Processed by:

Development Testing Services

PO Box 6903

Colorado Springs, CO 80934

888-685-5783

Comprehensive

The expertise brought to bear by Development Testing's years of experience in working with churches is incorporated into Harvestime 's Strategic Planning Process for churches.

The comprehensive survey instrument utilized in this process is DTS's Ministry Management Survey. This survey has several useful features as detailed in the survey prospectus

Professional analysis

Each survey report includes a custom-written analysis in which a DTS professional takes you through your report almost graph-by-graph. This report features Decision Making Summaries that will enable you to focus on your decision making needs without having to struggle through pages of graphs and tables.

To facilitate this detailed analysis, it is necessary for each church participating in a DTS survey to complete a General Information Questionnaire. This questionnaire gives DTS a background understanding of the church being surveyed. Much of the information is incorporated into the survey report.

Community Demographic

Each report includes a detailed demographic profile of your community. community demographics are compared to church demographics so you know 1) a profile of who you have attracted, and 2) how those you have attracted are like or unlike your community.

In addition to the comprehensive survey there are options available to you with this instrument. When you complete the General Information Questionnaire you can indicate which options you wish to exercise.

FAQ

How long does the survey take?

If a survey takes much longer than 10 minutes to complete, many of the people will either turn negative or quit answering questions. This survey is typically completed within the first 15 minutes of the worship service. The cards are handed out to all those teenaged and older when they enter the sanctuary or auditorium. 5 minutes or so into the service you'll need to set aside 10-12 minutes for the survey. After about 10 minutes the ushers can begin collecting the cards. It's that simple!

How do we introduce the survey?

The Instruction Booklet has a sample script you can read to the congregation to introduce the survey.

Why do the survey during the worship service?

You want to get the best assessment of everyone who attends your church. This includes occasional and regular attendees, the casual and the committed, the visitors and the members. To survey in any other context will automatically exclude several of these categories.

How long does it take to process the information?

From the time DTS receives the cards back from the church until a report is completed us usually about 2 weeks.

What does the report include?

The report includes 3 main components:

1. Graphs and tables of the survey data

2. Detailed demographic profile of your community

3. A written evaluation of your results

Is anyone available to help us understand the report?

You are encouraged to contact DTS with any questions you may have about your report. However, the report in itself is quite thorough and very easy to understand and to utilize.

Where do we mail the cards when we're through?

DTS prefers UPS deliveries over USPS because of speed and reliability. However, either of the following addresses are acceptable:

UPS:  Development Testing Services, 485 Crystal Hills Blvd, Manitou Springs, CO 80829

USPS: Development Testing Services, PO Box 6903, Colorado Springs, CO 80934

What if we have questions about doing the survey?

Call DTS at 888-685-5783 or email them your questions.