6 Things Everyone Should Know About How To Talk To Pastors

I have wanted to write this post for a long, long time.  The reason is because this subject is very dear to my heart.  First, I love pastors and church leaders.  Second, for the past decade, I spent the better part of each day at INJOY Stewardship Solutions having individual conversations with church leaders all across the country about the advancement of mission and vision.

For anyone who serves churches and has pastors as clients – magazine advertisers, conference coordinators, church builders, consultants, architects, Bible study material groups, etc.. – I am about to provide some of my best trade secrets on how to serve these wonderful leaders.

• Make Your Initial Contact Via Email – Don’t cold call pastors.  Send an email and suggest a specific time (ex. Friday, October 14th at 10:00 AM EST) to talk and not a general timeframe (ex. Would a call next week work for you?).  Here’s why – every day pastors are dealing with marriages that have fallen apart, sickness, death, job loss, and just like at your job - dysfunctional staff.  On top of that, Sundays roll around every seven days and they have to prepare a top-notch message to hundreds of people.  You have to be strategic about how you intersect their day.
• When You Do Connect, Be Grateful – If you do get a pastor or church leader on the phone, ask them if this is still a good time for them to speak.  Even if they scheduled the time together, you never know who just walked in the door or made a phone call and said, “Pastor, I just found out my kid is on drugs and I need someone to talk to.”  Pastors respond very well to someone understanding their world and respecting them.
• You Don’t Work In An Office Or Cubicle.  You Work In The Church Lobby. – When I speak with pastors, though I sit in an office, I imagine that I’m in my church lobby talking to my pastor.  It is relaxed and conversational.  I’m not trying to sell something.  I’m adding value.  Here is a typical exchange: 

“Yeah Brian, we’re thinking about building a Youth Building next year.”   

“Really, you must be reaching a lot of young families with children?”

“We have kids everywhere.  Last year, we baptized over 100 people under the age of 18.”

“That’s incredible!  Let me ask – what are you doing to reach so many kids?”

You get the point.  It’s a natural conversation, not a sales pitch.  In that brief exchange, I learned about their project, where the pastor’s passion is, the growth rate, and I’m about to learn about their strategy.

• Wisdom Is In Questions, Not Answers – Did you see the exchange above?  You immediately lose credibility by telling the pastor “how you can help them.”  At INJOY Stewardship Solutions we deliver capital campaigns and help churches expand their cultures of generosity.  This is how I start – “Pastor, thank you for the time you’re giving me.  As you know we help churches raise money.  Can you tell me about the church and any needs you may have coming up?”  All pastors love talking about their church and what God is doing. 
• Be An Expert – Pastors don’t have time to waste because they are literally dealing with issues like Heaven and hell.  Anticipate what questions they are going to ask and be ready to give quality answers.  Also, add to their thinking.  Say, “Pastor, as we’ve been talking, you’ve got me thinking – what about this?”  And add some additional insights and perspectives.
• Follow Up – Finally, follow-up with a recap email with pertinent information to the conversation along with suggested next steps.  Pastors absorb a lot of daily information.  This is professional and gives them something to reference back to or forward to additional leaders in the church.

As an entire parachurch industry, we need to serve church leaders better.  Practice these six principles and we will all win.  Rising tides lift all ships.  If I can help your business or ministry serve churches better, please let me know.  

Also, pastor if you want to have a quality conversation about raising capital, send me note via this site or at briand@injoystewardship.com. 

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