Connection Card Pro Help & Documentation




Last Updated: Sep 8, 2025 9:56 AM

Switch Your Online Giving to Connection Card Pro — A 90-Day Playbook

You can’t import existing recurring gifts from a previous provider into Connection Card Pro. But you can make the change smooth, low-risk, and donor-friendly. Use this step-by-step plan to complete your transition in ~3 months or less with no downtime for giving.

Contents

Guiding Principles

  • Run both systems in parallel for a short window. Keep your current provider active while you move donors.
  • Flip the public links on Day 1. All new one-time and recurring gifts should flow through Connection Card Pro immediately.
  • Communicate clearly with recurring donors. Ask them to set up a new recurring gift in Connection Card Pro, then cancel the old one.
  • Track progress and close the gap. Follow up until 100% of recurring gifts are recreated in Connection Card Pro, then turn the old system off.

Phase 0 — Prep (Week 0)

  1. Set up Connection Card Pro Giving

    • Create/confirm Funds/Designations you’ll accept online.
    • Customize the giving page and receipts; enable the “cover processing fee” option if you plan to offer it.
    • Test a $5 card and ACH gift; confirm deposits and receipts.
    • (Optional) Enable Text Giving so donors can text “Give” to your church's phone number.
    • Note your public link: (add it to your website’s Give button).

  2. Export your recurring donors from your current provider

    Include: name, email, phone, amount, frequency, next charge date. Sort by next charge date—those donors are your first priority.

    Recommended next step: Import that export into Connection Card Pro and add everyone to a custom mailing list (e.g., “Donors from Old System”) so you can track migration and send targeted communications.
    • At minimum, create the list and add these people to it; if profiles don’t exist yet in your database, create them first so you can track status. If importing, the system will automatically detect duplicates and offer consolidation options. 

  3. Create simple tracking in Connection Card Pro

    • Make a custom tag or custom list like “Recurring—To Migrate.”
    • As donors recreate their gifts in Connection Card Pro, mark them “Migrated” (new tag) and remove the “To Migrate” tag. (Also remove them from the mailing list you've created to ensure donors who have already migrated do not receive more reminders.) 

  4. Prepare assets & updates

    • Replace QR codes and links (pew cards, slides, email footers, website) with .
    • Draft comms (see templates below).
    • Brief staff/ushers on the new flow and how to help people switch.

Phase 1 — Launch & Link Flip (Week 1)

  • Immediately change every giving entry point to Connection Card Pro:
    • Website Give button, menu, and footer
    • QR codes (seats, posters, screens)
    • In-service screens/announcements
    • Printed materials and email templates
  • From this moment on, all new one-time gifts and brand-new recurring gifts land in Connection Card Pro.

Phase 2 — Migrate Recurring Donors (Weeks 1–8)

  1. Day 1: Send a launch email to everyone

    • Explain the “why” (stewardship, lower costs, simpler donor experience).
    • Share + option to text “Give” to your church's phone number (if enabled).
    • Emphasize: “If you already give recurring, please recreate your gift in the new system by {{target_date}} and then cancel your old one.”

  2. Day 3–10: Email recurring donors directly (segmented list from export)

    • Provide a 2-minute setup guide and link to .
    • Encourage creating a Personal Hub account at to manage/update gifts anytime.
    • Ask them to set up the new recurring gift first, then cancel the old (or your finance team can cancel on their behalf if your old system allows).

  3. Weeks 2–4: Reminders & nudges

    • Automate two gentle reminder emails to those who haven’t migrated.
    • Make 5–10 personal calls each week to the highest-impact donors (sort by amount or by next charge date).

  4. Weekend services

    • 30–60 second stage announcement for two consecutive weeks.
    • Slide with QR code linking to .
    • Have a staffed help table for quick assistance.

  5. Weekly progress check

    • Run a Connection Card Pro report for new recurring gifts.
    • Mark donors Migrated; follow up with remaining “To Migrate” donors. You can also remove them from the Connection Card Pro mailing list to ensure automated emails or text messages only go to those who have not yet migrated.

Phase 3 — Finalize & Turn Off (Weeks 9–12)

  1. Two-week-out notice to remaining recurring donors with {{target_date}} as the shut-off date.
  2. One-week-out and 48-hour reminders.
  3. On {{target_date}}, disable recurring in the old provider. Keep one-time giving off in the old system (it should already be inaccessible since you flipped links on Day 1).
  4. Thank-you email to all donors: “We’re fully live on Connection Card Pro!”

