Spring Arbor sales rep Mary Lou Alexander coached a room full of International Christian Retail Show (ICRS) attendees during a training session titled "Thinking about Opening a Church Bookstore."

Designed for those who are planning to open a church bookstore, the session offered advice about which products to carry, where to get them, when to order and reorder, how to merchandise the store and how to process the stock. Attendees also learned about Spring Arbor’s Recommended Model Inventory (RMI) program.

"Listen to what your customers want, instead of trying to figure out what they want,” Alexander said. “This will also save you a lot of time and money."

Additionally, Alexander answered questions such as: How frequently should a store offer sales or blow-outs? What should a store’s hours be? and Should customers pay in advance for special orders?

Alexander said church bookstores can use social media—Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest—to effectively communicate with customers. Stores were also encouraged to connect with local radio and television stations.

One way a church bookstore can generate sales is to find out what the pastor is reading and offer those titles to the store’s customer base. Stores can also spotlight best-sellers and should have a wide-ranging product offering. Other ideas discussed were customer loyalty programs and gift cards.

"We are gearing up to open an online store, tTt Designs in the fall,” said Gina Thomason of Mount Vernon, Ill., who plans to open the store with her husband, Tony. “We wanted to attend this workshop to ensure that we have all of our bases covered and that we aren’t missing any steps."

Geni Hulsey served as the emcee for the afternoon.

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