Having helped thousands of churches over the last few years with their assimilation system (through the Fusion book and training events, The Assimilation Seminar and The Assimilation Intensive), you might imagine that I get a lot of questions about the different aspects of Assimilation.

One of the most high impact Assimilation techniques that I recommend is the Connection Card (you can read more about that by clicking here), and I get a lot of questions about what to include on the Back of the card – what we call “Next Steps.”

So here are a few tips (and some examples) based on how I choose “Next Steps” for the Connection Card:

• List your regular next steps (those that are the same each week) on the right side of the back of the card (ex: Becoming a Christian, Baptism, Membership, Serving, etc.).
• Limit the week-specific next steps to four or five total on the left side of the card.
• Include the Memory Verse for that week’s message (ex: My Next Step today is to… Memorize John 3:16).
• Write a couple of specific “action steps” that tie in with your message (ex: My Next Step today is to… Commit my personal finances to God and begin following his plan.).
• Offer a sign-up for an upcoming event at your church (ex: My Next Step today is to… Learn more about the Christmas Party on December 17).

Your Connection Card will drastically increase the number of newcomers you can connect to and follow up with, and that’s going to help your church grow.

However, many people have told me that they’ve found that it streamlines many of the tedious (even confusing) processes – like sign-ups for small groups, Baptism, and submitting prayer requests – by handling it ALL in one place.

And on top of all that, your connection card will help you grow your people by challenging them to take next steps every week!

P.S. For more advanced techniques for keeping more of your church’s guests and moving them toward fully committed membership, check out The Assimilation Intensive.