The Agitator asks some tough questions about online giving and rightfully so. While research supports what we perceive to be true (that online giving is quickly become the platform of choice for charitable contributions), there are some important questions that have yet to be answered.

(I challenge you to discuss all 10 questions in your next staff meeting.)

Here is the The Agitator’s conclusion:

My hypothesis would be that for such groups, the revenue decline has occurred in all channels of giving, not just online. If that’s true, the issue isn’t fundraising tactics; it’s the very efficacy or relevance of the organization in changing times or, in economically stressed times, in competition with other similarly-focused groups.

Online giving and mobile giving aren’t “silver bullets.” Just because you have them doesn’t mean the money is going to come pouring in. People are shifting channels to electronic means of exchanging money. Period. And we need to match this shift in the church. We also need to be mindful that the net result of this shift also involves new, emerging habits related to giving.

  • People who give online typically give a higher than average donation but give less often.
  • People who give online have the world at their fingertips via Google and will research what OTHERS say about you before they decide to give TO you.
  • People who give online are NOT as loyal as your faithful few…and never will be.

The good news is that while some rules of funding are changing, some are staying the same. The point The Agitator is trying to make is that it’s not the giving channel that makes the real difference when it comes to funding churches (or any organization for that matter). It’s about being relevant in the eyes of the donor.

I would urge you in 2010 to commit to providing an “investment plan” for the members of your church that demonstrates what measurable acts of ministry you will carry out, what it’s going to take to fund it, and what results you expect to “earn” as a result of it. The people in your pew aren’t expecting a paper dividend check each quarter, but they do demand a return on their ministry investment.

Giving platforms will come and go, much like forms of currency have over time. Impact will always be “in” from the perspective of the person in the pew.