What is the worst thing a customer can do to your business? The answer is shop with someone else.  Do you know if this has happened at your shop? I have read that the rule of thumb is for every one customer who complains, 16 will never speak up. So what can we do?

At Beneva Flowers, we call it our Customer Retention Program.  Using our RTI system, we do what you can do with any point of sale.

Here is what we do at Beneva Flowers:

First, we identify the criteria.  Gather up customers who have placed 5 or more orders over the past 3 years AND those who do not have any order activity in the past 18 months.  You can use ODBC to export this data into a spreadsheet.

Next, identify and sort the list. Give your employees an equal amount and review a script with them. We thank our customers for the orders they have placed with us and ask how we can improve their experience with Beneva Flowers. I have a detailed script you are welcome to use if you would like, just email me.

Remember, if a customer has ordered 5 or more times, there must be some value in the relationship.  Understand that there may be a reason that they did not order in a particular year but it is still worth a call.

What is most important here is not to question them, but to thank them.  If they decide to order,  do not offer them a discount. The last thing you want to do is for this to come across as a sales call.

Now that you have spoken to the customer, it is important that notes are written and turned into the owner of the store or your department manager to review.  We hold contests for gift cards so the more sheets our agents turn in, the more entries they get.

This is a GREAT way to clean up your account database so when you decide to market for the holidays, you have a clean list to go off of. Even better, you may find out that someone could have had an unfavorable experience and you now have a chance to save the relationship.

People shop with companies they trust. Forming a relationship is the ultimate goal of every marketing plan.  Floralapp is a prime example. It is not a website; it is a retention tool. When customers download the app, they get express ordering, notifications of specials, and even discounts. They become committed to your shop.

If more shops concentrate on retaining customers and growing the experience with your shop, chances are they will trust you with all their floral and gift giving needs. Remember to promote across town or the USA in all your ads. You are one stop shopping, don’t keep it a secret.

This is just another step in changing for the better and taking back our industry for the local florist.

–Art Conforti, PFCI

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floralapp^® has released new features and enhancements! We recommend you send a push notification to all of your users to remind them to update their app to the latest version.

Here is a sample of what we sent:

Remember to update floralapp to take full advantage of our cool new features and enhancements!

If you have any questions, or need assistance setting this up, don’t hesitate to call us at 800-560-0501.

The post Remind your customers to UPDATE their floralapp! appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

After hours of meetings, I saw the conversations being dominated by disgruntled florists against wire services. There was more conversation about what the wire services were doing to them than taking responsibility for their own actions and operations. FTD, Teleflora, and Bloomnet seemed to be the reason these particular florists were struggling.

I tried to move the conversation away from pointing fingers to accepting our industry for what it is and changing and controlling what we can. The answer is simple. The solution would need everyone to take part. The solution could be achieved if this negative energy was turned to a positive reinforcement of a new local brand: A YES WE CAN attitude and a commitment to execution of the demands of today’s consumer. To do this, we must all take the first step together and agree on the solution. The solution is MARKETING.

I have always said, “If every shop marketed to their own delivery area, the force and domination of 1800 would be reduced and we would take back control”.

Furthermore, Teleflora is the only wire service that does not ship flowers in a box and prints a nationwide ad every holiday listing participating florists. My question to any florist is “WHY are you not listed? Why, in my Sarasota market, am I the only one listed, and there are listings from Naples to Saint Petersburg?”

The reason is limited participation. Let’s begin here: It seems to me that Teleflora has stepped up and reserved a space most florists could not afford to secure on their own for us to join a marketing effort, yet there is limited participation. This is a fact. They also give away a $10 coupon that, if a customer redeems at your shop, they reimburse you for. Now ask anyone outside the floral industry, “What do you think about this? What is wrong with this?” If nothing, then why aren’t more flower shops joining this effort?

Now before you start grinding other axes or before you get all excited, let’s just stick to this one point. If we can all agree on this one and only topic for an answer, we can move on to another issue. What happens in these meetings is that all the issues out there facing all small business owners and retail florists are thrown all out on the table at once and it becomes a free for all. If we (or the florists at Florists for Change) can address one topic at a time, we will be able to move on to the next issue.

