Church Referral Software: A Practical Demo Checklist

Choose church referral software by testing the specific handoff your adult referral team needs to make. Ask to see what an adult receives, what staff can see, and what happens when a link or staff role changes. Record a feature as demonstrated only when you have seen it work in the plan you are considering.

This checklist helps a church or ministry compare software using fictional examples. It produces a short decision record, without collecting a congregation member's counseling history. For the broader process of sharing options and arranging an agreed introduction, use the existing organization referral guide.

Choose the referral task before the demo

Write one sentence describing the job you need the software to do. These are different tasks:

• Share a public referral page: An adult opens a link, reads about independent Christian counselors, and decides whether to contact anyone.
• Arrange an introduction: An adult asks a coordinator to share specified contact information with a chosen recipient.
• Coordinate staff work: Authorized staff track responsibility for an agreed administrative step, such as checking whether a referral link worked.

A product may support one task without supporting the others. If your team only needs to share a public page, start the demonstration there. Do not assume a referral-page subscription includes individual referral records, messaging, appointments, or access to counseling information.

Use a vendor's demonstration environment or an authorized test account. Ask the vendor to disable outgoing messages or supply a preview that cannot send. Use invented labels, not real names, contact details, prayer requests, or counseling histories. If there is no safe way to demonstrate a step, mark it untested and ask for documentation.

Run four practical checks

1. Open the page as an adult would

Start with the exact public link or QR code your church would share. Open it on a phone while signed out of the staff account. Check that the destination explains what the page does, gives a readable next step, and does not expose staff controls.

For a link-only referral, ask whether someone can review options without first submitting a personal story to the church. Note any account or form requirement; do not assume that browsing and contacting have the same requirements.

Ask who updates the page when a counselor's link, service area, or availability changes. A visible profile or an “accepting requests” label does not confirm an appointment. The adult still needs to confirm current arrangements directly with the independent counselor through an available contact route.

2. Preview an introduction, if your team needs one

Use a fictional adult who has requested an introduction to a fictional counselor. Ask the demonstrator to show the intended recipient, every field included, and any email or text notification before anything is sent.

Can the sender review the exact information being shared? Can a copied recipient or attached note be spotted before submission? If the product has no introduction feature, record that clearly and evaluate the separate process your team would use. Do not treat a share button as proof that an introduction or permission process exists.

Keep this exercise about the agreed handoff. It is not a reason to put symptoms, family accounts, counseling notes, or a private narrative into a referral tool.

3. Compare staff views and reporting

Ask for an authorized demonstration of each role your team would use, such as page owner and staff member. Record what each can view, edit, export, and receive in notifications. A description such as “staff access” does not answer those questions on its own.

For every report, ask what its numbers measure. A page view, link click, introduction request, and confirmed appointment describe different events. Aggregate activity is not evidence that a particular person contacted a counselor, attended a meeting, or benefited from counseling.

The FTC's guide to protecting personal information recommends limiting collection and retention to information needed for the task, and limiting staff access to what their work requires. Use those principles to frame questions. A successful demonstration alone does not establish security or legal compliance.

4. Test changes and the exit path

Ask the vendor to show how an authorized administrator changes the public referral link or page wording and removes a departing staff member's access. Test only demonstration accounts and sample content.

Then ask what happens when you stop using the service. Which records can you export, if any? What happens to the public link? How are retained data and deletion requests handled? Compare the answers with current written policies, including any stated exceptions or retention periods. Do not infer that hiding or archiving a record deletes it.

Copy this software comparison record

Complete one record per product and plan. Keep it about the software, not people seeking counseling.

Product, plan, and date: Record the exact offer and when you checked it. A feature shown in a different plan is still unconfirmed for yours.

Required task: Write the one handoff your team needs to complete.

Observed result: Describe what you saw, including the recipient's view, staff visibility, and any notification preview.

Evidence status: Use “demonstrated,” “documented only,” “unanswered,” or “not needed.” Add the relevant policy or help-page link. A sales statement without supporting detail remains unanswered.

Open question and next action: Name the missing answer and who will obtain it. Avoid recording credentials or private account information in this worksheet.

Decision condition: State what must be resolved before the team uses the tool for that task. Extra features should not outweigh an unanswered requirement about recipients or staff access.

A hypothetical comparison

Imagine a church that only wants to offer adults a public referral page. These are invented options, not reviews of real products.

Option A: Its demo shows a working public page on a phone and a staff view containing aggregate page activity. An introduction feature is absent. The team records public-page sharing as demonstrated and introductions as not needed. It still checks the written policies and plan terms before deciding.

Option B: Its presentation promises referral tracking, but no recipient or staff view is demonstrated. The team records tracking as unanswered. That does not prove the product is unsuitable; it identifies the evidence missing from the comparison.

The useful result is a decision tied to the church's actual task. A longer feature list does not resolve an unanswered question about who receives information.

Applying the checklist to Find Faith Therapy

Find Faith Therapy's organization overview lists a referral page and link, a QR code, sharing copy, staff controls, and aggregate activity reporting. Treat that overview as product documentation; confirm the current plan and the available dashboard controls for your intended task. It is not evidence that an individual referral-tracking or introduction feature has been demonstrated.

Find Faith Therapy is a directory and referral platform. Counselors are independent, and their profile claims are counselor-supplied and self-attested. The platform does not independently verify or approve those claims, endorse counselors, or guarantee fit, availability, or outcomes. Read the trust information and privacy policy alongside the product description.

Your next step is to choose one required task, complete the comparison record, and resolve its open questions before sharing the tool with your community. Keep your organization's existing safeguarding and urgent-support procedures separate; a referral page is not a crisis service.

Prepared with AI assistance. Reviewed September 28, 2026, for source accuracy, practical usefulness, and alignment with Find Faith Therapy's directory and referral role. This is general software-selection guidance, not counseling, medical, or legal advice.