Beyond Greeting: Establishing Guest Services in Your Church
Beyond Greeting: Establishing Guest Services in Your Church
“Visitors are greeted; guests are honored. A visitor is an outsider with whom we connect temporarily; a guest is someone anticipated and delighted in; someone we want to feel welcome, stay a while and return.”
The Bible has a lot to say about the practice of hospitality. Not only does it state that hospitality is a duty, but it also presents many beautiful pictures of the extension of hospitality and the blessings it brings. Churches can emphasize hospitality in everything from music, selecting sermon topics, and planning evangelistic meetings to children’s programming and stewardship.
Beyond Greeting provides a framework for your church to move from greeting visitors to welcoming guests. This guide includes:
- Greeters and Guest Services – how to create lasting impressions
- The Welcome Center – the key to connecting with first-time guests
- The First-time Guest Gift Bag – it’s more than a gift bag; it’s an invitation
- The VIP Connection Card – how to collect guest information
- Follow-through – essential elements to staying connected with your guests
- Recognizing Each Other by Name – steps to implementing a name tag system
- Undercover Guests – checking your church’s level of guest service
- Extending Gratitude to the Church Family – thanking the team
- And more helpful resources your guest services team can use
Beyond Greeting provides you with a wealth of ideas that your team can use to move toward intentionally connecting with guests that walk through the doors of your church.
Change may be slow but with conscious thought and guest services ministry training, your church can ensure that everyone feels warmly welcomed whether they enter your building for the first time, or over a lifetime.