Dr. Breigh Jones-Coplin, a florist and mental health therapist, will discuss how understanding different attachment styles can help with retention and sales at SAF’s Next Gen LIVE! event in Miami.
Do you have a customer who is a perfectionist? Or a colleague who is a people pleaser? Do you get anxious when people don’t return emails? These behaviors are driven by psychological principles, called attachment styles, that influence how people relate to each other. Understanding these behaviors can help improve relationships between employees, managers and even customers, says Dr. Breigh Jones-Coplin of Black + Blossomed in Denver.
“Relationships are an essential part of any business, so when developing business relationships, there might be times where your attachment style dictates if you avoid a certain situation, if you feel uncomfortable, or if you are overly anxious about something depending on the context,” Jones-Coplin says.
She will bring her experience as both a florist and mental health therapist to the Society of American Florists’ Next Gen LIVE! in Miami June 11-13. Her session, “Foundations for Building Healthy Relationships,” provides an overview of attachment styles and covers how those styles influence behavior at work.
Improving Customer Engagement
Jones-Coplin will use her session to illustrate how floral professionals can utilize knowledge of attachment styles to run their businesses.
“In the floral industry, there’s this huge assumption that florists are going to be warm and inviting and creative — and that might be the case, — but there are definitely instances, and there are personal histories, which might interfere with our ability to show up in those ways,” she says.
When florists tackle these personal issues and show up in ways customers expect, it creates a much better experience and keeps people coming back to a shop, Jones-Coplin says.
“On a retail floor, all those interactions count. A lot of times, people comment on my energy and personality, and of course they love the flowers, but the thing that keeps people coming back is feeling like they came into a safe environment and they’re engaged with someone who’s understanding, trusting and warm,” she says. “In the floral industry, just being able to understand our own personality styles and attachment styles can facilitate a good experience for our clients.”
Improving Work Culture
It’s also important for people in leadership roles to keep attachment styles in mind when managing their staff because just as customers can find another shop to buy their flowers if they don’t like the experience, today’s employees have no problem finding another job.
“In this day and age, workplace wellness is so heavily emphasized because people are leaving jobs quicker and are a little bit more dissatisfied,” Jones-Coplin says. “There’s so much intentionality that needs to go behind just making sure you’re building those relationships and you’re creating a good, inviting space.”
Next Gen LIVE! creates a space for attendees 45 and younger to learn these kinds of skills and more. Travis Wilson of Breen’s Florist in Houston attended last year’s Next Gen LIVE! and is registered to go to this year’s event. He says the event is especially helpful for budding professionals who are still growing in their careers and eager to learn as much as they can.
“As a young or new leader in the industry, it can be challenging to know what you don’t know,” Wilson says. “By attending … you can hear other people’s questions, problems, and solutions, which can provide valuable insights and help you navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship. If you don’t attend these meetings, you might miss out on important information that could help your business thrive.”
Click here for more information about Next Gen LIVE! and to register.
Kenya McCullum is a contributing writer for the Society of American Florists.
