People Spots
Online
Produced by James W.
Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants
Provided as a service by New Life Ministries
Identifying and Recruiting Prospects
by James W. Moss, Sr.
Prospects are persons a church may cultivate with a realistic hope of sharing the gospel and involving these persons in the life of the church. "Prospect" is a term used reluctantly in the church. Salespersons have prospect lists. Christians aren't selling. The church has no desire to profit from people with whom the message of Jesus is shared. Some feel anything smacking of commercialism should not taint the church's efforts. Truly, Christians are not salespersons with a commercial orientation, but attempts must be made to share the gospel with those who don't know him. Who is your church cultivating so those people will be won to Christ and added to the fellowship of faith?
I have frequently asked salespersons, "If you have no prospects, how long are you in business?" The answer unanimously shared is, " If I have no prospects I am already out of business." Does your church have a prospect list? What we're talking about is raw evangelism–cultivating people who don't know Jesus.
It isn't generally understood about how many people have to be cultivated to bring significant growth. Friendship Community Church of God began on March 17, 1991. Their average attendance in 1993 was 150. More than 1,000 different people had walked through their doors since opening day. It takes two people to average one for a year, so they have about 300 different people attending. They have had a great retention rate. They have kept 30% of the people who have visited. Literally thousands of people were cultivated to generate those visitors. Let me restate this: many have to be cultivated in order that some will attend so that a few will stay.
Action Strategy
There are many methods of building a prospect list:
1. Conduct a prospect party. Have three active families get together with you and your spouse. Have a delightful evening with some food and games. Then encourage the families to share names of friends, neighbors, and relatives who don't attend church anywhere. This is called webbing. Tell the people who are invited what you are doing. Encourage those coming to bring their Christmas card list. It would be great to generate 6-12 prospect families in such a meeting. Secure names and addresses of prospective families. You may have to assure the persons that they will not be responsible to contact these persons unless they choose to.
2. People who visit the church.
3. The families for whom the pastor does weddings and funerals.
4. Locate the people who attended your church as children who are now adults and not attending church anywhere.
5. The unchurched families whose children attended Daily Vacation Bible School.
6. A telemarketing strategy such as "The Phone's for You" (http://www.cgdi.org).
7. Identify property transfers that have taken place in the last six months.
8. A community survey.
9. Develop a moving van alert. When any of your people see a moving van at a home unloading, deliver a bucket of chicken or a casserole in the name of the church. Revisit them two weeks later.
10. Trade your inactive list (people who have not attended for a year) with another church for theirs.
11. Give persons who are being baptized, joining church, or have a child dedicated, at least 10 invitations to invite their friends and family.
General principles
1. More recent arrivals will have more contacts with prospects than long-term attenders.
2. The people who will be most likely to stay by whatever method they are identified or pursued will be the people who, when they arrive, already know somebody who attends.
3. A person is functionally unchurched who has not attended in a year or more.
4. It takes an average of 13 contacts to involve a new person in the life of a church.
5. A church should have at least as many prospects as current participants.
6. An active prospect list is one that is being cultivated. New names are being added and names are being dropped when the persons being pursued become active, ask to be dropped, or the church is convinced there is no opportunity to win them.
7. Remember, once a church becomes serious about prospect identification and pursuit, new people will begin to show up regularly.
Contacts
1. Design a strategy to contact these persons a minimum of once a month over the next year.
2. Develop a prospect newsletter. Such a newsletter is contained on one sheet front and back. It speaks only of future events. All the articles are designed to explain why someone should attend your church. There are no devotions. The prospect newsletter could be sent quarterly.
3. A phone visit could be used quarterly.
4. A strategy could be devised by the church for the other four months of the year.
Rev. Herbert Addison strives diligently to attract new people to Christ and the Church. He has developed quite a reputation for pursuing prospects. Rev. Addison is visiting a seriously ill Edwin Tolivar in the hospital. Edwin has just been brought from intensive care. Rev. Addison just arrived at Edwin's room as he did. Edwin's first words to his pastor were, "Please, Pastor, would you visit the Tom Forrester family who just moved in across the street from me. They need our church." Rev Addison had carefully cultivated prospect eyes among the people. Edwin knew that his pastor would follow-up on this lead.
A Good Book: Let me recommend one of my books, Does Your Church Care About People? It may be ordered from Church Consultants.
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Read about Jim's seminars and books.
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March 23, 2000. Volume 3, Issue 4. People Spots Online is prepared by James W. Moss, Sr., and Church Consultants. It is provided as a service by New Life Ministries, www.NewLifeMinistries-NLM.org. Articles may be duplicated and reproduced in any way. A new article is produced about every two weeks. To be added to a list to receive these messages directly by e-mail, send a request to churchconsultants@yahoo.com.