Turn Your Easter Outreach into Year-Round Momentum

Easter Sunday is a significant day in your church. 

The sanctuary is full, volunteers are energized, and people who may not attend regularly find themselves walking through your doors. Many churches experience attendance surges of 50% or more, with some even doubling in size.¹ But beyond the packed pews and the excitement of the day, Easter presents something far greater—a rare opportunity to reach people with the gospel who might not step inside a church at any other time of the year.

These people come for different reasons—tradition, a personal crisis, or simply because they were invited. Whatever brought them in, they arrive with a unique openness that won’t last without intentional follow-up. 

This guide will help you move beyond a one-day attendance spike and develop a strategy that extends the impact of Easter, ensuring that those who walk through your doors don’t just visit—but find a place to belong.

Churches pour enormous time, energy, and resources into Easter. 

Planning services, mobilizing volunteers, and investing in outreach efforts take months of preparation. It’s often one of the most heavily resourced events of the year for churches, aimed at welcoming new visitors and reconnecting with those who may have drifted away. 

Some churches spend $10,000 to $25,000 on direct mail alone. Beyond mailers, many churches invest heavily in Easter productions and community-wide egg hunts. These events require significant resources, from plastic eggs and candy, averaging $4,000 or more just for the egg hunt, to venue rentals, promotions, and volunteer coordination. 

The challenge isn’t getting people in the door—it’s keeping them engaged beyond the holiday.

Easter is one of the few times when spiritual curiosity is at its peak. Only 7% of unchurched adults typically respond to church outreach, yet during Easter, this percentage increases.² People who may have ignored previous invitations are willing to visit—drawn by family, tradition, or a deeper personal need. 

The challenge isn’t getting people in the door—it’s keeping them engaged beyond the holiday. In fact, 80% of first-time guests never come back.³ Not because they had a poor experience, but because they weren’t guided toward the next step. Many churches assume that a successful Easter service is enough to bring visitors back. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. 

Without a structured follow-up strategy, Easter becomes just another big Sunday, rather than the starting point of lasting discipleship and church growth.

Easter is only the first step

To build on the momentum of Easter and create lasting connections, here are some effective strategies to keep those relationships growing:

1. Follow Up Within 36 Hours: The first 36 hours after Easter are critical for retention. Studies show that when guests are contacted within this window, up to 85% choose to return.⁴ However, if follow-up is delayed to 72 hours, that number drops to 60%, and waiting a full week reduces it to just 15%.⁴  

This initial window is when visitors are most open to further engagement. A simple, personal message can make all the difference. Thanking them for attending, inviting them to an upcoming event, and offering a way to stay connected reinforces the warmth and hospitality they experienced on Easter Sunday.

2. Build Relationship Through 1:1 Text Conversations: Many pastors assume people want church information. But what they really want is conversation. When a seeker reaches out digitally, it’s important that they aren’t met with an automated response but instead receive a personal conversation from someone who actually listens.

That’s why texting is one of the most effective ways to build real connections. In fact, 90% of text messages are read within three minutes of delivery,⁵ making it a direct and immediate way to engage. Plus, texting is already ingrained in daily life—91% of people text every day, and 43% check their messages more than ten times a day!⁶ Unlike other forms of communication that can be overlooked, texts are read and responded to almost instantly.

A simple 1:1 text can lead to a moment of comfort or guidance that’s hard to achieve in a larger gathering. This kind of personal engagement is what keeps people coming back—not just great services, but a sense that they truly belong.

With VisitorReach, your church can turn one-time connections into lasting relationships through real-time, personalized texting—engaging more deeply and reaching people wherever they are. Schedule a quick 15-minute call to learn more.

3. Offer Meaningful Year-Round Opportunities: For many visitors, Easter can be the beginning of a deeper spiritual journey, but only if your church provides clear, accessible next steps. Engagement shouldn’t be limited to a single invite or event promotion, it needs to be part of an ongoing effort to build relationships.

Instead of just hoping visitors return, churches can create consistent opportunities for deeper connection. Send personalized texts inviting them to join business events, learning communities, or parenting groups. When people see clear, meaningful ways to stay involved, they’re more likely to take the next step in their faith journey.

By using digital outreach and personal follow-ups, you can connect people to spiritual growth opportunities no matter where they are. The key is fostering relationships that last, not just hoping they’ll come back.

4. Support People in Every Season: Easter often highlights the need for connection and belonging, but the challenges people face don’t disappear after Easter service. Financial pressures, relationship difficulties, and personal crises can happen at any time. 

Follow-up with people by asking for prayer requests (and then sending them a prayer over text) is a way to demonstrate care and support. Prayer requests open up dialogue about their personal circumstances that fosters deeper connection and spiritual support.

A continuous text-based communication approach helps keep your church accessible right when people need support the most. Texting allows churches to be present in real-time, offering support in ways that feel personal, yet not intrusive.
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5. Keep Your Church Visible to Engage Your Community: Easter brings new visitors and renewed interest in spiritual communities, making it the perfect time to boost your church’s visibility. Digital tools like Google Maps, Apple Maps, and social media help people, especially those who attended Easter services, easily find and reconnect with you.

But visibility alone isn’t enough. People searching "church near me" aren’t just looking for a location. They’re looking for connection. Churches that engage with seekers directly, rather than just being listed online, are the ones turning digital interest into real relationships.

By keeping your information accurate and using digital tools to engage with those actively seeking a church, you make it easier for visitors to take their next step not just on Easter, but all year long.

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A Call to Church Leaders: Moving Beyond Easter Sunday

Churches across the U.S. are facing declining retention rates, with over 2.7 million people leaving the church annually.⁷ Easter provides a great opportunity to reverse this trend—but only if churches move from an event-driven approach to a relationship-driven one.

Dreamers Church saw firsthand the impact of this shift. Instead of treating Easter as a one-time event, they built a rhythm of consistent, personal engagement—and the results were surprising. Their second-biggest Sunday of the year was the week AFTER Easter! By staying connected with visitors, inviting them into deeper relationships, and making follow-up a priority, more people returned, took next steps in their faith, and found a lasting church home.

Easter isn’t just about filling seats, it’s about building real connections. But without a strategy for follow-up and engagement, many guests will never return. Church leaders must prioritize personal follow-up, relational connections and ongoing engagement to ensure that Easter momentum doesn’t fade after one weekend.

As a reminder, Easter services are a powerful way to bring people into the church, but many others in your community still hesitate to take that step into your church even during holidays. The gospel calls us to “go” into the world, meeting people where they are—and today, many of them are online. Engaging people digitally allows your church to reach beyond its physical walls, connecting with those who may feel hesitant or disconnected from traditional church settings.

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Footnotes

1. Lifeway Research, "Easter Remains High Attendance Day for Most Churches."

2. Barna Group, "Barna’s Annual Review of Significant Religious Findings Offers Encouragement and Challenges."

3. The Unstuck Group, "The Number Pastors Most Often Ignore"

4. EvangelismCoach.org, "6 Ways to Follow Up on First-Time Church Visitors."

5. Tatango, "90% of Text Messages Are Read Within 3 Minutes," Tatango Blog,

6. SMS Comparison, "91% of Consumers Text Every Day,"

7. Church Leadership, "Every Year, 2.7 Million Church Members Fall into Inactivity."

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