I’m going to take the next couple of weeks to go over these steps. I encourage you to take these “commandments” or “recommendations” to heart as you ready yourselves for financial work in the fall.

          The first recommendation is to not wait until Labor Day to plan the campaign. I know, I know; I’ve been there. Summer goes by really quickly and suddenly it’s Labor Day, and it’s time to start planning the fall campaign that is going to start very soon. Don’t wait. Start the planning now, so that the planning can be done and done well before the actual campaign work starts. If you start now, you can do the planning properly and get the materials that you need.

          The second recommendation is to be clear about what the outcome of the campaign needs to be. What is your goal? Getting enough money to pay the budget isn’t it. Are you trying to increase the dollar amounts pledged? OR are you trying to increase the number of pledges? Those two goals are very different, and may lead to different outcomes.

          The third recommendation is to recruit/invite people to assist with the campaign. But be careful; simply having a willing body isn’t the way to go. Just finding people to say yes shouldn’t be your goal. If we wait to the fall to start planning, that’s what we’re sometimes stuck doing. But, instead, recruit, and recruit now, those persons who are capable and have the knowledge, understanding and belief in stewardship to do a good job.

          These are the three steps that come “before” the campaign work itself starts. Complete these steps as soon as possible and start your brain-storming now!