Is this just a chatbot?
No. Manna is a ministry assistant — trained on your church's voice, sermon archive, ministries, and the way you actually answer people. The intent is not to replace pastoral care; it's to make sure every message gets a warm response, the right people get notified, and the conversations that need a human reach a human with full context.
What happens during the 30-day free trial?
Our team sets Manna up fully — your church's voice, FAQs, sermon library, prayer routing, the works. The trial runs on Manna's own WhatsApp number, so your church can start straight away with nothing to set up. If you'd like Manna on your church's own number, we can move it any time within the 30 days. No card required, and no auto-charge at the end — after 30 days, if Manna is serving your church well, you pick a plan and we activate billing. If it's not the right fit, you simply walk away. We'd rather a church use Manna because it's helping than because it's billing them.
How much does Manna cost?
Foundation starts at R799/month — the right starting point for most churches. Foundation Plus is R1,399/month for churches that want more customisation and a more personalised setup. Growth is R1,999/month for churches that need shared inbox, team collaboration, and Instagram + Facebook. Leadership is R3,499/month for established churches needing custom ministry systems. Every plan starts with a 30-day free trial. No card required.
What does it cost on top of the subscription?
WhatsApp message costs from Meta, passed through at cost with zero commission. Most messages inside a 24-hour customer service window are free. Marketing or utility templates sent outside that window are charged by Meta per message — typically R0.16 for utility templates and around R1.00 for marketing templates. A typical Foundation church spends R50–R100/month or less on Meta fees.
Can our team take over a conversation?
Yes — on Growth and Leadership plans. Your team gets full access to the mChat inbox: read every message, take over any chat, respond as the church. Manna stays in the background, ready to step back in when the moment is right. On Foundation, Manna handles the conversation and notifies your team — they reach out separately.
What about our data, and our people's privacy?
Your church owns its data — fully. Manna operates under South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), registered with the Information Regulator (Reg# 2026-024052). Conversations are hosted on infrastructure that's SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 certified, encrypted in transit and at rest. No data is sold. No advertising is served. No message content is used to train shared AI models. You can request export or deletion of your church's data at any time. Full details on our
Security page and in our
Privacy Policy.
Can a member or sponsor pay for our church?
Yes — and many do. Through our Sponsor a Church flow, anyone (a generous member, a denominational HQ, a parent church planting a daughter church) can activate Manna for a church they love. Same setup, billed to the sponsor, same 24-hour go-live.
How long until we're live?
24 hours from activation. We handle the setup — WhatsApp Business number connection, sermon archive import, FAQ training, prayer routing, team accounts. You spend about an hour reviewing it with us before it goes live.
Can we cancel?
Anytime. No notice period, no exit fees. Monthly plans cancel from the next billing cycle; annual plans are pre-paid but you can cancel renewal at any point. We'd rather have you with us because Manna serves your church well.
