Pre-Cana in 2020
In 2020 we served over 6,500 couples from all over the world. Let’s take a look at the information from couples who took our most popular Pre-Cana course in 2020, Living Our Faith in Love.
Data was interesting for Pre-Cana in 2020
Dioceses and Countries:
- Couples registered from 172 dioceses in the United States.
- We had registrations in 54 countries around the world.
- We also had registrations from about 250 dioceses outside of the United States.
Ages:
- Groom: 31
- Bride: 29
Note: Over 100 couples were both above the age of 50.
Length of Engagement:
- 17.1 Months
Note: This doesn’t take into account weddings postponed due to COVID. However, this is pretty consistent with our data from previous years.
Course Start Vs. Wedding Dates:
- Couples started the course about 3.4 months before their wedding date.
Time Spent On Course:
- The average amount of time spent on the course was just over 1 month.
Note: This is an increase from the previous averages of 21 days / 3 weeks
This is interesting because it can be concluded that today’s engaged couples desire a more intentional approach to marriage preparation, rather than a one-day, “drink from the firehose” experience.
Slowing down allows more focus on the actual content and removes the thought that marriage preparation is just another hoop to jump through.
Based on this information, we can assume that couples do not wish to complete their Pre-Cana as fast as possible.
How They Found Us:
- Their Parish: 71.7%
- Search Engine: 18.2%
- From a Friend: 5.1%
- Their Diocese: 2.4%
- Family: 0.6%
- Facebook/Instagram: 0.4%
- Other: 2.0%
Note: Many couples mentioned they heard about us from the parish, diocese, or their gathered event coordinator who originally organized the event but had to cancel due to COVID.
The 2.4% mentioned above is over 100 couples who were looking to their diocese for Pre-Cana options outside of what their parish offered.
Together vs. Separate Location:
- Same Location: 82%
- Different Locations: 6%
- Combination of Both: 12%
Note: This is a bit of change from previous years. Looking at 2018 it was 69%, 11,% and 19% respectively.
This data could be attributed to couples staying in their COVID “bubble” with their fiancé(e).
Primary Reason:
- COVID: 38%
- Convenience: 37%
- Last resort: 13%
- Geography: 7%
- Privacy: 3%
- Other: 4%
Note: THIS data point is interesting.
In 2018, 69% of couples said they took the course for convenience. COVID and Convenience combined in 2020 is 75% couples.
With those combined, more than half of the couples who chose our online Pre-Cana program did so due to a cancelled event or an event in which their schedules made it difficult to attend.
“I think it was an excellent resource for us since our in person Pre-Cana day had been cancelled due to COVID-19. It took a little bit of weight off of our shoulders knowing we could complete it on our own time and not have to stress about fitting in a new date before our wedding.” – Laina and Daniel from New York
Given the global pandemic of last year, we can also assume that couples prefer the safety and security of virtual learning.
This eliminates the risk of exposure to the virus while attending a gathered event.
In Conclusion…
2020 was a very difficult year for all of us. We understand how difficult it is to have to cancel a gathered event for any number of reasons, but especially through the lens of the COVID pandemic. Unfortunately, it seems like it is still going to take a long time to “get back to normal,” and even then, it will most likely look vastly different than the “normal” we were used to.
Pre-Cana in 2020 was not an exception to this case.
The good news is — we have the resources to reach a global audience and continue to deliver a comprehensive, sacramental and modern Pre-Cana experience. Our unique benefit is that our programs are the perfect solution to every current COVID restriction in place.
We appreciate the opportunity to serve you and your ministry, and we continue to keep you all in our prayers as we all navigate through difficult times.