As far as I am concerned, we need to address marketing first and foremost. We need to increase awareness about sending flowers. We all need to commit to the YES WE CAN approach to our business. The goal is to answer every question with a positive option. NO must be removed from the conversation. Always speak with options. This is what I love talking about. I speak on a local level with businesses, sharing the value of being a YES WE CAN operation.

In our industry, we can do more than a multi-billion dollar company like FEDEX can do; hand deliver across the USA SAME DAY. We are AMAZING in our abilities. We can do what most industries can’t. Why aren’t we proud? Why don’t we stand tall? Why don’t we scream it at the top of our lungs that we are the voice of our customers? We understand in most cases flowers represent a message. We should be the messenger of choice. Our flowers reflect the sincerity of that message. This is the beauty and uniqueness of our industry. I am proud to be a retail florist, ARE YOU?

–Art Conforti, PFCI

The post Florists For Change? appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

There seems to be so much concern these days about the low price leader. With the per unit sales dropping as supermarkets and online flowers-in-a-box sales lure shoppers away from the local florists, who cannot offer flowers of value for $20-$30. Securing a transaction has become increasingly difficult. Is it truly worth the aggravation it creates among florists or should we focus more on what we do best and charge for it? This past Valentine’s Day we learned a lesson thanks to the FTD luxury line.

They had beautiful images of products in the $200-$300 range, which we hesitantly added to our website. Believe it or not, the sales were not 2 or 3 but almost 40 in total! Here is the image: a simple design with a true WOW effect.

FTD has a beautiful line of LUXE products that they make available for their shops, yet I see very few being used. Using LUXE products could be a good jump start to your sales by showing customers what you are truly capable of.  In the world of Costco, Walmart and Pro Flowers, we are a boutique operation. We should be showcasing unique designs that cannot be easily mass produced and shipped in a box. If you need an inexpensive design, look at our Succulent Sphere (pictured left).

This past Mother’s Day, we featured Jolie which became one of our top sellers (pictured bottom right).

In the future, we will be offering more striking designs in our holiday brochures that reflect a finer product than you would expect to find at your local florist.While FTD does a fine job of showcasing and photographing LUXE designs, you can create your own just as we did.

Next time you see a bouquet leave your shop, ask yourself this, “Does it look like it could have been made at the grocery store?” If it does, you may want to look at some finishing touches. A few examples would be some stones at the bottom of the vase, a nice colored wire around the outside of the vase, or how about ribbon lining the inside of the glass to resemble synthetic aspidistra inside the vase. Last, try a “designed by” tag. At Beneva, we like our designers to put their name on their work. You can get these cards at John Henry.

Watch how nice the finishing touches come together.

–Art Conforti, PFCI

The post Are We Underselling Ourselves? appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

The only way to do this successfully is to train your staff with a plan and give them steps to accomplishing the results you desire, satisfying your customer.

The truth of any floral experience is that we are usually partially at fault. How we explain this to our customer is part of the resolution.

Here is a personal example:

We delivered flowers to a customer and the happy face balloon was missing. The customer was extremely upset. The order was to include sunflowers and a happy face balloon.  This was a crucial bouquet since it was to be given during the customer’s proposal. It was the combination of the sunflowers and smiley balloon that was important.

The customer came into the store and explained what happened. Our agent listened and after hearing the customer offered him a free balloon. The customer stated the surprise was ruined. It was not about the balloon after the fact; it needed to be done correctly from the beginning.

Seeing the customer was still upset, our agent stepped up and offered $5.00 off along with the free balloon. The customer said fine and left.

Because we are so customer service and experience driven, our agent reprinted the order with notes added and left it on my desk to review when I returned the next day. In doing so, I noticed key points that were not covered here. I called the customer and expressed my disappointment in not fulfilling the surprise as he requested. He said he was just preparing to write me a letter. His anger was growing as he drive home.  He was upset that the agent felt all this was worth was $5.00. I took this in my own hands and here is the approach I took:

#1 Address and review

I first addressed the concern the customer had. We discussed the meaning of the balloon and how important this combination meant to him. It was most important to LISTEN. I went ahead and reviewed all that occurred. I asked if the flowers were pretty, if they were fresh, and if they were delivered timely. So after addressing that we had delivered a pretty bouquet of fresh cut flowers timely, I took responsibility and apologized for missing the additional balloon that was ordered.

