Yesterday I attended the 'Effective Ministry' conference and I'm sure all who attended will agree it was a stimulating day and much thinking and praying should result. I'd be interested to hear of your reflections from the day.
During the 'Meet, Greet, Integrate' panel session, Raj Gupta mentioned how his church was using a church member database to, among other things, care for people who are new to the church. I thought it might be helpful to let you know a couple of the tools that I've discovered that I would recommend for this purpose.
It can be a bit confusing knowing which database to choose (and there's a lot out there - I compiled a list of 32 several years ago!), so how should you select which church database to use? I'd suggest reading a list I've compiled of '5 principles for selecting technology for your church'.
Church Community Builder
This is the tool mentioned by Raj, and it's the biggest kid on the 'church database block'. Its list of features is impressive, the support is excellent, and it continues to improve every time I check it out. You can sign-up for a video tour to explore the features and consider whether it's suitable for your church's needs.
Jethro
My church has been using Jethro for a couple of years, and it has recently undergone a major upgrade, to expand beyond database functions to include rostering and service planning. It's free (both CCB and Elvanto have a monthly fee, and in the case of CCB some other fees including set-up may be applicable) and has served my church well.
Elvanto
I recently discovered the upgraded version of Elvanto (I hadn't looked at it since 2009) and it looks very impressive - not only are the member database features excellent (I've been trialling it in recent weeks), it also includes service planning, scheduling and rostering tools similar to Planning Center Online.
PS - I mentioned during the session a great article by Kevin de Young - 'Be Welcoming, Get a Good Website'. I recommend you forward it to anyone who's unsure about the importance of your church having a good website! I'm developing a growing list of tips and resources for church websites here.
(Feature Photo credit: Mandiberg)
