Are you Interested in Church Health and Growth Data?

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Are you Interested in Church Health and Growth Data?

Sunday, May 12, 2019

Church Trends from the Q2 2019 edition of The Unstuck Church Report

The more we work with churches, the more we notice the need for data to help church leaders get perspective.

At the Unstuck Group, we recently launched the Q2 2019 edition of The Unstuck Church Report.

It’s a 6-page PDF that highlights 20 updated metrics in key areas of church health. And this quarter, we included a new section that specifically shows significant changes over the past year.

We release an updated report each quarter with new insights and highlighting new trends. If you want in, you can sign up below (we’ll deliver it to your inbox for free :-))

In ministry, we’ve learned that perspective goes a long way. We talk about it a lot, but we’ve seen stuckness linger because leaders lack perspective. Looking at something from a different angle with more insight can bring powerful awareness. This report is a good place to start.

If you’re interested in checking out the data, download it here.

Posted in Leadership

5 Ingredients to Cooking Up a Great Church Website

Sunday, March 17, 2019

I am not a web designer and I’ve never played one on TV. I don’t write code, I’m not a graphic artist and I’m not in marketing or sales. But I have visited literally hundreds of church websites.

One of the things we do at the Unstuck Group when a church goes through a Health Assessment with us is we take some time to research their website before we ever actually get onsite with that church. You can learn a lot about a church by spending some time clicking around on their website.

There’s a lot of work that goes into building a great church website. Just like churches, their websites come in all kinds of shapes and sizes. But there is a list of required ingredients that I’d encourage every church to start with.

Design it for the Guest

The best church websites are designed for the person who has never been to your church. Is it intuitive and easy for people who are unfamiliar with Jesus and churchy language to navigate? Unless you want to build a church for church people don’t design a website designed for church people. Stay away from “churchy” language and “cool ministry” names that people outside of the church have no clue what they mean or what they are. Can guests navigate the site easily without having to scroll or click too many times from the main landing page?

Give People what They’re Looking For

When guests check out your website they’re looking for a few things. In no particular order guests to your website are looking for where and when you gather. Do you have a google maps link on your site that makes it easy for guests to get there? Guests are also looking for what the experience will be like when they arrive. Videos and pictures can help with this, so can a brief description of the experience so people know what they’re getting themselves into. Guests also typically look for what the kids’ ministry is like if they have kids. They check out the staff page to see if there are “people like them” on staff (would they fit in). They may also check out your story…especially if it’s presented in a compelling manner…why do you exist, how did you get where you are, what are you like, what you’re trying to get done right now and why people should jump in and be a part of it.

Look and Feel

There are going to be a lot of opinions about the look and feel of your church website. It’s like a sermon or the volume of the worship music at your church…it’s on display for everyone to see…some people will think “it’s too loud” and some people will think “it’s not loud enough.” Wherever you land make sure the look and feel represents the true identity and personality of your church. You can do this through videos, images, stories, even the language you use. All of it should represent your culture well so people know what they’re getting. There’s nothing worse than checking out a church website that sets your expectations in a particular direction only to have those expectations undermined once you actually get there. Likewise, don’t hide a great church behind a poor website.

Measure what Works

This may a bit of a no brainer, but I’ve discovered that few churches actually track their clicks, page views, and metrics on their website. If something is not working on your site, don’t be afraid to change it or take it down off of your site.

Nuts and Bolts

These may go without saying but make sure your site is mobile friendly. More people access websites through mobile devices than desktop devices these days. Also make sure your site is secure so search engines like Google don’t burry it.

Posted in Leadership

How Healthy Is Your Church? Take a Look at the Latest Benchmarks

Sunday, February 3, 2019

Church Trends from the Q1 2019 edition of The Unstuck Church Report

More than eighty percent of churches are currently sitting on the downward slope of the typical church life cycle.

That feels staggering to me. And truthfully, it can be discouraging looking at data like this.