#2 Ask your customer what is a fair resolution

With this being said, I then asked the customer what he felt was a fair resolution. You must put this sensitive matter back in the customer’s hands instead of trying to figure out what the magic number is for a refund.  In many cases, customers just want to be heard and know that you care. If you explain all that you did correctly, the customer will never feel a 100% refund is fair. In most cases, the max anyone will ask for is 50%. The key is THEY dictate what THEY feel is fair and you oblige.

There are two kinds of service that will never be forgotten, exceptional and horrible. If you take the time to listen and allow the customer the opportunity to resolve the incident, you will find your company in a better place.

Customer service is a sensitive, VERY delicate, and important part of the local retail experience. Handling every situation with a goal of exceeding expectations will bring you from a potential horrible experience to an exceptional one. I have made more customers out of complaints than people complimenting us.

Look forward to my post in July when I will discuss handling “the OTHER florist did it” issues.

We know how well we run our shops, right? When we send an out of town order, we are only as good as the shop filling and delivering our order. The reason we as a local industry don’t get enough out of town orders is that we don’t ask for them.  We also use the magic words that your customers should never hear, which make them NEVER use you for an out of town order again.

I hope you find these ideas helpful and I welcome your feedback. Please write me here or email me with any comments or questions.

Art Conforti

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Teleflora shared industry facts and retailing obstacles we are all facing as an industry. What I find is most impressive is that RTI has handpicked retail florists to work on developments of RTI technology as well as opening discussions on how to improve the florist to florist model. As far as I can see, there is no one else bringing florists together anymore, sharing strategies and looking to us (their customers) for solutions for the retailing challenges we are all facing.

Having invested in RTI back in 1995, the very first conference I attended was in Nashville, where we were this week. All I remember was I could sleep for days from all the ideas shared by florists and RTI developing the tools to execute what we needed. Here we are 18 years later and I have to say, I don’t know that I could have built Beneva Flowers into what it is today without RTI.

It was refreshing to hear and agree with several of the members who thanked RTI for the exceptional support they provide every member. Especially today, I have yet to see a company I can call for support that the person who answers the call actually handles the question at hand ON THE SPOT. It is a relief to know when I am using a new feature, I can pick up the phone and get an answer almost instantly.

The biggest change I am not happy with is a wire service I pay dues to that claims to be battling the war on direct ship flowers and doing the same to secure the customer. When a company takes an order and direct ships it, they only benefit one entity, their own. When Teleflora gets an order, they depend on us to complete the transaction and experience. I am glad to have some part of a transaction rather than none. Keep up the good work.

Arthur F. Conforti, PFCI

The post New Technological Developments Coming Soon appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

The Smartphone

What is a smartphone? A smartphone is a mobile device that allows users to access the Internet.  In short, it is like a small computer that also is used to make calls, send text messages, and access applications.  The main aspect that we want to focus on is the applications.

Who even has a smartphone? According to a recent Pew survey, about 56% of the American population owns a smartphone.   The chart below displays the percentage of each age group that owns a smart phone.

The Floralapp

What is an application (app, for short)?  An app is a downloadable icon that takes you directly to a service.  There are over 1 million apps to choose from so your app must really stand out from the rest to be one of the chosen ones.

What makes Floralapp unique? Floralapp stands out because it is the most widely used app for purchasing flowers.  You also have the unique ability to send our push notifications directly to your customers. In addition, Floralapp is available on Android AND Apple devices (i.e. iPhones and iPads), which is not true about all apps.

How do I get the Floralapp?  You can call us at 800-560-0501 and we’ll have you setup within 48 hours, or visit www.floralapp.com for more information.

The post An Intelligent Choice: Why Smartphones are the Top Device appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

With Customers

Whether it is to look up the date, find out what is going on next week, or simply looking at it because it is in plain sight, people use calendars multiple times a day.  What if that calendar had your business as the focus?

