Email is one of the best ways to connect with your church members, but how do you create emails they’ll love to open (and not just delete)? Keep reading for church email marketing strategies that will help you engage and even grow your church family – all from their inbox!
Did you know 99% of email users check their inboxes every day? Email is an incredible opportunity for your church to connect with members right where they are. Whether it’s sharing encouraging words, inviting them to an upcoming event, or following up with a visitor, email marketing for churches is one of the most effective ways to keep your congregation informed and engaged.
Sending an email might seem simple, but crafting a thoughtful plan before hitting send will ensure you get the best results. In this blog post, we’ll explore why a great email strategy is so important and share top strategies and practices to elevate your church’s communication.
A good plan allows us to make the most of an experience or process, and email strategies are no different. Here are the top reasons why your church can benefit from a good email marketing plan:
When done well, email marketing can bring your church family closer together. Through email, you can send personalized communication, encourage members to serve, invite them to go deeper into the community through ministries and upcoming events, and share stories and devotionals.
Email marketing for churches offers a quick, easy, and highly effective way to communicate with your church members. Plus, it’s a budget-friendly option compared to other communication methods like print. All you need is a reliable email marketing platform, and you’re good to go!
By taking advantage of email marketing metrics, your church can measure the impact of your communication beyond Sunday mornings. Track key insights like how many people opened your message, clicked on links, and engaged with your content. This feedback helps you fine-tune your communication strategy, keeping members informed and connected!
A well-planned email marketing strategy can grow your church and expand its outreach. It’s great for updating your church fundraising efforts – whether it’s tithe reminders, appeals, or progress updates on ongoing campaigns. Your church members can easily give online through the donation form you share in your email, like this one from the Charleston Heights Baptist Church.
A solid email marketing plan can take your church communication to the next level. Not sure where to start? We’re excited to share seven key strategies that will make your plan more effective and impactful.
The first step in building your church email marketing strategy is to determine the goal of your communication. What’s the main focus of your emails? What do you hope your church will take away from them? What are the current needs and interests of your members? Remember, your communication is a powerful tool, and God can use your messages to draw people closer to Him.
Automating your email communication is a smart way to save time and ensure no one slips through the cracks. Set up follow-up emails to automatically send when someone visits your church, makes a donation, or registers for an event. You can also strategically schedule emails in advance to align with your communication calendar and ensure they deliver at times when people are more likely to open them.
Even the most compelling email won’t make an impact if it doesn’t hit the right inboxes. By organizing your email list based on key attributes like gender, age, life stage, involvement, and interests, you can send targeted communication that resonates and feels personal to your audience.
Your email segments can range from something specific like “Smith small group,” to broader categories like “first-time visitors.” You can also give members the flexibility to opt into the types of communication they’d like to receive based on these segments, ensuring they get the updates they actually want to read.
Make sure your email marketing includes evergreen content – timeless messages that are always relevant to your church. These types of emails can be scheduled well in advance, giving you more flexibility when planning your communication calendar.
Evergreen emails might include a monthly newsletter, inspiring stories from church members, an encouraging letter from a pastor, a short devotional, calls to prayer, and donation appeals.
Create an email that your church will love to read by using catchy subject lines, bullet points, short paragraphs, bolded text, clear calls to action, videos, and eye-catching images. Ensure your communication stays consistent with your church’s brand so members can trust and recognize the emails they receive. Incorporating these elements will create an engaging and compelling email that keeps your church family involved in the life of your church.
Creating an email content calendar helps you strategically space out your communication and makes it easier for your church members to know when to expect an email. An email schedule also aligns messages with your church’s activities such as sermon series, events, and fundraising campaigns so every email fits into your overall communication plan.
Take time to regularly evaluate how well your emails are performing. Which content gets the highest open rates? What are people clicking on the most? On which days of the week do members tend to open emails more? These metrics can help you identify what kind of content to prioritize moving forward.
Like most digital marketing, email communication is an experiment! Test out different subject lines, email designs, layouts, images, and content types to find the ideal email for your church family. With A/B testing, you can send out the same email twice with just a few changes – like a different call to action – and see which version performs better.
As you develop your new church email marketing plan, here are a few extra tips to keep in mind.
Make it easy for people to join your mailing list by sharing a signup link on social media, event registration, connect/visitor cards, your website, or even through QR codes placed around your church.
Then, respect your members’ preferences by providing an easy way to opt out of your emails. A simple solution is to include an “unsubscribe” link at the bottom of every email.
Use your email marketing platform to personalize messages by including each recipient’s first name. This simple touch makes your emails feel more meaningful.
You can also make your email stand out by including the name of a specific pastor or leader in the “from” field. This adds a personal touch to your emails and builds trust with your church members.
You don’t want your emails to feel like “white noise” or become overwhelming. Stick to one church-wide email per week, and send additional emails to specific groups within your church as needed.
Also, stay balanced when it comes to the type of content you’re sharing. Not every email needs to be a calendar of events! Keep things fresh by mixing it up with devotionals, encouraging letters, testimonial videos, and other engaging content.
Use bold, italics, underlines, and strategic spacing to draw attention to the key points in your email. Don’t be afraid to repeat important details – sometimes it takes a couple of mentions for the message to really stick!
This includes your call to action. What’s the next step you’d like members to take after reading your email? Be sure to include clear calls to action along with buttons or links, making it easy for people to respond right away.
Invite readers to share your message with their friends on social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Including shareable links is especially beneficial for spreading the word about church fundraisers and community events!
Since many people check emails on the go, you’ll also want to make sure your beautifully designed email looks just as great on mobile as it does on a desktop. Be sure there are no cut-off graphics or missing elements.
To achieve your church communication goals, you’ll need an email marketing platform that offers easy-to-use email templates, schedules timely emails, tracks key metrics, and organizes your email segments.
Donorbox Email Marketing (Beta), a part of Donorbox CRM, helps churches streamline their workflows by tracking supporter information and communicating with church members all in one place.
Our Email Marketing platform gives you everything you need to reach the right supporter at the right time!
Learn more about everything Donorbox CRM has to offer in this blog.
The Email Marketing Beta is available to Donorbox CRM users. Apply for Beta access using the Beta onboarding page in your CRM account. Not using Donorbox CRM yet? Contact sales for a custom plan or a limited 14-day free trial.
Learn More About Donorbox Email Marketing
If you want to build better relationships, keep members informed, and grow your church, you need a thoughtful and strategic email marketing plan. Remember, email isn’t just about sending information – it’s about encouraging and engaging individuals.
With the right strategy and email platform in place, your church can create lasting connections that extend well beyond Sunday.
Managing church relationships can be challenging, but Donorbox is here to make it easier. Donorbox CRM is a powerful, AI-driven software designed to boost your donations while building lasting connections with your supporters. Donorbox Email Marketing, now in Beta, provides the tools you need to send better campaigns to your church members – without the hassle. Learn more about Email Marketing and speak to sales about Donorbox CRM today.
Explore tips for church fundraising and more on the Donorbox Nonprofit Blog.
With a background in professional writing, Lydia has over five years in nonprofit communications under her belt. Lydia’s passion for supporting nonprofits sparked during her college internships with global mission organizations, where she gained valuable insights into fundraising marketing strategies. These experiences have continued to fuel her dedication to empowering nonprofits through her writing.
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Lydia Wohlgemuth