
New Year, New Planning Strategies | Iowa United Methodist Foundation
January 6, 2020
It is a new year and with that comes new committee members, budgets and planning strategies for your church. Below are nine words you can use in your emails, newsletters and bulletins that could help with your 2020 budget and some information about the free workshops and training’s offered by the Foundation.
Psychologist Jen Shang, co-founder of the Institute for Sustainable Philanthropy, found that organizations can randomly select a couple of adjectives and use them in their fundraising efforts, when appropriate, to increase giving. The nine words are kind, caring, compassionate, helpful, friendly, fair, hard-working, generous and honest. These adjectives are used to describe a moral person so it makes sense that they would be words to gain trust and increase comfortability with giving.
Using some of these adjectives in your communication is a simple way to help your budget. If your church needs additional help, the Foundation can assist by offering a workshop or training. For example, if you have new members on your finance committee or stewardship team, reviewing your investments or talking about endowments might be beneficial.
Some workshops the Foundation offers include:
- Tips for Making the Budget This Year – A general overview for the stewardship committee and administrative council, sharing strategies to encourage financial support.
- Your Will Your Way – A time to consider how you want to be remembered and designate that your plans be communicated for the future.
- How to Start an Endowment – Learn how to design, set guidelines, establish and promote an endowment fund in your church.
- Renewing an Endowment – Review your endowment guidelines and encourage future gifts.
- Investment Services – Learn about different investment strategies and the different options and possibilities at the Iowa United Methodist Foundation. Review the church’s current accounts.
- What to do when a Large Gift is coming – Learn how to receive bequests and other gifts, review a Gift-Acceptance Policy, and encourage more gifts.
- Capital Campaigns – When you are dreaming of a major remodeling or a new facility, this workshop offers resources on how to accomplish this, step-by-step.
- Building Loans – If you have immediate repairs, remodeling that can’t wait, or a larger project to finance, learn about the building loans available through the Iowa United Methodist Foundation.
Learn more about our workshops and the process of setting one up at https://iumf.org/services-for-churches/workshops/. Contact us at [email protected] or 515-974-8928 for more information.