Marketing Tips - Bloomin' Blog

Social Media Photography

August 24, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

It’s no surprise that most of us rely exclusively on social media for our marketing. It continues to grow and change every day—especially with the integration on photography and video. In our line of business, we must rely heavily on photography to show off our designs and intrigue the customers. This is why we have come up with some important tips on photography for your social media marketing.

The Importance of Photos

A picture is worth a thousand words—and, in some cases, the only thing standing between you and a customer making a purchase. Taking a quick photo of your design can be a great thing, but if the photo isn’t very good, it could end up hurting you in the long run. A bad photo could imply that you are unprofessional and even make your beautiful design look rather dismal. “But I don’t know a thing about photography!” Not to worry! Here are some basics on photography that can make your designs stand out—even if taken with your phone!

Basics

Lighting
Lighting can make or break your photo. Ever notice that little grainy look in some of your photos? That’s due to lack of lighting. You could go all out and set up a whole photo room where you have very expensive lights. OR you can use the best lighting of all: natural light. Try taking your pictures outside during the morning when the light is at its best.

Location
It’s important to consider where to take your photos. A messy workplace can take focus away from your beautiful designs and it can also make you look unprofessional. Designate a specific area that is only for photos. You can also make an easy backdrop on the side or back of your shop to use for your shots.

Angles
Sometimes one photo isn’t enough. Make sure to take many pictures from different angles. Sometimes a design looks best if taken from the bottom up or a close up of an embellishment stands out more than a basic picture.

Pro Tip: Include the recipient of the gift if possible! Nothing intrigues customers than seeing the result of a beautiful gift. This also promps your customers to share your pictures!

There is no need to be an award winning photographer to take a couple great shots of your designs. Remember to always look at your photos as if you were the customer and post your fantastic pictures on all your social media platforms. For more great tips and marketing tricks, check back with the Bloomin’ Blog!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Floral Photography, Marketing Tips, Social Media

Pinterest for Florists

June 15, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

When it comes to promoting your shop, social media does a fantastic job of growing your viewership through content sharing. But one social media platform that increases viewership well past your initial post is Pinterest. Here are three ways to incorporate Pinterest into your marketing strategy.

Pinterest + You

Pinterest is a huge content sharing social platform used for sharing ideas and tips. Linked heavily to blogs, this is the perfect way to promote your shop’s blog. What makes Pinterest really unique is that your posts can resurface on Pinterest periodically, long after you published them on your blog or Facebook.

Photo Op

Similar to Instagram, Pinterest heavily depends on photos for their sharing platform. This works perfectly because photos are the best way to promote your arrangements. During prom season, take a few pictures from customers or even within your display case of your corsage and boutonniere designs. If you have a unique design, customers will flock to your store wanting a creation they saw on Pinterest.

Social Promotions

Offer customers a discount for following your shop on Pinterest. During holiday seasons, promote your Pinterest by offering a giveaway to a random customer who shares a holiday pin from your page.

Don’t hesitate to use different social media platforms to get your business name out there! Check back with the Bloomin’ Blog for more great marketing ideas!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Marketing, Marketing Tips, Pinterest

Shop Talk: Marketing On Wheels

June 3, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

Marketing is an important aspect of flower shop sales. It’s what gets your name out there as a business and what keeps customers coming in and remaining life-long friends. Lora’s Flowers and Gifts of Muenster, Texas has taken their marketing to the streets as a van wrap advertisement on their delivery truck.

Wrapped Delivery

Just as it is important to have your employees look presentable when delivering blooms, that should also go for the delivery truck. Making an impression and looking professional is also an important marketing tactic. The more a customer sees the business logo on the vehicle, the more excited they will be when it pulls up on their driveway for a special delivery.

Marketing To A Huge Audience

It’s no surprise that wrapping the delivery truck is an easy way to market your business. It makes deliveries look professional and everyone within sight of the van will see the business name and the phone number. Also, if you add your website URL, prospective customers will know where to find you easily from their phone. You can reach an enormous audience with a variety of ages and what’s more, they won’t be able to miss a beautiful bouquet during heavy traffic.

There are many different types of marketing and the limits are endless when you have a big surface to present your business name. Don’t hesitate to showcase your business on any and every surface. Check back with the Bloomin’ Blog for more great marketing tips and ideas!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Marketing, Marketing Tips, Texas Florists

Guest Post: Email Marketing Tips

May 20, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo 1 Comment

A successful marketing strategy wouldn’t be complete without emails. Our friends at FGmarket have some great tips to share on email marketing. Here are three tips from their post. Click here to read the full article.

Subject Lines

Your reader will only be scanning their email inbox, so it is important to make it clear what exactly they are opening. That means 1) don’t be ambiguous and 2) get to the point.

Social Links

Adding links to your social media accounts in the footer or header of every email you send out is a great way to get users connected to you online.

