Digital connection cards for churches and ministries
Welcome first-time guests, sign people up for events, and send next steps, from the phone already in their pocket.
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- Scanned the QR code in the bulletin
- Welcome! We’re so glad you’re here. What’s your first name?
- Avery
- Great to meet you, Avery. What’s the best email for a few next steps?
First-time guests leave before anyone learns their name.
The paper card goes unfilled
A tiny pencil, four minutes of welcome time, and a toddler on one knee. Most guests decide to stay anonymous.
Cards wait until Monday
The ones that do come in sit in a basket until someone types them up, long after the visit.
Sign-ups live on clipboards
Retreats, serve teams, and small groups each have their own sheet in the lobby.
How churches use Textiful
A connection card on their own phone
Put a QR code in the bulletin and on the screen during welcome time. Guests scan, give a first name and email, and get a warm reply right away.
- Scanned the QR code in the bulletin
- Welcome! We’re so glad you’re here. What’s your first name?
- Avery
Your guest team hears that afternoon
“Email me a notification” sends each new guest to your follow-up team as they arrive, so the welcome email or call happens the same day. Send it to as many people as you like.
- Is this your first visit?
- Yes
- We’re so glad you came! Someone from our guest team will say hi after the service.
Sermon notes and reading plans
Offer this week’s notes or a reading plan as a handout. It’s a reason to text in that feels like hospitality, and it keeps the message going through the week.
- NOTES
- Here are this morning’s sermon notes and this week’s reading plan: [link]
Event and retreat sign-ups
Give each event its own keyword: RETREAT, SERVE, GROUPS. The flow collects names and a parent’s email, and the list is ready the moment the service ends.
- RETREAT
- Fall retreat sign-ups are open! Student’s first and last name?
- Jordan Lee
The features churches and ministries use most
- Capture data via text
Email, name, company, location, or any custom field, asked one question at a time. Start from a template and change the wording to sound like you.
- QR codes
Free, unlimited QR codes that open a pre-filled text. Print them on banners, slides, and table tents, and see how many people scanned each one.
- Handouts
Upload your slides, guide, or recording once. Textiful sends it by text or email the moment someone finishes, and tracks every download.
- Giveaways
People enter by text, once each. Draw winners at random, reveal them on a live page, and text them how to claim the prize.
Ready by Sunday
- 1
Start from “Quick email signup”
Add first name and one question, such as which service they attended.
- 2
Print the QR code
In the bulletin and on the welcome slide. Add a keyword the pastor can say out loud.
- 3
Connect your follow-up
Notify your guest team, and add guests to Mailchimp, Kit, or your church software through Zapier.
Before and after
| Paper connection cards | With Textiful | |
|---|---|---|
| Guests who respond | The few who find a pen | Anyone with a phone |
| Follow-up | Monday, after the cards are typed up | The same afternoon |
| Readability | Handwriting to decipher | Typed by the guest |
| Event sign-ups | Clipboards in the lobby | A keyword per event |
Who it’s for
Churches, ministries, campus ministries, and faith organizations in the US that want to welcome guests and run sign-ups without paper. Textiful doesn’t process donations; a reply can link to your giving page.
Who should skip it
Churches outside the US, since the short codes work with US carriers only. A very small congregation that already knows every visitor by name may not need it.
Solutions for churches and ministries
How to get first-time visitor information at church
To get first time visitor information at church, invite guests during the welcome to text a keyword like WELCOME to 33777 or scan the QR code in the bulletin. Textiful asks for their name and email one question at a time, tags them as a first-time guest, and emails your welcome team as soon as they finish.
ReadHow to grow a donor list at a gala
To grow a donor list at a gala, have the emcee give a keyword from the podium right after the story lands, and put a QR code on every table card. Textiful asks each guest for an email by text, sends your impact report, replies with a link to your giving page, and tags the contact with the table host who brought them.
