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Ten ideas to take away from SAF Orlando 2010 |
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Written by Society of American Florists
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Oct. 13, 2010 - The 293 attendees of SAF Orlando 2010 left with long-lasting souvenirs: resolve, results-getting ideas and real connections with other industry members that will keep their businesses headed out of the recession. For those who couldn't be at the Society of American Florists 126th Annual Convention Sept. 22-25 in Orlando, here are a few takeaways.
Open your eyes, ears and heart.
SAF kicked off a convention after the worst economy since The Depression, with a keynote speaker who danced across the stage, mimed a bit and told a room full of business owners to “look, listen and love” their way to a better business. And the best part? Victoria Lebalme managed to parlay that New Age, motivational speak into advice a flower shop owner can put to use. She showed audience members the hazards of hyper-focusing on one thing, getting caught in conveyor-belt work mentality, and interrupting or “pouncing”– habits that keep you from tapping into whatever emotion consumers want to express with flowers and whatever passion keeps you going. That theme was repeated throughout the convention: the emotion behind flower giving and the potential for florists — who are listening — to sell to that feeling.
Don’t be afraid to run (and play) with the big boys.
That was the advice Oralia and David Espinoza shared from the stage after their shop, Spring Garden Flower Shop of San Antonio, won Floral Management’s 17th Annual Marketer of the Year award. “If you have an idea and truly believe in it, run with it,” said Oralia, whose plan to sell coveted Fiesta “pins” during the city’s biggest nonprofit party tripled the shop’s event and corporate business.
Speaking of big “playing fields,” many of the 41 first-time attendees were thankful they’d abandoned their notion that SAF’s convention was just for large shops and big-time players in the floral industry. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to have finally made it to convention,” said Tara Prior, owner of Silver Fox Florist in Westlake, Ohio. “It’s only the first day and I’ve already filled up a notebook with things to incorporate once I get back home.” The notebook was filled with pointers from three florists at the social media panel and tips on keeping COGs low and perceived value high during a session on profitable design.
“It was an irreplaceable opportunity,” said Jennifer Pryor, who had hesitated for 10 years because of the cost. “I decided: It was finally time to take my business to the next level,” said the owner of White House Florist in Lexington, S.C. She left Orlando with dozens of new contacts, so many notes “it’ll take a month to go through them all” and a behind-the-scenes visit with Walt Disney World’s florist. “I was reminded how important our customers are and that it’s all about the relationship we build with them,” she said. Amy Rickett, a sales manager for the John Henry Company in Lansing, Mich., came for firsthand accounts from retailers. “I wanted to learn more about the retail side of the industry – the people in it and what they do to stay in it,” she said. “It’s a challenging industry, for sure, and I should know their concerns.”
Get over your social media fears.
If you think Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and blogs are silly, be warned that without a social media presence, it’s your business that won’t be taken seriously, by the media, other vendors or increasingly Web savvy consumers. That’s what Mandy Majerik, AIFD, PFCI, of HotHouse Designs in Birmingham, Ala., told attendees during the social media panel. Majerik tweeted her way into the pages of Southern Bride. “Show your attitude, show off your work and always, always, always give some of that Facebook love back” to other businesses, vendors and customers, she said.
Social media helps open doors, and despite its digital foundation, helps your business become more personal. “So many other vendors who call me for business, with referrals or come into the shop tell me they feel like they already know me because they follow my Tweets or see pictures of my shop and staff on Facebook,” said fellow panelist Georgianne Vinicombe of Monday Morning Flowers and Balloon Co. of Yardley, Pa., and Princeton, N.J. Vinicombe had booked a $2,300 event right before she left for convention, from another vendor who found her through Twitter.
And don’t dismiss blogging. Panelist and 2008 Marketer of the Year Rick Canale is blogging his way to higher search rankings for Exotic Flowers. One tip from Canale: When a florist in your town goes out of business, write about it on your blog, so that when someone searches for that shop, your shop comes up in the search (and you can capture a new customer).
Make your design your brand.
People can buy flowers anywhere, so the only way you’re going to stand out is with your design and your service, Tim Farrell, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, told attendees of his seminar on profitable design. That doesn’t mean stuffing your arrangements with flowers to hide your mistakes or letting designers let “excess” pass for “expensive.” The owner of Farrell's Florist in Farrel Drexel Hill, Pa., then showed a series of arrangement pairs, with one being overstuffed and losing the shop money and the other with far fewer flowers yet the same or even more of an impact. Farrell enjoined attendees to use cost sheets at every design station so designers know exactly how much money they have to spend on flowers.
Steal ideas – or at least borrow them.
