Become a Munce Group Member
The Munce Group is a marketing group whose sole purpose is to serve independent Christian retailers.
Bob Munce formed the Munce Group in 1991, offering a catalog program to 22 stores. Today, the Munce Group is the nation's largest full-service marketing group, serving nearly 600 U.S. independent retailers.
Membership is simple
At the Munce Group, we know that every retailer’s location, demographics and store type are unique. That is why we offer a program that has very few requirements along with a wide variety of optional services ready to be tailored to your store’s needs. The only requirements for membership are a one-time $200 sign-up fee and your commitment to use at least 500 catalogs for spring and 500 catalogs for Christmas. We do not have annual fees or hidden charges.
The heart of the Munce Group program is direct mail through catalogs, flyers and postcards. For 2009, there will be a total of 16 direct mail promotions available. Every three months, our members receive a call from their personal Sales and Service Representative, covering three regular catalogs and one Church Supply catalog. This will be the time to discuss and plan your marketing strategy for the upcoming quarter. Planning ahead of time will ensure that you order the right catalogs for your store’s needs. Over time, you will be able to compare the productivity of past catalogs with the new, and learn to choose the promotions that work best for your market area.
So how much is everything, really?
Your only commitment to maintain Munce Group membership is to use the two required catalogs, Spring and Christmas. Currently, the bottom line cost for us to mail a 9-cent catalog for you would be $244 per 500 catalogs. This includes your imprinted catalogs, NCOA processing, postage, a disk conversion fee, a merge/purge on your list, CASS certification, fold/tab service, and imprinting your mailing list onto your catalogs. Again, $244 is the bottom line cost to put 500 catalogs into 500 customers’ mailboxes.
Other membership benefits include access to our “members-only” tradeshow, participation in a buying co-op that will provide additional terms and discounts for your store, a bi-monthly e-newsletter, a telephone On-Hold system, and discounts on things like business insurance, distributor services, inventory management tools, websites, credit card processing equipment, and more. And at our members-only tradeshow, Christian Product Expo™ (CPE), we have educational seminars on things such as cash-flow management, inventory control, creating customer loyalty, and merchandising.
We provide support to retailers in our industry by offering value pricing, superior marketing, and excellent service, but what is more important is that we lift each other up in prayer and spiritual support. Our mission statement is “to provide our member retailers with the highest quality Christian materials and to equip believers for the work of the ministry.” We would be honored to make that mission come alive for you and your store. Retailers who join our group enter into more than a marketing group, they are adopted into a family—a large family at that!
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Membership Application
Criteria for Membership
It is our goal to grow and develop independent Christian retailers through quality, cost-effective marketing solutions. We have kept our membership criteria simple to encourage retailers to let us walk along side them to achieve this goal.
1. Pay a one-time $200 sign-up fee to set up your account
2. Maintain good credit standing
3. Participate in the Spring and Christmas catalogs (minimum order of 500 each)
4. Support the products advertised in the catalogs