Christian Retailing

Listening and learning Print Email
Written by Staff   
Monday, 09 November 2009 02:18 PM America/New_York

andybutcher_cropped2I'm reminded of the would-be lumberjack who, having failed to cut down the required number of trees in his trial, dejectedly trudged over to the hiring foreman to hand back the chainsaw he had been borrowed.

When the crew head fired up the equipment to check that it was still in working order, the exhausted applicant jumped back in alarm. "What's that noise?" he cried.

Sometimes the going is hard because we don't really know what's readily at hand.

Just the other day I was reminded how much business savvy and spiritual wisdom there is in our industry that so often gets overlooked.

I'm not thinking about conferences or seminars or even articles, though they are all valuable. I'm referring to the everyday experiences of other Christian retailers.

Sometimes we forget quite how diverse our niche world is. There may be some best practices and good business models out there, but there's no cookie-cutter formula. Christian retailing is not a one-size-fits-all enterprise.

This was brought home to me after I hosted our latest Retailers Roundtable. These informal conversations among a group of store representatives are posted to our Web site, giving others an opportunity to listen in on the ideas, problems and opinions that are shared.

The latest chat focused on the Christmas season and featured folk from four respected stores across the country. Each one could present a quality seminar or workshop from their own experiences.

What surprised me in our time together was how much each learned from the others as they swapped stories and strategies. These were folks who know what they are doing, and yet they each went away excited about a new idea they had for their stores from listening to someone else.

One of the ideas that was shared was a Bible pass-along program hosted by an urban store in Philadelphia. Customers were invited to bring in their well-worn Bibles to donate for distribution to a prison ministry, getting a coupon for money off a new edition in return.

With that stimulating roundtable still buzzing around in my mind, I want to encourage you to take some time to tap into the resources that are so readily available—fellow retailers.

Some store owners and managers do already meet informally in their areas, but it's easy to see time spent talking as a waste when there's so much to do. When hard-pressed, we tend to default to "doing something," but a little time invested in connecting with others could really pay dividends.

In person. Make a point to be at one of the industry events next year. Yes, trade shows are changing, but they still provide a valuable opportunity to spend some time with others in situations similar to yours. The workshops can help, of course, but one informal coffee time or lunch chat could more than pay for the trip in what it saves or earns you.

Online: Start by checking out our Retailers Roundtable discussions. They are archived at our Web site under the "Features" section, and I guarantee you'll come away with at least one insight or idea. Perhaps you have a suggestion for a future topic of conversation, too, or you'd be willing to take part in one of our next discussions ... I'd love to hear from you.

Or you could get a chat going in our online community forum, found under "Retail Focus" on our Web site. Respond to a discussion thread or start one of your own with a question or idea.

By phone: Carve out half an hour in the next month to connect with two or three other retailers. You might know some people you can think of who'd be interested, or you could look for connections through our forum. Maybe another marketing group member would be willing to chat. CBA members could check out the store list at the association's Web site.

But focus on the conversation; don't be trying to place orders or run inventory reports at the same time. Remember, "multi-tasking" is often just doing several things poorly, simultaneously. Agree on a topic ahead of time, so you don't feel you're just wandering around aimlessly. You may even want someone to come up with a list of 10 questions to answer in your time together, to keep you on track.

Connecting with others really could help you cut through things, and see the woods from the trees.