Keep Your Guests!

Onboarding is a process designed to move people along a path from visiting a church, to becoming a regular attender, helping a seeker become a believer, joining a small group, serving in a volunteer ministry, giving regularly, becoming a member and eventually, a leader in the church.

Onboarding is dependent upon our Follow-Up (Tickler) system included in SeekerWorks.NET™, that schedules steps to be taken by the person most appropriate to do so when the Paths are triggered. A Tickler is defined as:

"a device for jogging the memory, specifically: a file that serves as a reminder and is arranged to bring matters to a timely attention"

In this case, the 'file' is a database-driven set of programmed functions that notify the appropriate person when something happens they want to know about, or need to follow up on.

Follow-Ups (Ticklers) Triggered From The Portal (skip ahead, if desired):

Follow-Ups (Ticklers) are created automatically when a logged-in user clicks on a related button using the {subdomain}.SeekerWorks.org™ Attendee portal.

For example, the 'About' Sub Menu option on the 'Home' screen can have a drop-down list of all of the Ministries for your organization. Each one can be linked to a path that is used when a person wants to know more about that ministry, such as the Check Out The ACME Ministry! screen:

This screen is an example of a ministry for Community Church of Cartoonville, which shows the (Request More Info About This Ministry) button at the top of that screen. When clicked, the 'Info- Student Ministry' path is triggered and a tickler is sent to George Jetson, who is the director of the ACME Ministry, linked to the name/email address of the person who clicked the button.
The 'Care' Sub Menu option on the 'Home' screen can have a drop-down list of all of the ways you care for people connected to your organization. One of those could be linked to a path that is used when a person requests Pastoral Care, such as the Pastoral Care Information screen:

This screen is an example of the pastoral care page for Community Church of Cartoonville, which shows the (Request Pastoral Care) button and the Contact Type at the top of that screen. When clicked, the path for the selected Contact Type is triggered and a tickler is sent to Thurston Howell (Benevolence request), Daffy Duck (Pastoral Guidance request), or Betty Boop (Home Visit, Hospital Visit, Visitation requests).
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Another of those 'Care' Sub Menu options could be linked to a path that is used when a person requests Prayer, such as the Prayer Requests screen:

This screen is an example of the prayer requests page for Community Church of Cartoonville, which shows the (Request Prayer) button below the prayer request input fields, as part of the Prayer Wall. When clicked, the path for the 'New Prayer Request' trigger would be initiated, if there was one set up for CCCartoonville (which there isn't). All non-confidential prayer requests appear below automatically after the request is saved.

They also appear in SeekerWorks.NET™ on the 'People/Prayer Requests' screens.
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The 'Connect' Sub Menu option on the 'Home' screen can have a drop-down list of all of the ways people can connect at your organization. In these examples, a page exists for each Class/Seminar someone could attend, such as the Attend The New Members Class Sessions screen:

This screen is an example of a New Members class for Community Church of Cartoonville, which shows two buttons-- the (Ask About This Class/Seminar) button and the (Register For This Class/Seminar) button at the top of that screen. When the first is clicked, the 'Follow Up Path- More Information:' path for the Class/Seminar is triggered and a tickler is sent to Daffy Duck, since he teaches that class. When the second is clicked, the "Sign Me Up For This Class/Seminar!" screen appears.
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Another 'Connect' Sub Menu option example could allow a person to browse a list of Small Groups and select one, or select a Division, such as the Join A Small Group! screen:

$Join A Small Group (top half)$

This screen is an example showing buttons for each 'Division' of small group with 3 (Ask About Joining A {division_name}) buttons at the top of the page, or 5 (Ask About It) buttons to the left of each Small Group in each Division, when they meet, etc. When one of the first 3 buttons is clicked/touched, the path in the 'Follow Up Path- More Information:' path for the Division is triggered and a tickler is sent to Scott Stiver (Discipleship Groups), Ben Forsythe (Life Groups), or Andy Capp (Recovery Groups) since they are the Division Leaders, respectively.

When one of the other 5 (Ask About It) buttons is clicked/touched, the same paths in each Division is triggered and a tickler is sent to Scott Stiver (Discipleship Groups), Ben Forsythe (Life Groups), or Andy Capp (Recovery Groups) since they are the Division Leaders, respectively, but the tickler also mentions the name of the Small Group the person may be interested in.