ReadHow to recruit volunteers at a community event
To recruit volunteers at a community event, announce a keyword from the stage, such as "Text SERVE to 33777," and put a QR code on the volunteer table. Textiful asks for their name and email and what they'd like to help with, emails your volunteer coordinator each new sign-up, and adds them to your email tool or CRM, so the coordinator can follow up while the event is still fresh.
ReadHow to run church event and retreat sign-ups without a clipboard
To run church event sign-ups without a clipboard, give each event its own keyword, like RETREAT, SERVE, or GROUPS, and announce it from the stage. Textiful asks for the student's name and a parent's email by text, tags the sign-up with the event, and emails the event lead as each one comes in.
ReadHow to run event registration and check-in by text
To run event check-in by text, put a QR code on a sign at the door or registration table and a keyword on the same sign. Each arrival scans or texts, gives a name and email by text, and Textiful tags them with the event. When doors close, the list of who came is ready to filter, export as a CSV, or find in your email tool.
ReadHow to share your giving link during a church service
To share your giving link during a church service, pick a keyword like GIVE, say it from the stage, and put it on screen with a QR code. Anyone who texts it to 33777 or scans the code gets a reply with a link to your giving page. Textiful doesn't take donations; the gift happens on the giving page you already use.
ReadWhat's a good alternative to paper sign-up sheets?
A practical alternative to paper sign up sheets is a QR code or keyword people text from their own phone. Textiful asks for their email by text, checks that it looks like an email before moving on, and adds the contact straight to Mailchimp, Kit, or ActiveCampaign, so nobody types anything in afterward.
ReadQuestions people ask
Not right away. Keep both for a few months: some guests, often older members, prefer the card. Watch how many come in each way before you change anything.
Only people you invite to your Textiful account. Roles are owner, admin, member, and view-only, so a greeter can see new guests without being able to change your flows.
If your church management software has a Zapier connection, Zapier's New Contact trigger can add each guest to it. A webhook is another option if your system accepts one. Mailchimp, Kit, ActiveCampaign, and HubSpot are built in.
They can reply STOP at any point, and Textiful handles it automatically. Any emails you send from your email tool carry that tool's own unsubscribe link.
Yes. One keyword is included on every plan, and it stays yours on its short code. Tag contacts by service time if you want to see which service your guests came to.
Keep exploring
Event lead capture: a playbook for live audiences
How to turn a room into contacts you can follow up with: what to offer, how to ask from the stage or the booth, what to ask for, and what to do in the 24 hours after.
ReadConnection card
A connection card is a short form churches use to collect contact details and requests from visitors and members during a service, typically name, email or phone, whether it's their first visit, and prayer requests or next steps. Paper cards are still common, and many churches now also offer a digital connection card by text, QR code, or web form.
ReadOpt-in
An opt-in is a person's permission to receive messages from an organization, given through an action they take themselves, such as texting a keyword, ticking a box, or submitting a sign-up form. It's the record that someone asked to hear from you.
ReadSTOP and HELP keywords
STOP and HELP are standard reply words in US texting. Texting STOP to a program unsubscribes the sender from its messages, and texting HELP returns a message saying who runs the program and how to get support. Carriers expect every short code program to respond to both.
ReadText-to-join
Text-to-join is a way to sign up by text: a person texts a keyword to a short code, or scans a QR code that opens a pre-filled text, and answers a question or two to join a list, get a download, or register for something.
ReadNonprofit event lead capture at galas and fundraisers
Nonprofit event lead capture works best at the moments a gala already has: the table card at dinner, the emcee at the podium, the live poll before the paddle raise. Guests scan a QR code or text a keyword, give a name and email, and land in your donor list through your email tool, HubSpot, or Zapier, including the guests who came as someone's plus-one.
ReadCampus event sign-ups for schools and student orgs
For a campus event sign-up, students and families scan a QR code at the club table or open house check-in, answer a question or two by text, and land in the right list. One account can give every club at the activities fair its own free QR code, so each one gets its own sign-ups.
ReadReady for your next event?
Try Textiful free for 14 days. Set up a QR code or keyword in minutes and see who shows up.