Black holes in space both fascinate and frustrate the experts; black holes in publishing do the same. And if any category in religion publishing could be described as a black hole, it's Christian living, the catch-all that claims everything from discipleship books to self-help titles. But with books such as Rick Warren's The Purpose-Driven Life (Zondervan) breaking through to sell nearly 14 million copies in less than three years, the category is quickly commanding the attention—and marketing dollars—of once indifferent big-box retailers and general-market chains.
John Sawyer, Baker Book House's director of marketing, pointed to this market shift as the number 1 trend in the CL category. "The success of books like The Prayer of Jabez, Secrets of the Vine and God Chasers several years ago made general trade and big-box retailers take the category much more seriously. And, of course, the recent success of Purpose-Driven Life and Wild at Heart have continued to fuel interest. When a Christian living book (PDL) is rivaling sales of the top trade release (The Last Juror) in some of the big-box stores, it helps to explain the priority being given to top books in this category." Sawyer notes that a recent issue of the Sam's Club consumer newsletter featured a two-page spread by Rick Warren.
A recent study by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) supports Sawyer's conclusions. The 2003 STATS Christian Retail Trends Report tracked sales of books through Christian stores—both chains and independents—in eight "super categories," including Christian living, which embraces the subgenres of practical life, relationships and spiritual growth (each of which gets further broken down into specialty categories). CL showed an increase in sales of 9% over 2002, led by the spiritual growth category, which saw a 10.6% spike. The report revealed that CL market share was dominated by Zondervan, which held 23.6% based on revenue and 18.2% based on unit sales, versus 18.6% and 14.9%, respectively, for its closest rival, Thomas Nelson.
In a February 24 interview in Religion BookLine, PW's e-mail newsletter, Kelly Gallagher, ECPA's v-p of marketing and technology, said "Those numbers reflect the effects of single-title strength, how a big book moving through the market can have a substantial impact, either positive or negative. The rise in Christian living was all about The Purpose-Driven Life."
Gallagher agrees that sales channels are shifting and that CBA stores are seeing market erosion in sales going to other channels. "But," he adds, "Purpose-Driven Life sold about 700,000 units through CBA stores for the holidays, and I don't think that would have happened without the level of interest in the book outside of CBA."
Piggybacking on the trend toward general-market sales of CL titles is the change in format from trade paper binding to cloth—and a simultaneous power struggle that may squeeze out B-list authors, notes Tim Peterson, director of marketing for Bethany House Publishers. "The category is now dominated by best-selling authors, and retailers are skeptical of unknown authors unless they come with a unique marketing plan," Peterson says. "If demand for these titles in the general market remains strong, we could well see a trend toward a homogenization of product offerings targeted squarely at the monolithic evangelical market."
As with most genres, there's no formula for sure success in the CL category, publishers agree. But the staggering sales of a handful of titles has put increased pressure on publishers to land big authors with far-reaching platforms and find new authors with "potentially big voices," as Peterson puts it.
"How do you stand out in a crowded market? Therein lies success or failure," says Jerry Park, executive v-p and group publisher of Thomas Nelson's Christian Book Group, who says it all comes down to marketing hustle. For example, he says, the publisher does a lot of customized promotions with specific retailers, such as its Club 25 program exclusive to the Parable marketing group. Member stores in the group can offer consumers 25% off five key books for each of five different selling seasons. Big-name authors with established platforms, such as leadership guru John Maxwell, offer publishers a degree of market security, Park says, "but at the same time we're looking for fresh voices." He cited John Eldredge as a good example of an original voice from the recent past. "He came out of nowhere a few years ago and has become the premier author on spirituality. People would love to have a formula, but it's all about hustle. It's getting out there and following up on leads and asking questions."
Sawyer credits aggressive publicity campaigns aimed at both general and Christian media for creating "pull" at retail. "Fortunately, the success of recent CL blockbusters helps open doors with media that wouldn't have been interested in the past," Sawyer says. "Another tactic that's been popularized by the success of PDL is doing grassroots marketing with churches and other religious organizations. If a title becomes part of the church buzz, the impact at retail is significant."
Into the Black Hole
Thirty years ago, if you asked a religious bookseller for a Christian living title, you'd probably wind up with an Andrew Murray or A.W. Tozer book in your hand. Turn back 20 years, and you'd likely find books written specifically to convert people, or a "fire-and-brimstone-you-need-to-become-a-Christian-and-here's-how-to-do-it message," as Greg Petree, v-p of marketing for Howard Publishing, calls it. "Today Christian living titles offer more of a gentle message on how you need to apply your life," Petree says. "They're more anecdotal, more compassionate, and they're reaching a broader audience, which is good. They've made Christianity more approachable."
Christian living has always been the heart and soul of what CBA booksellers offer, but instead of titles that deal only with discipleship and personal growth, today's CL category spans the full spectrum of life as a Christ-follower.
"Christian living is a very broad category that we use quite frequently with our titles, but a lot of good books get lost in there," admits Don Pape, publisher of WaterBrook Press, a division of Random House. Of WaterBrook's list, for instance, 60%—70% falls under the Christian living umbrella. That breadth of CL titles, mirrored industrywide, has forced publishers to break the category into a mind-boggling array of subgenres over the past 10 years.
