4-Step Recipe for Church Capital Campaign Landing Pages That Work

A church capital campaign isn’t some cold, flavorless thing done just to get a little more wiggle room in the budget.

It’s a labor of love, a “passion project” to enable work that matters for eternity. It’s about serving people. Serving the Lord.

Does your capital campaign landing page reflect that? 

Here’s how to make sure your mission shines through on your landing page, even if this is your first time working on one. Think of it like a winning recipe with just four steps . . . 

1. Begin with your base: words

Everybody knows “It’s not what you say. It’s how you say it.” But we forget how true that really is.

This quick video (less than two minutes) illustrates that point so well it always makes me tear up. . . and I’ve seen it probably a dozen times. 

So while every step matters, words are what move people to take action. 

If you’re feeling a little intimidated or like writer’s block is as real as the screen in front of you, set a timer for 10 minutes. Write down everything that comes to mind about your church’s capital campaign (by hand is best, but onscreen works, too)—why you’re doing it, who it’s going to help, why it’s so important, what will happen when it’s finished, the opportunity it will bring. Writing all this down will get the wheels turning, and you can use it to help create your outline.

Now that you have an idea of what the page should include, here’s a short guide to writing it well:

• Be clear. 

There’s a myth that clever writing is better than clear writing. Nope. No one will ever complain that your writing is too clear. So include tangible benefits (e.g., “new 23-room center for children’s ministries”). Incorporate specific details “$4.6 million building debt” instead of “millions in building debt”). Think about the common questions people will have—and answer them.

• Be conversational. 

Stay away from jargon like “synergize” or marathon-length sentences you’d never speak. In fact, use short sentences, short words, and contractions. Try to sound like one person talking to one person. (It can help to picture someone from your church and write to them.) 

For an example of conversational tone, take a look at the donor thank-you letter here.

• Make it emotional. 

People make decisions based on emotion, then justify that decision with logic—like in the video above. So paint pictures for your readers of what you can accomplish through the funds raised. 

For instance, don’t say “We need a new children’s ministry building.” Say “Help us bring the next generation to Jesus,” then go on to explain how x number of children will have the opportunity to hear the gospel in a safe, nurturing environment, learn to love the Bible, etc.

• Edit. 

Trim every extra word. Read your page out loud, and smooth any patches that make you stumble. It’s also a good idea to wait at least 24 hours before you edit. (You’ll catch more.)

2. Sprinkle in extra flavor: images + video

Help people visualize the completed project.

If it’s a new building for your church, include the architect’s rendering before construction begins and milestone moments throughout construction. If your capital campaign is for global or community missions, show the people who’ll be serving and people you’re working to reach.

Imagine you knew nothing about the project, then take a minute to jot down what kind of images you might want to see.

Do the same with video, and don’t limit yourself by thinking every video has to be studio quality. Put an authentic, passionate speaker in front of a (steady) smartphone camera, and you’ll often see more connection than with polished non-video alternatives. 

3. Prepare the presentation: design

Just like a good presentation can whet your appetite, a bad one can leave you absolutely passing on that, thank you very much. 

Put your base (words) + seasoning (images & videos)  into a format that looks scrumptious and easy to digest.

• Your website builder likely has professionally designed templates to get you started. (If not, you should totally check out Faithlife Sites—it even has a free option). Take a cue from your template’s suggested font and color combinations. 
• Give your capital campaign landing page a similar look to the rest of your site so people don’t think they’ve landed in the wrong place. 
• Put your page’s headline front and center.
• Add subheadings above the main sections of your content so it’s easily scanned, like you see with the four steps in this post or Help Impact Our Community below.

4. Serve the dish: giving button

Don’t make your readers have to hunt for a fork before they can dig in. Add a giving button right there on the page so all it takes to start their gift is one click or tap.

If your page requires a few scrolls to see, you may want to add giving buttons throughout the page at pivotal points—for instance, next to the image gallery. Don’t go overboard, though: two or three should be plenty.

To keep your giving button from blending into the background, give it a contrasting color from the rest of your page, like Next in the image below.

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Follow these four steps, and your church’s capital campaign landing page will be a powerful tool to help you achieve your mission. 

If the steps seem doable but the tech has your stomach churning, here’s the cure: Faithlife Sites + Faithlife Giving. They’re both incredibly easy to use and work seamlessly together so you can create your gift-ready capital campaign landing page in an afternoon—without knowing a lick of code.

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