Educational presentations equip retailers to be on 'cutting edge' of the industry, 'engage' customers

Retailers received "very helpful" information at the show as CBA nearly tripled the number of workshops and educational offerings—available for free to members. The 13 training sessions included the annual Prospective Retailer Seminar—which attracted around a dozen participants—as well as several workshops that spotlighted the importance of using social media.

"ICRS is still valuable to our industry," said Susan Smearsoll, co-owner of Bread of Life Christian Book Store in Greenville, Ohio, after the "How to Reach Your Customers on a Shoestring Budget" workshop. "They (the workshops) inform us to be on the cutting edge of our industry."

Smearsoll and her husband, Don, along with approximately 70 store and vendor representatives learned low-cost and creative ways to "connect with people" in the interactive, shoestring-budget session.

Former general manager of the Christian Supply Centers in the Pacific Northwest and now social media consultant Gunnar Simonsen went around the room talking with people who were using social media to promote their stores and products, including Kerusso Vice President of Marketing Chris Rainey, who shared how the apparel company successfully connected with new customers—via Facebook—by giving away its Crazy Love T-shirt with a group that was performing acts of service based on Francis Chan's book Crazy Love (David C. Cook).

"We probably spent $50 (worth) of our products," Rainey said. "We got exposure day after day. We connected with people with our products."

Simonsen also spoke with Darrell Darnell, e-commerce manager of Mardel Christian & Education, which began hosting Pictionary Friday events at its Web site in February. Ustream technology allows viewers to chat online with Darnell, while he draws on a whiteboard. As people log in, he takes the opportunity to share about products that will be given away to the winners.

"It's free and creative," Simonsen said. "They've got a captive audience for about three minutes to go over a product. It's just a (fun) way for the customer to buy the product."

Dwana Smith, owner of The Remnant Christian Books & Gifts in Baytown, Texas, which will open in October, said the session was "the most informative workshop" she attended at ICRS.

"It's very helpful to hear ideas other retailers have used successfully," she said. "The idea of engaging your customer, while expanding your network sounds like such an excellent way to know your customer and expand your ministry."

In another workshop, Simonsen told a standing-room-only crowd how to have "the mindset" to effectively use social media.

"It's really a mindset how you use social media and how you can use these platforms effectively to impact your customers," said Simonsen, who used his cell phone to take a photograph of the workshop participants for his daughter in Oregon to see on Twitter, the wildly popular micro-blogging site.

Besides Twitter, Simonsen presented an overview, statistics and pointers for effectively utilizing sites such as Facebook and YouTube. He encouraged retailers to start their own YouTube channel.

"I want you to go to all the (YouTube) channels of the (Christian) publishers and artists and sign up," said Simonsen, who also urged retailers to launch a Facebook site for their stores—besides a personal page. "Anytime they upload a video you'll be notified, and you can upload them on your store's Facebook page. ... It's great dialogue for your Facebook page. It's a resource that's not tapped at all."

Andrea Lovvorn, co-owner of New Covenant Christian Bookstore in Shelbyville, Tenn., attended the "New Marketing: Using Social Media to Market Your Store" workshop with her daughters Rebekah, 16, and Hannah, 19—who started a Facebook site for the store a few months ago.

"It wasn't overwhelming," Lovvorn said. "I learned a lot, but it scares me because I don't have the time to spend (on social media). But we need to reach people. I plan to learn how to use Facebook."

Hannah, who noted that New Covenant now has 180 Facebook friends, added: "This workshop was really helpful for retailers like my mom."

Nate Richards, manager of Dickson's Bible & Book Store in Highland Park, Mich., agreed. "This seminar was key for me," he said. "Since Mother's Day, our traffic has slowed, and I can't put my finger on it. I've got to figure out how to engage my customers. It costs me 40 to 50 cents to send (customers) a catalog, but social media can be free. Social media is a real solution to a traffic issue."

Community outreaches, fundraising initiative and 're-invention' applauded, Tyndale House Publishers thanked for channel support

Hosting book fairs at local Christian schools and using photo books to help staff identify local pastors and church members when they come in the store were among the innovative ideas that secured CBA's top annual honor for retailing excellence.