"Consumers are basically demanding it," Park says. "People don't come into stores and say, 'I'd love to read something on Christian living.' They come in and say, 'I'm looking for a book on how to make my marriage work.' [Subcategorization] is an attempt by retailers to become more relevant to their customers."
NavPress publisher Dan Rich echoes that sentiment, adding that the industry's move from broad-brush publishing to differentiating books through subcategories was essentially a survival tactic. "We were more reluctant over the years to just slap the label Christian living on a book because we knew it would just be lumped together with other books in a store," Rich says.
Kin Millen, sales manager of Noble Marketing, which reps books for 10 Christian publishers, encourages booksellers to subcategorize as much as possible. "The section in a Christian bookstore under the rubric Christian living can become so large that it's almost a dead zone for books that are only bought in small quantities," Millen says. One common mistake he sees booksellers make is trying to stock strictly from movement on the bestseller lists. "But bestseller lists don't make a bookstore. Customers have too many needs and interests and intellectual levels to find all you need [on a list]. You'll never see a book on grief on the bestseller lists. I tell retailers every day: You don't need every book on grief. But what you do need is the best in category, and you've got to figure out what that is. Knowing the books is what it takes."
Tim Way, senior book buyer for the Family Christian Stores chain, says CL is the section books end up in when they don't have a "specific other home" in the chain's more than 320 stores. "If it's clearly not an apologetics book or clearly not a biography or clearly not a women's interest title, we'll put it in Christian living," Way says. At the same time, CL remains Family's best-selling category and has been for years, gaining in importance over the last two years because of PDL. "It's the genre right now that most publishers are doing. But publishers shift and change with the trends. Two years ago the trend was parenting and child-rearing; 14 years ago there was a lot of self-help. Interests change, and now it's the Rick Warren phenomenon."
Way predicts the market will see some leveling off of CL titles this year as PDL loses momentum. "It's going into three years of existence now, so we'll probably see some drop-off, but [it will stay] at a level significantly higher than there was two years ago [before PDL's release]."
Zondervan, which published The Purpose-Driven Life—plans to bolster its CL line with even more titles. V-p and associate publisher Lyn Cryderman says. "There's an increased consumer demand, and our mission is to meet people with the resources they need. We also recognize the growth potential and annually take a look at the mix of titles we have in our portfolio." Of the house's growing CL list, Cryderman notes a shift toward more titles dealing with relationships, business and leadership, and a slight shift away from self-help and recovery books.
Changing Channels
While every publisher surveyed for this article reported the CBA market as their largest single sales channel, they agreed that every year the general market gains on it. Thomas Nelson's Park says the CBA market claims 45% of the company's sales, with 35%—40% going through the ABA. Of the CBA sales, 60% move through independents, 35% go through the chains, and 5% are sold through direct companies like Christian Book Distributors. Of the company's ABA sales, 65% goes through the chain stores (only a tiny percentage moves through independents), with mass-market retailers claiming the balance.
"We do very well in mass market," Park says. "We're the only publisher who has a showroom in Dentonville, Ark., the homeplace of Wal-Mart. We built a showcase of what a Christian section should look like in a Wal-Mart, and we'll go in there and merchandise it and bring reps through. It's been very successful." Park says Thomas Nelson does brisk business through K mart, Target, Costco and Sam's Club as well.
NavPress's Rich says their The Message contemporary paraphrase of the Bible and books from NavPress's sister imprint Pinon Press have garnered good representation in the general market, but Christian chains still represent the biggest slice of NavPress's total sales. In April Pinon will bring out the Chicken Soup for the Soul Bible, combining 125 "chicken soup" stories with the full Bible text in the New Living Translation. NavPress is counting on the general-market accessibility of the Chicken Soup brand to build momentum for the Bible. Of the house's CL titles, Rich estimated 85% move through the CBA, with the rest flowing through ABA channels, including big-box retailers. The publisher also is being tested at QVC, he says.
Dave Lewis, director of sales for Baker Book House, tells PW that market share for CL titles is split 45%-20%-13% among CBA stores, big-box retailers and ABA stores, respectively. Sales from Internet and mail-order accounts represent another 12%, with "a hodgepodge of small markets making up the remainder." Marketing director Sawyer notes that while Christian publishers have taken a conservative approach in the past, focusing most of their resources on the CBA channel, the success of recent CL books in all channels has changed the paradigm for both publishers and retailers.
"General-market retailers are beginning to understand the buying power of Christians when presented with a title that effectively meets a need," Sawyer says. "Several ABA chains are actually carrying nearly the same depth as the typical CBA stores. And big-box retailers like Wal-Mart are getting even more aggressive due to the increased success of inspirational titles in their stores. They're asking Christian publishers how they can be a larger percentage of their business on key titles."
Ultimately, says Zondervan's Cryderman, "the success of a Christian living book like Purpose-Driven Life underscores that people, especially the boomer generation, are looking to figure it all out. The subtitle says it best and resonates with everyone: What on earth am I here for?"
