On Monday, January 29, Welke’s Milwaukee Florist gave a free gift card to the first person who could correctly answer the Facebook query, “How many years has Welke’s been ‘delivering love’ to the Milwaukee community for Valentine’s Day?” (Answer: 117.)
For consumers, Valentine’s Day is just as the name implies: a day. For florists, though, it’s a season, and coming up with talking points for the next 15 days is no easy feat.
If you’re in need of inspiration, check out the Flower Factor blog ataboutflowers.com. There you’ll find a Valentine’s Day category where writers have weighed in on a wide range of topics, including the meaning of flowers, romantic date ideas, card message suggestions, care and handling tips and rose facts — perfect nuggets to repurpose for your own blog, social media updates and email pitches to reporters.
And don’t forget to include art! According to HubSpot, an inbound marketing software platform, content with relevant images gets 94 percent more views than text-only posts. If you don’t have the right images in your own portfolio, check out SAF’s Flickr account, where you can download quality, high-resolution images for free.
Here are a few tactics to try:
- Trivia: On Monday, January 29, Welke’s Milwaukee Florist gave a free gift card to the first person who could correctly answer the Facebook query, “How many years has Welke’s been ‘delivering love’ to the Milwaukee community for Valentine’s Day?” (Answer: 117.) This post not only got fans thinking about the holiday two weeks in advance, but also subtly trumpeted the shop’s impressive longevity, emphasizing Welke’s role in the community. Additionally, the winner has to pick up the prize in person, which creates an opportunity for him or her to do a little shopping in the process.
- Personality Cues: Ian Prosser, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, owner of Botanica International in Tampa, Florida, collaborated with The Scout Guide, a publication “dedicated to living beautifully, living well and living like an insider,” by identifying five floral personalities (artistic, outdoorsy, dramatic, romantic and traditional) and designing five arrangements to match them. On Tuesday, January 30, the post appeared on both the Botanica and The Scout Guide Facebook pages with a suggestion that readers share their personality in a comment and tag their significant others for a hint.
- Critter Chatter: Last year, Brown’s the Florist in Victoria, British Columbia let its inventory of plush products do the talking. The shop gave the animals some personality by positioning them next to enclosure cards with cutesy phrases, such as “Up for Valentine’s monkey business?” and “I have my puppy dog eyes on you.”
- A Sneak Peak: Hall’s Flower Shop and Garden Center wrapped up January by taking studio shots of new specials for Valentine’s Day. The Stone Mountain, Georgia company shared a behind-the-scenes snapshot of some petals preparing for their close up and told fans to check the website soon.
- Topical Tie-In: On Tuesday, January 30, Debbie’s Bloomers in El Paso, Texas hitched a Valentine’s Day advert on top of a cultural phenomenon (the lunar eclipse) with this playful post:
Tomorrow’s Schedule:
- Wake up early for a view of the lunar eclipse.
- Get dressed for a great day.
- Order Valentine’s Day flowers from Debbie’s Bloomers before the prices go up on Feb. 1.
- Congratulate yourself on being awesome!
- Poll the Crowd: On Friday, January 26, God’s Garden Treasures Florist in Tempe, Arizona shared photos of how garden roses open over the course of seven days and solicited customers’ opinions. “Happy weekend! We are getting our garden rose p’s and q’s down, gettin’ ready for Valentine’s Day! We love how full and lush they open up!” the post “Would you rather receive them smaller at first and watch them open, or do you like the impact of the open look when you first receive them, even if they don’t last quite as long?” Not only did the post get people thinking about Valentine’s Day, but it also gave owner Karin Crawford valuable insight and highlighted a premium product customers may not realize she offers.