During this year’s Idea Swap, an attendee-driven exchange that’s quickly become a must-attend event since debuting in 2008, wholesalers, growers and florists shared at least 40 ideas about growing sales, cutting costs, launching DIY bridal businesses, finding free labor and reducing administrative burdens. And they didn’t just give out the basics. Specificity reigned, whether it was the tried and true GPS systems (Garmin-T, NavTeq, LandAirSeaSystems.com), the websites used to take HR virtually (Webmeetlive.com) or the sexy, sassy advertising taglines used to sell the reaction flowers get (“Get some tonight,” read Nanz & Kraft’s billboard showing a bed of gerberas!)
“This was worth the cost of admission,” said Nic Faitos, a first-time attendee, who brought his son, Stephen, to see how other “professional florists do it right,” and get a better sense of whether he wants to continue the success his dad started at Starbright Floral Design in New York.
Stop leaving money on the table.
“Florists leave at least 20 per cent of every sale on the table by not listening to customers and falling into robot mode,” Tim Huckabee of Floral Strategies told a rapt audience Friday morning during CSI: Flower Shop.
Huckabee, whose Customer Service Investigation (CSI) appears monthly in SAF's Floral Management magazine, offered to investigate the shops of attendees who were brave enough to shout out their phone number. As the audience listened, Huckabee tried to spend a lot of money on “his sister” — but at each of the three shops called on the spot, the friendly employee failed to capture the excitement of the occasion (her big “3-0”) and the wealth of the customer (easily gleaned from his penthouse address in downtown Manhattan and his recently dashed plans to fly in and celebrate with her). These facts would have been obvious — had they taken the card message first and truly listened to the caller’s excitement and desire to have flowers take his place at her birthday celebration.
“I promise that 90 percent of the time, customers want you to tell them what to buy. If you tell them to buy a $30 mum (as one salesperson did), they’re going to do it,” he said. “Of course, that gift will fail to get the reaction the customer wanted and you’ll never get that customer’s business again.”
Give employees unexpected rewards.
Annual bonuses or gifts “are like an antibiotic,” said HR consultant Richard Hadden, who led the seminar, Creative Compensation Your Employees Will Love. “After a while they don’t have the same effect.” Not to mention that they become expected, an “entitlement,” Hadden said. Instead, give unexpected rewards that are tailored to the interests of the individual. Some ideas offered up from the audience: a paid trip to the SAF convention, generous employee discounts, paid time off, a staff dinner at the owner’s house. One thing not to use as a reward? “Your company’s advertising trinkets,” said Hadden, to an amused (and perhaps guilty) audience. “They’re for customers, not for employees.”
Stay on top of bridal trends.
Ian Prosser, AAF, AIFD, PFCI, of Botanica International in Tampa, Fla., and a co-panelist for the session Wedding Trends and Tips, said he reads dozens of bridal, fashion and lifestyle magazines and doesn’t miss a “chick flick.” It's all in the name of being in the know on whatever idea a potential bride might float his way. “If the bride says she’s wearing a Pucci dress, then I need to know what that is. If she wants a bouquet just like Sarah Jessica Parker’s, I have to know what that means, and if I don’t it looks like I don’t know what I’m talking about. ”
Don’t keep varieties a secret.
Those were the marching orders of Farrell and Steve Dionne, sales director at United Floral Exchange in Vista, Calif., two judges of the SAF Outstanding Varieties Competition. Look no further than the blue ribbon winners in the competition, starting with the rubber-necking worthy ‘Jiuhbao Sweetie,’ the phalaenopsis orchid from Transflora/DVFG that took home “Best in Show.” Amongst 238 entries, judge Debbie Remblence instantly spotted ‘Jiuhbao Sweetie’ “like it was a pelican beacon blinking,” said the vice president of sales for David Austin Roses. For its size, perfect form, vibrant shade of fuchsia and marketability, the orchid was the nine judges’ unanimous choice for top honors. “It’s a $400 bouquet all on its own,” chimed in judge Carmen Cosentino, AAF, PFCI, of Cosentino’s Florist in Auburn, N.Y. Dionne praised the orchid for its “architectural, cascading blooms that, from a distance, look electric.”
Best in Class winners included ‘Baby Doll’ alstroemeria from Fresca Farms; ‘Dark Green Anastasia’ chrysanthemum from Liberty Blooms, ‘Paradero’ Oriental lily from Green Valley Floral (for cut bulbs), ‘Barbatus Green Ball’ dianthus from Golden Flowers, ‘Enjoy’ gerbera from Kitayama Bros., Inc., ‘Valencia’ bromeliad from Kent’s Bromeliad Nursery (for potted flowering plants), ‘Corazon’ rose from Equiflor/Rio Roses and ‘Purple Sky’ spray rose from Golden Flowers.
Celebrate your peers.
Throughout the convention — on their feet applauding the at the Industry Awards Dinner, cheering contestants through the Sylvia Cup design competition, admiring Outstanding Varieties entries, networking at social events — florists, wholesalers, growers, importers and suppliers celebrated their industry, and each other.
For more SAF Orlando 2010 coverage, visit the organization's website here.
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