Are you trying to raise funds for a new church building? A monumental task like that comes with many stresses. Oftentimes, this obligation falls on just a few church staff members, and existing church expenses consistently take up a large portion of the church’s fund.

How can you handle this massive project? How can you generate enough monetary offerings for an expensive construction project? 

The answer is to implement a strategic fundraising campaign.

Read this guide to learn what kind of strategies are effective and get a list of creative fundraising ideas you can use in your church. You’ll see growth in your church’s bank account and break ground for a new church building before you know it.

How to Get Donations for a Church Building

The church is more than a place for spiritual guidance – it’s where people create and find a close-knit community. You can leverage this strong sense of fellowship by rallying your church members and generating donations for a new church building. 

Ultimately, your goal is to build together with the congregation to receive the greatest financial support. Here are a few tips on how to encourage donations for a church building fund.

• Make donating easy: The fewer barriers/inconveniences there are to donate, the more likely your church members will give. Given that, you’ll want to offer many methods of payment, including check scanning, bank transfers, text-to-give, and more.
• Engage with the people: If you want to motivate people to donate, you have to involve them in the mission as much as possible. Highlight the impact that the new building will bring, share details on fund collection and usage, and keep everybody updated on the project status.
• Tell a compelling story: Storytelling pulls on our heartstrings and motivates us to act. The generic “help us build” advertising won’t connect with people, but putting a “face” to the cause and highlighting those who’ll be directly impacted by the new building will. For example, feature the youth worship band that needs a new stage or the seniors’ community that needs an in-house clinic for emergencies.
• Raise awareness: Don’t be afraid to promote, advertise, and put your church on the map to generate donations. For example, you can have the Sunday worship emcee announce project updates, list details in the weekly bulletin, and frequently post across the different social media platforms of the church.
• Keep everybody updated: As with any fundraising project, people want to know where their money is going. Ensure that you regularly engage with your community and keep them in the loop about every milestone your project has reached. If others see that the money is truly supporting the church’s vision, they’ll gladly keep donating to the project.

How to Raise Money for a Building Project

In this section, we’ll discuss the fundraising steps that are specific to a construction project, which is somewhat different from other types of fundraising due to the substantial amount of money you’ll need. Here is how to raise money for a building project:

Step 1: Focus Your Funds

We suggest raising one-third of your goal from 10 to 15 major donors, another third from 75 to 100 minor donors, and the last third from the rest of the community.

Step 2: Communicate Your “Why”

As mentioned above, your church family needs to know the “why” behind a new building. Why does the community need a new facility? How will it create room for growth and, ultimately, help advance the Kingdom of God? Make the reasons clear to each potential donor.

Step 3: Create A Unique Fundraising Campaign

Create a unique campaign to raise funds with the goal of appealing to your community, generating interest in the local media, and bringing everyone together for the same cause. Check out the following section for creative campaign ideas.

Step 4: Solicit In-Kind Donations From Companies

Ask for in-kind donations from companies. Many businesses or brands may want to help, even if it’s not in the form of cash. For example, they may offer your church a service for free or at a discount (e.g. church landscaping) or products that you can raffle or give away to donors. It may not sound like much, but every little bit helps!

Creative Ideas to Raise Money for a Church Building

Here are some fundraising ideas to raise money for a new church building. 

Keep in mind that not everything will fit your situation, but you can use these as a jumping-off point for your own ideas. Also, don’t try to execute too many ideas at once – it’s best to focus on one or two well-organized campaigns instead of spreading your resources across multiple programs.

Buy-A-Brick

This is an opportunity for your members to literally be a part of the new church building. In this type of campaign, donors “purchase bricks” (or other materials) for the construction. You can even have the bricks engraved with their name, Bible verses, or whatever else the donor wants then sell them at a higher cost for fundraising. 

Coffee Bar

You might offer drip coffee and donuts after service for free, but you can raise even more funds by selling high-end coffee drinks, pastries, and more. Many church members won’t mind spending a few bucks on a latte or cappuccino, especially if profits go toward a good cause.

Trivia Night

Trivia nights are easy to set up – all you need to do is put the questions together and charge a small fee for participation. You can also expand on this idea by turning quiz night into a full-on game night with card and board games, bingo, or even original games you created yourself just for the event.

Hunt For Hidden Treasures

Church members who are facing financial struggles may be hesitant to donate, but there are other ways to encourage small donations and improve community rapport. 

For example, you can ask your community to donate any coins they find lying around or items that they don’t need anymore. Put all monetary donations directly into the fund, and sell the items in a church “garage” sale. 

Even if small donations don’t make a huge dent in your goal, they encourage everyone to participate and help build a culture of generosity at your church. 

The Give-It-Up Challenge

Whether it’s a daily iced coffee or an everything bagel, many of us enjoy small indulgences on a regular basis. Challenge your congregation to give up one item that they purchase regularly and donate the money to the church building fund instead. 

Silent Auction

The larger your congregation is, the more skills and services your church members have to offer. Call for church members who are willing to donate their services for a silent auction – this can include everything from graphic design to medical services. Members will then bid on these services, and all proceeds go to the new building fund. Another benefit of this is that it helps donors promote their services and creates new connections in the church.

Parents’ Night Out

It’s not easy to find an affordable babysitter that parents can trust. You can create a fundraising activity and address this issue by gathering volunteer babysitters in the community and providing their services to other members of the church at an affordable rate.

Apply For Grant Money

If your church is incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, you may qualify for government assistance in the form of federal grants and loans. A number of private grants are also available to religious organizations, depending on your location and type of community service.

Building God’s Kingdom, One Donation at a Time

Meeting your church’s fundraising goal can be daunting. The secret to fundraising success is to get the whole congregation to support the mission. Keep your community involved, update them with the construction process, and ensure that each of your fundraising events brings value to the church.