The definitive guide to church capital campaign videos. The open rate for a an email containing a video is above 70%. That compares to the open rate for an email without a video of about 20%. So that begs the question should you have a church capital campaign fundraising video? The answer is not only yes, it is yes times three. Use video to communicate your concerns, vision, plan and invitation to become involved in the campaign. Part of your larger plan to communicate about your capital campaign project, video is a modern and successful way to engage parishioners/members.

I recommend that you have three church capital campaign fundraising videos. Here’s a guide for what to include in each video.

Campaign Video 1: The Ask

I’m starting with this one because it seems the most obvious. This one minute video would be simple and easy. The pastor is looking at the camera there is an introductory slide and an exit slide and the other 59 seconds the pastor is looking at the camera and asking the viewer to make a pledge.

The pastor can usually do this in one take with the most minimal script. Frequently, I will create the worlds cheapest teleprompter by typing up the script and punching a hole in the center to put it over their camera. This does not require a high level of sophistication.

In essence, the pastor asks a person to prayerfully consider making a pledge of 3% of their income each year for the next three years or a one time gift of 3% of their assets. The pastor will then ask the listener to pray and discern their way through the decision making process. “Please read through the capital campaign brochure to understand where your donated funds will go. The brochure will also guide you to discern your way through making a decision about being involved in the campaign.”

Deliver this video to most households six days before commitment Sunday.

If you have an active silent phase in which you very specifically select a small group of parishioners who you would ask for a donation in advance of commitment Sunday that you would deliver this to those parishioners three weeks in advance of commitment Sunday.

Campaign Video 2: Presenting the Case

Zoom has given us the most wonderful inexpensive easy to use technology that can be deployed to create a video that explains your case statement – the “why” behind what you’re doing. The key component here is creating a PowerPoint slide presentation that a lady speaker can walk through and explain.

The ideal time limit is 3 minutes, however that is just about impossible to achieve. The average video to cover a case statement is 9 minutes. If you could do it in less than that God bless you.

The statement video has got to begin with the problem – the challenge that the parish is facing. The second part of the campaign video is the vision or the plan. Articulate the long range view of what success will look like.

Since this is a church capital campaign fundraising video then most likely this will involve an architectural rendering or a master plan of the church facilities in the future. The video explains each different component of the facility plans along with details like costs and square footage.

The campaign will conclude with a reminder that Commitment Sunday is on a specific upcoming date.

Campaign Video 3: Prayer and Discernment

This video needs to be 3 minutes long or less. It’s a very simple video. Pastor looks at the camera and asks each individual to pray their way through their decision making process related to their pledge. However this is just practice because prayer and discernment are meant to be a way of life.

The prayer and discernment process has three components:

1. Establish a daily ritual of prayer. It could be first thing in the morning upon awakening it could be the last thing at night before going to sleep, it could be while you drive to work, while you work in the yard, while you wash the dishes. The circumstances of the routine are less important than that there is a daily routine of prayer.
2. Shift your attention to become aligned with Jesus Christ. One might contemplate scripture, and the pastor might attach several verses to the email in which the video is sent out or the pastor might articulate three different scripture that might inspire a person to become more aligned with the will of God. Emphasize that all of us have been blessed with different gifts and it is up to us to discern how each of us individually by discern how to be a blessing to others, as good stewards of God’s varied graces.
3. Ask God your question. For instance, “God how much how much should I pledge towards this upcoming capital campaign?” Or, “how much would I be a better parent?” Or “how might I be a better spouse?” Or “how might I be a better manager of those I supervise?” The question is meant to stimulate the dialogue with God. After stating the question in one’s prayer every single day for a week one becomes more aware of the subtle signs by which God communicates with us. It may be through the lyrics of a song, or the comments of a friend or a verse of Scripture that catches our eye. Once we get an inkling of the decision we need to repeat the process every single day and look for consistency among those signs.

My favorite technique to shift towards that conch state of consciousness is to thank God silently for every single one of my many blessings. This increases my awareness that everything I have is a gift from God, and I am meant to be a conduit for God’s blessings. The pastor might choose to quote 1 Peter 4:10, or another stewardship scripture passage at this point.

If a pastor creates and sends out this three minute video it will be a highlight of the capital campaign. Because ultimately a church capital campaign is not about money or a building. It is singularly an opportunity to practice discerning God’s will in our lives, something we should do with every single decision.

These videos are one small part of a comprehensive plan to communicate about your project to the community. Having a successful church capital campaign take strategic thinking, intense organization, and involvement of lots of people and moving parts.

For more tips and a step by step guide to see what goes into running a capital campaign project at your parish/church, download our free eBook, Stewardship Based Church Capital Campaigns. Church Development president, Denis Greene, shares his success, failure, and research-based best practices from over 25 years in the field of stewardship ministry and fundraising.