You might be thinking “Why would I switch to a customized calendar when the one I have been using have worked fine?”  Before you verbalize this statement, you should ask yourself the following three questions:

1. How many containers are you promoting?

2. Who else’s brand is on YOUR calendar?

3. How are the customized coupons working for you? There are none.

After answering these questions, you are starting to understand the value of a customized calendar.  The bottom line is: are your calendars strictly a gift to your customers, or are they a 12 month marketing piece with a call to action every month?

With Other Businesses

Business connections and partnerships are vital in a community.  Nearly every business will host an event where they will need flowers.  This is where you come in.

Many of our florists have newly forged relationships with local area businesses. How? A beautiful calendar for all of their offices paired with aggressive coupons.

Businesses will appreciate the gift and you will stay on top of mind.  When they have an event, guess who will be the shining star when checking for a possible date?

Customization is Key

Hearing the wonderful ways that florist have used their 2013 custom calendars has been enjoyable and a learning experience for us! Needless to say, our flower shop will be incorporating some of these ideas on our next calendar.

A few examples that were shared with us:

• Mailing to VIP customers

• Open house handouts

• Local chamber events

Feel free to let us know what has worked well for you by contacting our sales team, click here to email them.

There is no other marketing vehicle that we have found that will keep you top of mind in front of your customers and local businesses daily that has only your branding. It simply does not exist!

The only way you will truly know if your customizable calendars are making a difference is to add a tracking phone number to them. We can help you get some for basically FREE. Find out how…

You can still order this amazing marketing tool customizable to your preferences by calling 866-768-2420 or click here to learn more!

The post Calendars Can Do the Marketing for You appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

I then told him about Floral Prodigy, a solution I created that he too could use in his industry. I explained how I can get him his very own direct inbound dial (DID) phone numbers he could put on all his ads and measure the results from the calls and from purchases. He replied, “Purchases?” and I said, “Yes.” He sighed and said, “That would be great, but you know what Art, I just can’t find the time to learn about these kinds of things.” I said, “So let’s reflect on the beginning of this conversation. You were changing light bulbs all day?” He laughed as he realized that what he originally set out to do, and did, all day was not nearly as important as what he could have done in those same hours; however, it needed to be done and there is always that feeling of satisfaction when WE DO THINGS OURSELVES. We know it is done.

So now that he realized it may not have been the best use of his time, he proceeded to tell me when he bought this company, he has had nothing but struggles in getting the right staff. It is so bad he can’t even get the light bulbs changed. Or could he?

I wonder how many light bulbs went out in McDonald’s across the country and how many CEO’s changed them?

Sound familiar? Do florists suffer from the same “I have to do it or else” syndrome?

I would recommend a book from Michael Gerber called E-Myth. I read it and it changed the way I looked at my flower shop forever.

The post CEO’s changing light bulbs? appeared first on Beneva Solutions - Floral Marketing - Blog.

So here is what just happened…

A customer (for over 5 years) calls Beneva to cancel an order for this Friday. She was short and I could hear in her voice she was just looking to cancel and hang up. After seeing she ordered a $40.00 bouquet, I introduced myself and 

that broke the ice. She then said she goes to my church and sees me at mass every Sunday, loves our flowers at church and STILL is cancelling this order.

I politely asked her if she would share with me why she wanted to cancel her order. It is important you handle this question delicately because people don’t like confrontation. She said she found something online for A LOT LESS. I am thinking a lot less than $40.00? I then asked if she could share more as I would be surprised if she truly found anything that much less (you know what I was thinking and, guess what, RIGHT on the money). Before I found out where she ordered, I warned her of flowers in a box to which she said, “OH NO, I would never do that.” Now she tells me more…

She told me she saw a pop-up on her computer for tulips. 20 tulips in a vase AND a box of chocolates for just $29.95 from Pro Flowers. The first indicator to know it is being shipped is they can’t select same day. Since most orders are for this weekend, how would they know? Pro Flowers hides these details, see the receipt to the left.

These guys are everywhere, retail florists need to engage customers more than ever before. Don’t look for someone else to do this work for us, we need work harder at securing our own customers than getting new ones.

Think about this woman and how many of you have relationships in town, at church, regular customers….They don’t leave because they don’t like you, they get lured into the trap.

I hope I opened at least one eye here. Don’t convince yourself, secure every customer and start by getting your staff trained today. You still have time!

Good luck, we all have our work cut out for us.

Art

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