Spam

There’s nothing people hate more than seeing hundreds of spam emails cluttering up their inbox. Limit the number of emails you send out to a maximum of one per day.

Read the rest of these great tips at FGmarket’s Tips For Successful Email Marketing. Check back at the Bloomin’ Blog for more great marketing tips!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: FGmarket, Marketing, Marketing Tips

Facebook Do’s and Don’ts

May 15, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

Facebook has become a universal social media platform for many flower shops. While it is the perfect platform to find your target audience, there are rules to follow in order to maintain a successful business page. Here are the top Do’s and Don’ts for Facebook!

Pictures

Do
Make sure you brand your profile picture with your shop’s logo. This automatically tells your customers who you are. Also, make sure you use high quality images for your banner and that you update it regularly (at least once every three months).

Don’t
Don’t use inappropriate pictures or personal pictures that don’t relate to your business. Avoid low quality images and don’t use old logos if your logo has been updated.

Links

Do
Always link back your website or blog when you post. Make sure to use short links, like Bitly, instead of the long, complicated original link.

Don’t
Don’t use links that you haven’t checked first. You don’t want to post a link that can take a prospective customer to an error page (or worse, an inappropriate site) just because you didn’t copy the whole link.

Updates

Do
Update your Facebook page at least three times a week. You want to keep your audience engaged so that you gain more followers.

Don’t
An inactive page, even for a few weeks, results in less followers, but you also don’t want to bombard them with a post every hour of the day.

Information

Do
Fill out your ‘About’ tab as much as possible so customers know all the information they need before calling your shop.

Don’t
Avoid writing your life story in the bio. Your customers want to know about your fabulous shop, but they don’t need to know everything. Save a more detailed bio for your website.

It’s easy being a Facebook pro when following these easy steps! Check back with the Bloomin’ Blog for more great marketing tips and tricks!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Facebook, Marketing, Marketing Tips

Last Minute Mother’s Day Marketing Tips

May 1, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

The beginning of May means Mother’s Day is around the corner. We are sure you are preparing your shop for one of the busiest floral holidays of the year, so we thought we would help you out with some last minute marketing tips! These tips are simple ways you can grow your sales and get your business out there just in time for Mother’s Day.

Instagram Special
Have a new Instagram account? Want to promote it? Mother’s Day is the perfect time to let your customers know you are social. Have them Instagram a picture of their loved one with their bouquet designed by your shop and have them tag you. Run a contest and choose a random winner from those who tag you. The winner can get a free bouquet certificate or any other discount of your choice!

Shop Team Up
Reach out to other shops in the community. How about a local jewelry store or candy shop? You can have an arrangement displayed in their store and plan to recommend each other to customers. If they are getting chocolate or jewelry, they need flowers with it too! Make a community connection while promoting your business and shopping locally.

“I Forgot It’s Mother’s Day” Flower Bar
You know those guys who don’t own a calendar and come rushing into your store for flowers at the last minute? Make it easy on them with a flower bar. Set up vases, flowers and cards (or ribbon) near the front of your shop where those last minute shoppers can run in, choose their arrangement, and pay quickly before their loved one notices! Promote it on social media and have customers share your post for a discount!

We know this year is going to be a busy, but successful Mother’s Day! Try one of these tips (or all) and check back with the Bloomin’ Blog for more great marketing ideas!

Filed Under: Holiday Info, Marketing Tips Tagged With: Marketing, Marketing Tips, Mothers Day, Mothers Day Marketing, Tips

Instagram For Florists

April 29, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

It’s no secret that flowers are visual and that customers are now looking for your business on social media. This is why you should consider extending your marketing through a solely visual marketing platform: Instagram.

You may be wondering “what the heck is Instagram?” and how you can market yourself through this platform when you aren’t much of a photographer? We have the answers and more!

Instagram + You

Instagram is all about the visual. It’s a platform of picture based posts that many businesses have taken as their main platform for sales. Why? Because customers are visual and when they see something they love, they want to buy. This works especially well for florists because flowers are visual, and customers want to see your designs before they make a purchase.

Strike A Pose

What makes Instagram so popular is its easy-to-use platform that allows anyone to be a photographer. There are many easy editing tools that can make your pictures look great, even if you aren’t trained in photography.

Making It Work For The Flower Shop

Here are 5 ways that you can implement Instagram into your business’ marketing strategy:

Show Off
Proud of your design? Show your great work to your followers and tell them how to order the same design at your shop.

Contests
Let your followers win a pretty bouquet. Have them like your post or comment and choose the winner randomly (do inform them ahead of time that the winner has to be in your area or has to visit the shop to pick up the arrangement).

Holiday Coupons
Give your followers a discount during the holidays. Post a graphic of a coupon for Mother’s Day, Valentine’s Day or any holiday and have them show you the coupon on their phone when they make their purchase.

