What to Send a Church Guest in the First 24 Hours
Your guest just walked out the door.
They're in the parking lot right now, buckling kids into car seats and deciding what's for lunch. What happens in the next few hours could decide whether you ever see them again.
In Boomerang, Tyler Smith and Ali Hofmeyer call this window the 24-Hour Rule.
It has two parts: a text the same afternoon, and an email the next morning.
Part one: The Parking Lot Text
The Parking Lot Text goes out the same afternoon, ideally while some of your guests are still finding their cars.
The book says three things make it work:
- Their name. Not "Hi friend." Their actual name.
- A real person's name from your church. Not "Your Church Team."
- Zero ask. No invite. No link. No "sign up for our newsletter."
The whole message exists to say one thing: you were seen.
Here's an example straight from the book:
Hey Sarah, it's Pastor Jason from City Church. So glad you were with us this morning. I hope you enjoyed the service.
That's the whole text. It feels almost too simple. That's the point.
Why speed matters so much
Boomerang is direct about this: speed is the factor most strongly correlated with a guest coming back, and it's also the easiest one to fix.
Think about where that guest's attention is on Sunday afternoon. They're still thinking about your church. The music, the kids' check-in, the person who said hello. A text that arrives while that's fresh lands very differently than a letter that shows up on Thursday.
The book also points out where most guests actually get lost: in the gap between the connect card and the first real contact. Every time a guest's information changes hands, you lose a little speed. And speed, as the book says, "is the whole game."
Part two: the Perfect Welcome Email
The second half of the 24-Hour Rule lands Monday morning. The book calls it the Perfect Welcome Email.
This is where you can add a little more substance than a text allows. But the book cautions against making it long. Your guest visited yesterday. Unless they asked about a specific ministry, they're still feeling things out. Keep it personal, keep it helpful, and don't overload them.
The full template for the Perfect Welcome Email is in the Boomerang Kit, along with the Parking Lot Text and every other message in the six-week plan.
The problem with Sunday afternoon
You can absolutely send the Parking Lot Text by hand. Plenty of pastors do.
But Sunday afternoon is also when you're the most tired you'll be all week. You've preached, prayed with people, and stacked chairs. The text that matters most tends to be the one that's easiest to forget.
That's exactly what Text In Church is built for. When a new guest's information comes in, the Parking Lot Text can go out automatically, with the guest's name and a real staff member's name, every single time. The right message goes to the right person at the right time.
What comes after day one
The 24-Hour Rule is the start, not the whole plan. Boomerang lays out sixteen touches across six weeks, and week one is the heaviest.
Get the templates
Want the Parking Lot Text and Perfect Welcome Email templates? Text the word KIT to 816-482-3337. And notice how it feels when that text comes back to you. That's what your guests can feel too.
Want the whole system? The Boomerang hardcover is free. You just cover shipping, and it includes the audiobook and the Boomerang Kit. Get your free copy.
Your guest is in the parking lot. Let them know they were seen.
