You may be starting to feel a chill in the air. Kids are brainstorming Halloween costumes. Harvest festivals (and pumpkin-flavored goods) are everywhere. According to Art Conforti, PFCI, longtime florist and founder of Bloomerang Solutions, October is also the time to switch your holiday marketing push into a higher gear.
His tips on what florists should be doing now to prep for the busy coming season:
Promote, promote, promote. “Plan on $20 Tuesdays and pass our promotions with every flower delivery,” he suggests. “This will show you are affordable and get companies your deliver to thinking flowers, gifts and holidays with your promos.”
Draw back the curtain. “Plan a sneak preview of items being offered this holiday,” Conforti says. “Many customers look forward to the holiday keepsakes being offered. A sneak preview and build up create interest in shopping with you. Try an ‘early reservation offer’ to be sure they get the product and doesn’t sell out.”
Slim down. Too many holiday sweets are bad for waistlines; too many design options are bad for your bottom line. “Prepare your offering,” he says. “Too many options will hurt your COGS.”
Go for the long game. “Just taking an order is not enough,” Conforti explains. “Plan a secondary offer like a $20 gift card for any order placed in January, your slowest month.”
Work it online. “If you are not marketing your local listings on Google, now is a good time to learn more on why your competition is targeting customers searching to send flowers,” says Conforti, who offers web development, online marketing, social media, and review generation consulting and services. “After all, if can do it, so can you.”