Of course, you decide the names of each of your Divisions. You could even change the labels 'Division', 'Coach', or Small Group 'Leader' to something else, if desired, using the 'Settings/General' screen, "Modify General Information For Your Organization", using the {Captions/Other} tab.
A third 'Connect' Sub Menu option example could allow a person to request information about volunteer service, such as the Volunteer Service screen:

This screen is an example of CCCartoonville's Volunteer Placement ministry, whose goal is helping someone determine their spiritual gifts, then help them plug in to a ministry at Community Church of Cartoonville based upon their gifts and passion, instead of sending people to serve in the most needed position and end up losing them and their household all together when they leave the church. The (Help Me Volunteer) button, when clicked, triggers the 'Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map' path 'Other:' on the {Serving In Paths...} tab. In this example, the 'Serve- Other' path would be triggered and a tickler sent to Elmer Fudd, who is the Volunteer Placement director.
Lastly, the 'Serve' Sub Menu option on the 'Home' screen can have a drop-down list of all of the Ministries for your organization again, but each of these pages can be about serving in the various ministries, such as the Serve_with_Childrens_Ministry screen:

This screen is an example of a ministry for Community Church of Cartoonville, which shows the (I Want To Help) button at the top and the 2 (Sign Me Up!) buttons at the bottom of that screen to the left of each Ministry Opportunity position with openings, as well as the number of openings desired. When the top button is clicked, the ministry's 'Follow-Up (Tickler) Path- Serve:' path is triggered and a tickler is sent to Stuart Tiddlywink, who is the director of the Children's Ministry, linked to the name/email address of the person who clicked the button. The other 2 buttons trigger the same path, but the tickler also includes the ministry position the person is interested in.

Onboarding Screen (skip ahead, if desired):

The Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card screen, which is on the People menu, is used to capture information from a visitor or information card or bulletin insert. It has a section at the top to define who the Onboarding form is from, the type of Onboarding (Person or Household) and 6 tabs below it to capture the rest of the information:

Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {Address}

• The Address tab defines where the person or household lives.
Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {How Old/Often/Did They Hear}

• This tab defines 3 sections, including 'How old are you?', 'How often do you attend?' and 'How did you hear about this church?'.
Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {Info On/Serving In}

• This tab allows you to check a box next to each Follow-Up (Tickler) Path they may have indicated on the form.
Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {Wants/Needs/Interests}

• This tab allows you to check a box linked to a Question from the Onboarding Map, some with an optional 40 character response.
Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {Comments}

• This tab shows you any previous comments that have been saved with the form and allows you to add new comments as well.
Edit Onboarding/Visitor Information Card {Prayer/Milestones}

• This tab allows you to capture Prayer requests and/or related Milestones for the person/household.

Reviewing Triggered Follow-Ups (Ticklers) (skip ahead, if desired):

The Follow-Ups (Ticklers) functions, which are on the 'Manage' menu, are used to work through the Follow-Ups (Ticklers) which have been triggered by actions somewhere within SeekerWorks.NET™, perhaps through the Edit Onboarding screen discussed above, or the portal, also demonstrated above. Additional Follow-Up (Tickler) Paths are also triggered anywhere a person gets added to the database, or someone adds information about a person that triggers a related Follow-Up (Tickler) Path, discussed below. There are 5 screens available to work through the Follow-Ups (Ticklers) assigned to a person, with the first 2 screens being the primary method:

The "List Of Follow-Ups (Ticklers)" screen show items for the current or selected User-ID:

• This tab shows a filtered list of Follow-Ups (Ticklers), based upon the 'Option' chosen, which include
- 'Due Today', which shows any overdue or current ticklers needing action
- 'Due Tomorrow', which shows any overdue, current or future ticklers needing action by tomorrow
- 'Due Next 7 Days', which shows any overdue, current or future ticklers needing action over the next 7 days
- 'All Active Follow-Ups (Ticklers)', which shows any overdue, current or future ticklers needing action
- 'All Finished/Dismissed Follow-Ups (Ticklers)', which shows all ticklers you have already finished dealing with
The "Review Follow-Up (Tickler)" screen appears when you click the (eyeball) button on the screen above to view the tickler:
The "Review Original Document- Onboarding Follow-Up (Tickler)" screen:
The "Follow-Up (Tickler) Path Information" screen:
The "Follow-Ups (Ticklers) For: {name} [id]" screen:

Setting Up Follow-Up (Tickler) Paths (skip ahead, if desired):

The Edit Follow-Up (Tickler) Path screen appears when you click/touch an (eyeball) button on the list of paths using the 'Settings/Follow-Up Paths' menu option. It is used to create or modify all of the paths linked to a trigger(s) within SeekerWorks.NET™ or the portal.

It defines the name of the path, any optional triggers for that path, and who is to be notified of the Follow-Up (Tickler) during each of the up to 12 steps defined in it. Ideally, the volunteer or staff member responsible for a given area of ministry is the perfect candidate to receive Follow-Ups (Ticklers) related to that area of ministry. There are 11 optional triggers available, in addition to the Onboarding Map and Age Group links (discussed below) and other trigger areas:

New Onboarding
• This is triggered whenever a new Onboarding form is created.
New Giving Unit
• This is triggered whenever a new Giving Unit is created.
New Name
• This is triggered whenever a new Name is created.
New Pledge
• This is triggered whenever a new Pledge is created.
New Small Group Member
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a small group.
New Class Member
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a Class/Seminar.
New Volunteer
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a Ministry Position as a volunteer.
New To Campaign
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a Campaign Position as a volunteer.
New Message
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a Message.
New Prayer Request
• This is triggered whenever a person is linked to a Prayer Request.
Dismissed Onboarding
• This is triggered whenever one of the steps for a new Onboarding form is Dismissed, rather than Finished.

