Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Panera Ponderings

Panera Bread in South Portland is my office away from the office. They offer me coffee, free internet, a lively spot to meet folks and do work between meetings and meals. The place is set up to encourage folks to sit and visit (and of course eat.) The food is good, the coffee hot.

Now I don’t receive a kick back from them, but I must say I like their model. I am impressed by the folks who end up here. There are always lots of young adults. Some on computers, some studying, lots just talking with friends. There is a far representation of middle aged folks as well. Almost every time I am here I see people conducting business meetings and interviews.

I don’t know much about their business model, but they have found a niche for a successful business. According to their website there are now more than 1020 Panera Bread bakery-cafes in 38 states.

So what can we learn from Panera:

1. Atmosphere matters. The atmosphere we create makes a difference. It is true for restaurants, meeting places and for churches. What is the atmosphere in your church? If I came into your church would I feel welcomed or excluded? Would my first impression be of a place long past its prime or a place hopping with life, energy and vibrancy?

2. Know your niche. What is your niche in the community? Who is it that you wish to reach? Does the atmosphere of your church appeal to the folks you wish to reach? For instance if you want to reach people with young children is your nursery the nicest room in the building?

3. Offer something others do not. I eat and work at Panera because of the free wireless internet and the no hassle attitude. What does your church offer that others do not. It might be a program, class, service, unique mission opportunity, etc.

4. Don’t be afraid to change and rearrange. I’ve watch this Panera remodel, rearrange their seating and reconfigure their process for ordering food. How often do we change the way we do things in the church? Is the attitude in your church “Let’s give it a try and see what happens!” or “We’ve never done it that way before!”?

5. Be genuine. Don’t claim to be what you are not. If you are not a welcoming place for visitors, don’t claim it. If you don’t really value children or are afraid they will mess up your building, don’t claim to be child friendly. False advertising creates hard feelings.

Of course, the church is not a store, restaurant or bakery. But we can learn from those places and how they reach out to persons. Pay attention to the atmosphere, advertising, service of the establishments you frequent. See what you can apply from those places to your own situation. I bet it will make for interesting conversations.

So for now, I’m sitting in Panera, drinking coffee, writing and checking my email.

Blessings,

Mike

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

MIKE,
It was so good to see you this weekend. I hope Aunt Shar was kind to you...or at least provided some mild entertainment at times! I can't believe you spend time at that Panera and I have never seen you there. You should seriously let me know when you are in Southern Maine. I miss you Davis people! Oh yeah, if you wouldn't mind putting me in contact with the Morril-Ewing (pardon my spelling) team that would be EXCELLENT. Talk to you later! Erica!

Anonymous said...

MIKE,
It was so good to see you this weekend. I hope Aunt Shar was kind to you...or at least provided some mild entertainment at times! I can't believe you spend time at that Panera and I have never seen you there. You should seriously let me know when you are in Southern Maine. I miss you Davis people! Oh yeah, if you wouldn't mind putting me in contact with the Morril-Ewing (pardon my spelling) team that would be EXCELLENT. Talk to you later! Erica! oh yeah, my e-mail is etobey01@maine.edu