Critical Issues Update

homeschool parents promoting the theme: Shop at Rainbow and take a bite out of educational costs. We offered the free club membership at a homeschool convention where we displayed. Our store networked with Appalachian for the benefits they offer in developing this market at the retail table. They’ve done a great job with this niche and partnering with us. Our mailing list was built within two months to more than 200. We direct mail, have special events, etc. Others are disappointed with

this niche; for us, it keeps getting better. Any marketing effort without a tieback vehicle such as coupon or response mechanism is fruitless. I look forward to having more exclusive opportunities to offer my customers.

Gary Davidson: Nelson’s exclusive prod-ucts/promotions, Million Bible Giveaway, Best Seller of the Month, and advertising dollars across the board.

Mike Shaffer: We need a hook to get customers into our stores. I’m working with a

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marketing committee for downtown businesses, where my store is located. Promotions include club cards for 10% off and Appreciation Saturday offering 10%-15% off. Our store approached the three near-est local Christian schools and proposed a school night: Do everything to promote the sale and we’ll give back 15% of sales. For two schools, we had more than $4,000 in sales. The third school didn’t promote much, but we still did more than $1,500. Other downtown businesses that stayed open late on those promotion evenings had residual sales.

Something small, but significant: I rearranged my store for wheelchair and dou-ble-stroller access. We gave up a good bit of space but not product, and customers like it.

Evelyn Curtiss: We use marketing catalogs and feature items—especially with African-American marketing—in a highlighted location. The displays, ads, training, etc. reflect the marketing piece’s theme. It’s helped increase sales, and staff know exactly where to find featured products. I’ve partnered with some vendors for direct-mail promotions. We also expanded our music department with new equipment and our music sales have increased 30%.

Dean Edwards: There’s no doubt reduced traffic has become a major struggle for Christian retail the past few years. While foot traffic is a major component, the real measure is “traffic at the register.” We can’t overlook merchandising and conversion strategies to maximize sales.

Bill Anderson: One of last year’s Critical Issues Luncheons at the CBA convention focused on building traffic and sales. The CBA Awareness Campaign on CBN TV has raised Christian-store awareness in the minds of our core churchgoing customers. Since the campaign’s launch in April ’04, we’ve tracked significant increases in the number of consumers using CBA member store-locator services—through the Web and the 800 number. Responses have consistently trended with a 200%-300% increase over the same month the year prior. There’s no other explanation for the dramatic increase other than the Awareness Campaign.

Next month, part 2 of “Critical Issues Update” will cover improving profit and capital, instilling passion for excellence in business and ministry, and what panel members thought was the most pressing critical issue.

38 | AspiringRetail | June2005

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