Delivery Confirmation
Have customers upload a picture of their blooms on Instagram and tag you in the post. You can then repost it and show all your followers a happy customer.

Behind-the-Scenes
Designing for an event or putting together a photoshoot? Share it with your fans! They love seeing their favorite shops in action and may hire you for their next event!

Take advantage of this great social media platform that can benefit your business! For more great marketing tips, visit the Bloomin’ Blog!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Instagram, Marketing Tips, Social Media

Flower Shop Phone Etiquette

April 17, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo 1 Comment

Answering the phone is one of the most important aspects of running a flower shop business. It’s usually how you get your orders and solve problems with customers. Sometimes one can forget the etiquette. Whether it’s stress or a split second response while the boss is busy, phone etiquette can often be forgotten and sometimes a simple “Hello, how can I help you?” can make or break a sale.

Here are our top five rules of phone etiquette:

1. Always Answer Clearly and Cheerfully

First impressions are important, especially when talking to customers on the phone. Answer in a clear and cheerful tone, ready to help the customer.

2. Never Say “I Don’t Know”

Saying “I don’t know” doesn’t solve the problem. If you don’t know how to answer the customer’s questions say “Let me find out for you.” This way you are still offering a solution rather than stopping the communication.

3. Make Sure To Ask Questions

While customers are usually the ones asking questions, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask some too! If you are confused about something said or the spelling of the name, it’s better to double check than to get it wrong because you didn’t ask.

4. Never Be Rushed

While it’s hard not to feel the pressure on busy floral holidays, it’s important to make your customer feel like they have your undivided attention. This also causes less mistakes in the long run.

5. End With A Cheerful Goodbye

Let your customer know how appreciative you are of their business. How you end the phone conversation is what sticks with them and what decides whether they will be calling again.

Whether you learned something new or used it as a refresher, we hope this post will help your phone etiquette. Check back with the Bloomin’ Blog for more great tips!

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Customer Service, Flower Shops, Marketing Tips

Marketing Tips for Prom

March 27, 2015 by Tanya Giraldo Leave a Comment

Unlike other floral holidays and weddings, prom holds a certain type of charm. Due to the fact that customers around this time of year are younger than the usual customer (most of the time not even 18), there seems to be a trickiness to designing for these floral newbies. We reached out to a couple of florists to offer insight on prom marketing, as well as tips on approaching the younger generation.

The Young Customer

There are a couple of misconceptions that come up during this time of year about the young customer. The first is that customer service shouldn’t apply to them since their parent’s are purchasing the corsage. Second, that these kids don’t know anything about flowers so why bother when they are looking for something cheap. While it is true that many parents help these teens purchase their prom florals, others have savings from their part-time job. Either way, it is important to acknowledge the teen as a paying customer as you would acknowledge a bride whose parents are paying for the flowers. As for their ignorance on the value of flowers, there is a solution.

According to Doug Bates of Designs by VOGT’s of Sturgis, Michigan, it’s very important to introduce high school kids to flowers.

“If you don’t hook the younger generation by the time they are 25, they will never understand the value of flowers,” Bates said. “When you get them interested you become a part of their life.”

Bates believes that prom is the perfect time to start making new customers. If you make their first time flower experience memorable, they will become lifetime customers.

“You need to foster these relationships because in 5 years these girls will be brides,” Bates said. Bates told the story of one couple who came into the shop for their prom and years later he did their wedding flowers and have become long-time customers for other events as well. “It’s important to make their experience fun. When it’s apparent that you don’t want to work with them, they notice that. Make it engaging or they will go to your competitors.”

Marketing Tips and Tricks

Marketing for prom is just as important as treating the customer. Here are a couple of ideas to market your shop!

Go To School

Bates said that the best advice he heard about prom was to get involved with the school in any way you can. Whether it’s donating an arrangement or offering a discount for an event, everything stands out. One tip is to give a couple of teachers at your local high school corsages and boutonnieres to wear the week before and the week of prom.

Social Media Contest

This tip from Bates is great to also amp up your social media traffic. Offer a “Prom Mom Contest” when someone makes a purchase for prom. They must like your Facebook page and post a picture of their corsage with their dress during prom. The one with the most likes wins a free bouquet to give to their mom on Mother’s Day.

“Last year, we had such a high number of posts that we ended up choosing more than one winner,” Bates said. “It’s a great way to get your name out there, get likes, more traffic, and people posting your designs online.”

Prom is the perfect time to introduce flowers to the younger generation. You never know who may become a lifelong customer! For more marketing tips and ideas, check back with the Bloomin’ Blog.

Photo courtesy of Designs by VOGT’s.

Filed Under: Marketing Tips Tagged With: Customer Service, Marketing Tips, Prom, Prom Flower Tips