At The Unstuck Group, we measure church growth by life change. I’m glad if people are visiting your church, but if few of those are experiencing and meeting Jesus, something’s missing.

I feel a responsibility to equip leaders with the resources to lead more people to Christ. And gosh, if I can be part of more life change, that’s something I definitely want to do. But my hope is you’ll take advantage of these resources to bring change and lead more people to Jesus.

We recently launched the Q1 2019 edition of The Unstuck Church Report. It’s a 6-page PDF that highlights 20 updated metrics in key areas of church health. And this quarter, we included a new section that specifically shows significant changes over the past year.

We release an updated report each quarter with new insights and highlighting new trends. If you want in, you can sign up below (we’ll deliver it to your inbox for free :-))

In ministry, I’ve learned that perspective goes a long way. I talk about it a lot, because I’ve seen stuckness linger because leaders lack perspective. Looking at something from a different angle with more insight can bring powerful awareness. This report is a good place to start.
If you’re interested in checking out the data, download it here.

Posted in Leadership

How Can You Measure Church Health? This Report Can Help!

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

At The Unstuck Group, we work with hundreds of churches each year. We observe a lot of different types of leaders, teams, structures and methods. However, many of these leaders have something in common—something we find concerning.

Few church leaders track any metrics or data to inform their view of the church’s health. Because we find this so critical to church growth and health, we recently decided to start sharing some of the data we collect to give church leaders a snapshot of up-to-date church health trends.

Last quarter, we launched our first edition of The Unstuck Church Report: Benchmarks & Trends in U.S. Churches. From attendance to leadership to giving, this report gives church leaders insight into the key metrics of church health, including Ministry Reach, Staffing and Leadership, Connection, and Finances.

The Q1 2018 edition is available today. This 4-page PDF reviews 20 updated metrics in key areas of church health, along with my observations on the numbers.

Download your copy today. It’s free!

Here’s a sample of some of the metrics you’ll find:

The average attendance of churches has increased by 3.3% over the last year

This demonstrates that in our post-Christian culture churches are still experiencing growth even as people attend church less frequently.

Student ministry attendance is declining

Currently the average student ministry is 8% of the overall attendance. This includes all students in sixth through twelfth grades. This percentage is down from 9.5% in previous reporting.

Staffing continues to climb.

The average church employs one full-time equivalent staff person for every 65 people in attendance. In previous reporting, churches employed one staff person for every 77 people in attendance.

Click to download the most up-to-date edition and opt-in to get each quarterly update for free.

Posted in Leadership

New FREE Resource on trends in Church Growth and Health

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

At The Unstuck Group, we serve hundreds of churches annually. As a part of the Ministry Health Assessment phase of our process, we’ve developed some key metrics to help church leaders get an objective snapshot of the health of their church. Because of that, we’ve had our eye on these metrics for years, and we’ve often shared them with the churches we serve.

We recently decided to give our wider network church leaders a consistent look at the trends we’re identifying through this data.

Each quarter, we plan to release a new edition of The Unstuck Church Report: Benchmarks & Trends in U.S. Churches. It’s a 4-page PDF overviewing 20 updated metrics in key areas of church health, including Ministry Reach, Staffing and Leadership, Connection, and Finances. Tony Morgan shares his take on several of the more intriguing data points.

The first edition is available now, and it’s free!

Here are just a few of the questions you can expect the report to answer:

Has average attendance increased or decreased overall?
What percentage of churches have gone multisite?
How many people are churches baptizing?
What percentage of the budget are churches spending on staffing?
What’s the average span of care for leaders?

Click to download the first edition and opt-in to get each quarterly update for free.

We’ve found that few church leaders are actually tracking a comprehensive set of metrics to inform their view of their church’s health. We hope this report will equip you with a better understanding of the ones we think are important, and ultimately, help you lead an unstuck church.

Posted in Leadership

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