Turning first-time guests from Christmas into third-time guests in January
From 2006 to shortly before the quarantine started, something amazing started to happen on Mount Everest that no one was really talking about.
The success rate of climbers that reached the top began to double, going from only 1/3 of all climbers summiting, to 2/3.
It may take return visits, but more climbers are making it to the top than ever before.
I wonder what that has meant for the average Sherpa who leads them on these climbs. I’m also wondering what new thinking these types of observations could bring all of us when it comes to seeing guests make it all the way to a full connection to our churches this coming year.
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Let’s start here with some interesting stats:
The retention rate of a first-time guest at church is 34%, for 2nd time guests it’s 51%, and 3rd timers have a 78% retention rate if you are a fast-growing church. (Chris Walker from Evangelismcoach.org, December 13th, 2020).
I like to think in ratios rather than percentages as it helps me to realize that we are talking about people and not numbers. So let me round these stats into these statements for you:
Only 1 out of 3 first-time guests will return.
Just half of second-time guests return.
But a whopping 3 out of 4 third-time guests will return to your church.
Imagine being a Sherpa who was devoted to helping people summit Everest and you knew that those who returned to climb a third time were twice as likely to do it than those on their first climb. How would you plan differently?
I know I would do everything I could to get climbers to return to Everest a third time. It would be their best chance to reach the summit.
Whether your church is fast growing or slow, here’s the truth: A third time guest is the gold standard when climbing the Assimilayas.
It follows, then, that you should do everything in your power to create a follow up plan that turns first-timers into third-timers.
Now before I share with you how we are following up with Christmas guests this year at my church in light of this priority, know this: everything I am about to say can be started quickly even though this is the week after Christmas.
That’s the beauty of Christmas guests. It actually serves them to let the dust settle after the holidays before you give them an incentive to return.
They are able to pay more attention after the gifts have been opened and the wrapping paper is thrown away.
Here’s what we are doing and learning now.
➊ Wow guests with a great first impression and a special gift when they leave.
Great decor, warm greeters, outdoor music and a culture that promotes helping guests navigate your facility well make a greet first impression on guests. After they experience God in your Christmas service, the most important thing you can do is get their contact info so you can reach out to them in the future and begin building a relationship with them. We give stainless steel hot drink tumblers in exchange for their contact information.
During quarantine, we started using a QR so people can give us their name, email (address & phone optional) using their smart phone. If they are having any trouble or do not have a smart phone, team members at Guest Central can do it for them by asking for their info verbally and inputing their info directly into our database using an iPad or the team members phone.
➋ Send them an email that same day with a coupon on it for a 2nd-time gift when they return.
Why send them an email that same day? Again according to Evangelismcoach.org, your church guest retention rate is highest when you follow-up with visitors within 48 hours.
If you use Mail Chimp or Formstack, you can automate your welcome message and have it sent to them automatically when they hit “submit”. Or you can have a person or team enter data during the Christmas services and send them their email by that evening. We have done it both ways.
Whichever way you choose, include a coupon on the email that gives them something like a free drink if you have a cafe, a free book or a gift card to someplace they would value like a Starbucks or other local business.
Why give them another gift on their second visit? 3 reasons:
One, it helps turn a first-time guest into a second-time guest.
Two, it helps you know how many second-time guests you actually have.
Three, it gives you the ability to to turn the second time guests into the most strategically important guest of all—a third-timer.
Now, to turn those second-time guests into third-time guests
Remember guests don’t always return the following weekend. Their second time visit could be a month later.
But whenever that second visit is when they choose to redeem their coupon for a gift, this is when reaching out with a text or phone call comes into play.
Let’s answer the whys, whos and hows of text/phone follow up, starting with the why questions first: Why do it now? Why not text or call your first-time guests?
In our context (Southern California), guests want to keep their anonymity a little longer. Coupled with the fact that your most important efforts as a Sherpa leader should be focused on producing a third time visit, your energy for personal connection through texting or phone calling really should be reserved for this moment.
Another reason is to honor what stage your relationship is at with your guests. I often compare building relationships with guests at our churches with dating. When you are on a first and second date, wowing them and showing them you care are the most important things you can do.
Think first impressions and gifts. Coming into their home, meeting their family members, these are not reserved for the first or second date. Crossing that line too soon can actually scare them off in many cases. I think texting or phoning someone is best suited for after their second visit.
Who should call or text them?
The answer has to do with how large your church is. If attendance is 50 to 350, having the senior pastor do it can leave a big impression. If your church is midsize (350 to 2000+) have a staff member do it who oversees a ministry you would like to see that particular guest get involved in. If your church is a multi-campus church, have the campus pastors do it.
How should you reach out to them-text or phone calling?
This should probably be at the discretion of the staff member you assign the guest to. There are pros and cons to each.
Phone calls are more personal and you can really get to know people and their stories better. The downside is that most people just have cell phones and do not answer a call from an unidentified number, especially in an age of spam and sales calls.
Leaving a voicemail is nice and leaves an impression but the vast majority will not return that phone call so there is no way to really get to know them if that happens.
Answer rate: usually 30-50% max.
Though texting doesn’t give you the full personal experience, it does allow you to introduce yourself by text so that they are comfortable dialoging with you (try using google voice to mask your number, or a texting service with a 10-digit number to keep it feeling personal).
Conversations can continue sometimes over a couple days, involve sharing prayer requests, and even sharing links to your web page for more info or to sign up for your One Program for guests (haven’t tapped into that yet? click here to go deeper).
Our young adult pastor even asks for their instagrams and he direct messages guests using that route.
It’s not too late to turn your Christmas guests into third time guests.
You just need to create a strategy that does that. Answer/discuss the “To Chew On While We Climb” questions below to begin forming that strategy.
What if this new year you created more third time guests than ever before?
Like Sherpas who now have double the amount of climbers reaching the summit of Everest, imagine the likelihood of getting a positive response to asking third time visitors to your One Program to help them find a small group and a ministry team?
That is the right ask at the right time in the relationship by the way. You might just double the amount of people who become a part of what God is doing in your church and that is a win for everybody.
If you’re ready to build the entire pathway for your guests to reach the summit of full connection with God and others, check out our Video Course — it’s by far the fastest way to implement a high-impact assimilation system!
TO CHEW ON WHILE WE CLIMB
➊ List how you currently follow up with each of these groups:
First-time guests
Second-time guests
Third-time guests
➋ What ways of following up are giving you the most results? The least results? Why do you think that is?
➌ What would your guest follow up strategy look like if the goal of it were to create a third time guest? What shifts immediately come to mind?
➍ What new and ongoing ways could you begin to invite third time guests to the One Program you’ve designed that will help get them in a small group and a ministry team?
➎ What is the first thing you should act on from this discussion? By what date should it be implemented?
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