Communication Templates (copy/paste and tweak)

A. Church-wide Launch (Day 1)

Subject: We’ve improved online giving 🎉

Body:
Starting today, our online giving is powered by Connection Card Pro. It’s faster, secure, and helps us keep more of every gift focused on ministry.
Give now at (or text Give to your church's phone number, if enabled).
If you already give monthly/weekly, please recreate your recurring gift in the new system by {{target_date}}, then cancel the old one with our previous provider. Thank you for your generosity!

B. Recurring Donor Migration (Direct)

Subject: Action needed to keep your recurring gift going

Body:
Thank you for your faithful giving. We’re moving to a new giving platform to reduce costs and simplify things.
Please take 2 minutes today:

  1. Visit and set up your recurring gift.
  2. Cancel your previous recurring gift in our old system (or reply if you’d like us to cancel it for you).
    Want to manage your giving anytime? Create your Personal Hub account here: .
    We plan to turn off the old system on {{target_date}}. Thank you!

C. Final Reminder (48 hours prior)

Subject: Last reminder: complete your recurring gift move

Body:
This is a friendly reminder that we’re discontinuing our old giving provider on {{target_date}}.
Please recreate your recurring gift at and cancel the old one.
Need help? Reply to this email—we’ll walk you through it.

Best Practices & Tips

  • Make it easy: Put everywhere—website, QR cards, slides, email signatures, social bios.
  • Reduce risk of gaps: Ask donors to set up the new recurring gift before canceling the old one.
  • Prioritize by next charge date: Contact donors whose drafts hit soonest to avoid missed cycles.
  • Use tags/lists in Connection Card Pro to track “To Migrate” vs. “Migrated.” It keeps everyone aligned.
  • Offer clear choices: Card or ACH. Note that ACH can take a few days to settle.
  • Celebrate wins: Share quick weekly updates with staff/finance team (“We’re 62% migrated!”).
  • Address duplicate charges: If a donor forgets to cancel the old gift, help them do so and (if appropriate) offer to apply the duplicate toward a special fund or refund via the old provider’s process.
  • Data housekeeping: Export and archive reports from your previous provider for your records before shutting it down. Depending on legal requirements in your jurisdiction, you may need to save up to 7 years of data. 
  • Security reassurance: Connection Card Pro uses modern, secure payment processing and lets donors manage their own payment info through the Personal Hub. Card and bank information are never stored on Connection Card Pro's servers and church staff never have access to view sensitive card or banking information (only the last four digits are visible). 
  • Use unique links (Connection Card Pro’s Unique Donation Links) when emailing certain groups—handy for tracking adoption and creating tailored landing copy.

FAQ

Q: Can Connection Card Pro import our existing recurring gifts from the old provider?
A: No. For security and compliance reasons, those payment tokens can’t be moved between processors. Donors need to recreate their recurring gift once in Connection Card Pro.

Q: Will donors lose their giving history?
A: Past gifts remain in your old provider’s records. All new gifts will appear in Connection Card Pro. Keep a final export from your old system for year-end statements as needed. Optionally, you may import old provider's records to Connection Card Pro to allow donors to see their past giving all in one place! 

Q: What happens if we delete our current provider before the transition is complete?
A: Any recurring gifts still with the old provider will stop without a replacement. Always run both systems in parallel until everyone has migrated or until your cut-off date.

Q: How do donors manage their new recurring gift?
A: They can log in to the Personal Hub () to update amounts, schedules, and payment methods, or cancel anytime.

One-Page Checklist

Before Launch

  • [ ] Connection Card Pro giving is live and tested
  • [ ] Funds/designations set
  • [ ] Receipts customized
  • [ ] Text Giving configured (optional)
  • [ ] QR codes and web links ready
  • [ ] Recurring donor export from old provider
  • [ ] Tags/lists created in Connection Card Pro: “To Migrate,” “Migrated”
  • [ ] Staff briefed & help scripts ready

Launch Week

  • [ ] Flip all links/QRs to
  • [ ] Send church-wide announcement
  • [ ] Email recurring donors with instructions and target date

Weeks 2–8

  • [ ] Send two reminder emails
  • [ ] Make personal calls to priority donors
  • [ ] Track “Migrated” each week and report progress

Weeks 9–12

  • [ ] Final reminder at T-14, T-7, T-2 days
  • [ ] Disable recurring in old provider on {{target_date}}
  • [ ] Send “We did it!” thank-you note

With this plan, most churches fully switch to Connection Card Pro in 8–12 weeks without interrupting generosity or creating admin headaches. 

If you still have questions or require additional help, please contact our support team by clicking on the Help button > Contact Support.
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