When a new organization is created in SeekerWorks.NET™, there are a number of defaults set up for you automatically. This includes default Follow-Up Paths, the Onboarding Map information, and the Age Group values. They are discussed in turn below. Note that the 'New Adult' path does not have a trigger as a default, since the Onboarding and X Time Visitor paths would normally take care of this. You can add your own, if needed.

Here are the Default Follow-Up Paths, with their (trigger) in parentheses:

1st Time Visitor (Onboarding Map)
2nd Time Visitor (Onboarding Map)
3rd Time Visitor (Onboarding Map)
Consecutive Class/Seminar Absences (Missed Class/Seminar)
Consecutive Small Group Absences (Missed Small Group)
Dismissed Onboarding Forms (Dismissed Onboarding)
Info- Childrens Ministry (Onboarding Map)
Info- Drama (Onboarding Map)
Info- Music (Onboarding Map)
Info- Nursery (Onboarding Map)
Info- Other (Onboarding Map)
Info- Production (Onboarding Map)
Info- Singles (Onboarding Map)
Info- Small Groups (Onboarding Map)
Info- Special Events (Onboarding Map)
Info- Student Ministry (Onboarding Map)
Info- Volunteer Resources (Onboarding Map)
New Adult
New Baby (Age Groups)
New College Student (Age Groups)
New Elementary Student (Age Groups)
New Giver (New Giving Unit)
New High School Student (Age Groups)
New Middle School Student (Age Groups)
New Name (AG=Unknown) (Age Groups)
New Preschool Child (Age Groups)
New Toddler Child (Age Groups)
Onboarding (New Onboarding)
Onboarding Comments (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Childrens Ministry (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Drama (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Music (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Nursery (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Other (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Production (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Singles (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Small Groups (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Special Events (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Student Ministry (Onboarding Map)
Serve- Volunteer Resources (Onboarding Map)

Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map (skip ahead, if desired):

The Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map screen, which is also on the Settings menu, determines which Follow-Up (Tickler) Path is triggered on the Onboarding screen, based upon the check boxes checked (see screen above). It has 5 tabs:

Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map {Info On Paths}

• As you can see in the list above, there are eleven default Information paths, although the map allows you to link up to 15.
Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map {Serving In Paths}

• As you can also see in the list above, there are eleven default Serving In paths, although the map allows you to link up to 15.
Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map {Info/Serving Labels}

• This tab allows you to change the labels of each of the volunteer ministries and check boxes that appear on the Onboarding screen.
Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map {Questions}

• This tab allows you to ask up to 15 additional questions linked to a path, with the bottom 4 questions accepting up to a 40 character response. These questions automatically appear on the Onboarding screen.
Edit Onboarding/Follow-Up (Tickler) Map {Age Labels/Visitor Paths}

• This tab allows you to change the labels of each of the Age Groups that appear on the Onboarding screen, independent of the Age Group screen. It also links the 1st Time, 2nd Time, and/or 3rd Time to the related path.

Age Groups:

The Ministry Age Group Information screen, which is also on the Settings menu, defines information about each group of people you want to manage throughout SeekerWorks.NET™, including graduation/advancement from one group to the next based upon age or school grade, and their related paths.

While it is initially created when you created your organization, it can be modified or enhanced with this screen.

Whenever a new name is added to the database for a particular Age Group, the Follow-Up (Tickler) Path linked to that Age Group is triggered automatically to notify whomever is most appropriate to follow up on that information. If you notice the trigger for each of the Paths above that show (Age Groups), they correspond to the list below. (Note that 'A - Adult' does not have a Follow-Up (Tickler) Path linked to it as a default, since they will most likely fill out an Information Card when they first attend.)

Here are the Default Age Groups, with their corresponding (Follow-Up (Tickler) Path) in parentheses:

A - Adult
C - College (New College Student)
E - Elementary (K-5) (New Elementary Student)
H - High School (New High School Student)
M - Middle School (New Middle School Student)
N - Nursery (New Baby)
P - Preschool (New Preschool Child)
T - Toddler Nursery (New Toddler Child)
U - Unknown (New Name (AG=Unknown))

SeekerWorks.NET™ can significantly simplify the efforts to follow up on the various aspects of a church's ministry efforts. And, no one will forget to tell so-and-so about an opportunity or request, or forget that someone told them about an opportunity or request, or wait weeks or months before an opportunity or request is actually followed up on. This reminds me of the gospel of Mark, where John Mark often uses the phrase, "And immediately..." something happens. In this case, that something is making sure no one falls through the cracks!

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