The Jim Carlson National Spirit of Excellence Award went to Jim and Lorraine Valk, owners of Parable Christian Store of St. Joseph in St. Joseph, Mich. It was presented by CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey who said the prize and the other category awards were to "recognize retailers who walk the extra mile in pursuit of excellence through Christian retailing."

The Valks were chosen for the top award from five stores recognized—including their own, which was singled out for marketing. Announcing the awards, Riskey told how the Valks took products to sell at the local county youth fair and sought input from Facebook friends for marketing ideas as part of their efforts.

Dwayne and Lisa Phillips, owners of Dalton's Christian Bookstore in Franklin, N.C., were recognized for excellence in innovation. Among ways they have sought to connect with their community have been placing customer photos in the store's front windows and partnering with local businesses in cross-promotions, said Riskey.

Paul and Sue Kuntz, managers of Arrowhead Parable Christian Store in Johnson City, N.Y., took the award for community outreach and ministry. "If there's an event in their town, they are there," said Riskey, citing efforts from hospitality tents at festivals to fund raising for pro-life ministries.

Patricia Taylor, owner of Cornerstone Christian Supply in Cheyenne, Wyo., was honored for merchandising. Taylor created a military section to serve customers from a nearby Air Force base and "keeps re-inventing the store by listening to customers and studying traffic flow to rearrange categories, displays and presentations," Riskey said.

Steve and Marie Prickett, owners of Logos of Northern Kentucky in Alexandria, Ky., were acknowledged in the area of customer experience. The pair connected with local churches and sought to "engage customers and create very spiritual and emotional experiences in and around the store," Riskey said.

The retailer awards were followed by the presentation of CBA's Channel Champion Award to Tyndale House Publishers. The trophy saluted a supplier that had "gone beyond the call of duty to champion Christian stores as community hubs for resources, service and ministry," said Riskey.

Tyndale had a history of strategies and campaigns specifically for Christian stores, he aided, and was "focused on ministry and connecting stores to communities ans churches."

In its own meetings at ICRS, the Parable Group named its top franchise stores of the year.

The large store honor for excellence in adapting, sustaining, adopting and performing went to Gary and Marcia Hoffman, owners of Rainbow Parable Christian Store in Colonial Heights, Va. Parable franchise coach John Strifler said that the pair had "effectively addressed issues of downsizing space, the shift in staffing cycle, refinement of financial and inventory management practices."

Honored as best small store in the same category was Lemstone Parable Christian Store in Columbia, Mo. Owners Bob and Miriam Perry had "done it all with class, with Christ-honoring interactions and with a passion to see lives changed," said Strifler.

For excellence in sales growth, the award went to Jason Mitzel, owner of Rainbow Shop Parable Christian Store in Fargo, N.D., who took over the store from his parents and saw a 7% increase in revenues in 2009.

Former CBA chairman Jim Whitaker (2007-2009), owner of New Life Christian Stores in Lynchburg, Va., was presented with the Chairman's Award for his service to the trade association, including nine years as a board member.

Munce Marketing did not present awards, but there was a special cake for members Joseph and Evelyn Curtiss, owners of Word of Life Christian Bookstore in Los Angeles, Calif,. to mark their 50 years in the industry.

CBA also made its annual awards for best ICRS booths. Gifts & Specialty (Large: 300 square feet or more): Kerusso. Gifts & Specialty (Small: less than 300 square feet): Not of This World. Entertainment (large): EMI CMG. Entertainment (small): Provident-Integrity. Books & Resources (large): David C. Cook. Books & Resources (small): Gracefully Yours. Staff (large): STL Distribution North America. Staff (small): Endure. Retail Support: Innovative, Inc. First-Timer: Mend Mark.

Industry-wide digital platform planned to help brick-and-mortar retailers

Publishing and retail leaders are working on an industry-wide platform for delivering e-books to Christian stores, to help them compete in the growing digital market.

The effort began at the International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) in St. Louis, where the impact of digital publishing on retailers was a major focus of the June 27-30 event.

The initiative, which could provide a way for Christian retailers to make e-books available to their shoppers online or in-store, will likely center on collaborating with some existing service, rather than creating a new system.

