Florists create an floral arrangement that their customer rarely sees, for people that they don’t know and are paid by people thousands of miles away. Do florists really know how vulnerable the customer on the end of the phone or the Internet form feels, when placing an order like that?

Florists also make more money on an order when it comes to them directly, instead of through the floral services, like FDT or 1-800-FLOWERS.

Florists provide a service for the purchaser at either a very high or very low time and for someone they really  care about. When florists get the order, they get the address of the purchaser and usually know the about the occasion, whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, get well, or funeral.

Florists are in a unique position to build a relationship with the purchaser, and they almost never think about it. Florists, think out of the box!

If you added $1.00 to the cost of the arrangement and $1.00 to the delivery charge, which in my opinion would not break a deal, you could cover the cost of a terrific marketing strategy, build referrals and addition business down the road. That is if you use the greeting card service that I use. It’s a no brainer!

For under $2.00, a florist could send a thank you card to the purchaser with a picture of their arrangement on the front of the card. Inside the card they could upload a photo of their quaint shop or a picture of themselves with a bubble saying, “Thank you for the order.”

On the other side of the card they could write a note saying, “I really appreciate your business, because I know that you had many other florists to choose from, and you picked me. I wanted you to see the arrangement that Jennifer received. We did our very best to convey the feelings that you wanted. I hope you are pleased and that you will think of us next time you would like to send an arrangement.” Sign your name;add your phone number.

Chances are that if they ordered through one of those services this time, the next time they’ll call you directly. You will have begun a lengthy relationship with a customer from out of town.

Always, when I receive a floral arrangement, I send the one who sent it to me a greeting card with the photo of the arrangement on the front. It’s a wonderful way to say thank you. Then they get to see what the actual flowers looked like. Below is the greeting card I sent my grandson, Jansen, and granddaughter, Jaya, thanking them for my Mother’s Day arrangement. I’m also going to send the card to the florist.

The card a florist would send out could be similar to this one.

I always wonder what the flower arrangement looks like, when I order one, even when it is from a florist across the county, much less across the country. Don’t you?

A florist wise enough to send a card is bound to get return business by building a lasting relationship. What do you think?

Tweet This Post

Here’s an example of a business owner who sent out this custom, photo card to his friends, family and the customer’s that he felt had a sense of humor.  I think it is priceless.

The front cover is self-explanatory.  If the inside doesn’t make you laugh, you need to have your sense of humor checked.

(inside photo below)

Inside this clever greeting card, the businessman wished every one a laugh for 2009 and announced that his son had finally accomplished his life-long dream of becoming a fireman for the local fire department. He also included a picture of his swearing in on the inside of the card.

See how using a custom, photo greeting card can get you remembered by your friends, family, and even your customers? He could be proud of his son without being a pompus idiot. People will share the card with others. It’s a great referral marketing piece, because people will think of this business owner when someone asks if they know someone who provides his service.

(We have no word how the son took to the card, especially if the firemen in his department got a hold of it. Oh, well, it is small town. Who knows?)

Tweet This Post