ICRS attendees heard that while digital publishing is changing the way that people read and buy books, brick-and-mortar retailers can win a slice of the e-book pie if they work to build strong relationships with their customers.

Addressing the issue was "our number one priority," said CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey. "We can't afford to just talk about these things. We need to move to strategy and action."

One option under consideration is the IndieCommerce white-label e-commerce platform serving general market independent bookstores, from Ingram—parent company of Spring Arbor, whose director of sales, Chris Smith, mentioned the possibility during ICRS' opening general-session panel: "Digital/Mortar: Store Value in a Digital Age."

"We've had preliminary discussions regarding e-book fulfillment solutions with the CBA," he told Christian Retailing.

"IndieCommerce currently serves hundreds of independent ABA-member booksellers, and it could serve as a roadmap for a possible CBA solution."

Evangelical Christian Publishers Association President and CEO Mark Kuyper, who took part in the digital session and other discussions at ICRS, said he was pleased with the interest in embracing e-books at retail.

"It's a step in a direction that is unfamiliar to them, so there is some fear involved in that and probably a sense of risk," he said, but "they are more than willing and ready to try to embrace it and do what they can."

The e-book thrust at ICRS came the same week of news of the end of another digital initiative that was launched at the show two years ago.

Zondervan announced the sale of its Symtio digital-distribution service to general market digital-marketing and distribution company LibreDigital. However, the buyer did not take on the in-store side of the business, which allowed Christian stores to sell cards enabling at-home downloads. Zondervan suspended that service in June.

Retailers at ICRS were urged to learn lessons from how the music industry handled the digital shift, by David Crace, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of EMI Christian Music Group.

Speaking in the digital panel discussion, he said that music companies had been slow to respond to the digital revolution, first being in denial about the changes and then trying to defend their old ways of doing things from innovation.

Thinking that they could stop people buying digital music, "we wasted a lot of time," Crace said, rather than working out how to embrace the changes in the best way. "Get on with the reality of thinking, ‘Let's think forward a couple of years of what it would look like for all of us to be successful across all these channels," he urged.

Fears that physical music sales would die out had been exaggerated, with CDs still accounting for 65% of all music purchases, he said. Six out of 10 consumers still only buy CDs.

In addition, Crace added, there were positive differences for digital books compared to digital music, which meant that its impact may be less. The big shift in music had come when digital content made it possible for shoppers to buy individual songs rather than having to purchase an entire album.

"I don't believe we will be in a place where people will be buying one chapter of a Max Lucado book, so there's a real benefit," he said.

There was also some encouragement from David Campbell, senior account manager for publishing information specialist R.R. Bowker. In a session presenting data from a survey of consumers' book-buying habits, he said that while purchases of e-books had quadrupled between 2008 and 2009, they still accounted for just 1.4% of all titles bought.

Marcie Chamness, owner of Trinity Christian Gifts & Books in Richmond, Ind., said that she felt that CBA was doing "a good job" in trying to help Christian retailers and publishers deal with the challenges of the digital book revolution.

"I am not sure what more they can really do," she said. "They are bringing the info to us. … We were involved in the Symtio project, but removed them after they told us to. ... It's a great deal for us."

Running through Labor Day, Sept. 6, the show is hosted by Christian Retailing magazine, aiming to help stores set themselves for the fall and Christmas seasons with product news, order specials and training. It is the magazine's fourth virtual trade event since debuting the innovative program following last year's ICRS.

Nominees have been announced for the 16th Annual Inspirational Country Music (ICM) Awards Show, to be held Oct. 14 at the Trinity Music City USA Auditorium in Hendersonville, Tenn.

In the running for Mainstream Inspirational Country Song are "My Best Days" by Danny Gokey; "Muddy Water" by Trace Adkins; "Love Like Crazy" by Lee Brice; "That's A Man" by Jack Ingram; "That's God" by Jo Dee Messina; "The House That Built Me" by Miranda Lambert; "The Man I Want To Be" by Chris Young; "There Is a God" by Lee Ann Womack; "This Ain't Nothing" by Craig Morgan; and "Temporary Home" by Carrie Underwood.