Hello Floralpreneur.
Did you see my “new rule” on not giving stem counts to customers?
I followed that up about 2 weeks later with a video on how overfilling by a single stem in each design can add up to thousands of dollars over the course of a year, thus making the point that it’s important for designers to “count every stem”.
IS THIS A CONTRADICTION?
I received a few questions about how these two ideas can exist at once so I want to be crystal clear about the difference (and similarities) between not counting stems for customers, but still counting stems for your recipes.
Click HERE to watch “Stem counts vs floral recipes.”
I kept this one short for ya. Thanks for taking about 4 minutes to watch.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
If you missed my video on Why you don’t have to give a stem count click here,
and you can find How a single rose can derail your flower business here.
THE TAKEAWAY
Set some minimums (on bouquets, centerpieces, arbors, delivery, etc.) and work out your flower math to ensure that your quote is accurate, but don’t feel the pressure to reveal your recipes to clients who aren’t even booked yet.
THANK YOU!
Your comments and feedback inspired this post!
Thanks so much for reading and watching. I really appreciate hearing from you.
And thanks to everyone who’s joined me over in the NEW FACEBOOK GROUP!
Real Flower Business is the name of the group and it’s a good crew of floral pros.
Request to join the group here:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/RealFlowersBusiness
(If you include your business name or some clear marker that you are, in fact, a florist that will speed up your approval! I do have a waiting list of people I still need to vet….and that takes time so the easier it is for me to see that you’re a floral designer the sooner you’ll be approved!)
I’ve been livestreaming every week and you can catch the replays any time on Facebook. There must be close to 5 hours worth of free videos in the group so far including topics like proper markups and some of my best tips on building a brand that lasts.
ON A PERSONAL BIZ NOTE…
So far it’s been a wonderful wedding season with each and every customer falling into my “ideal customer” category.
There’s not a name on my calendar that makes me cringe or recoil or ask “WHY?, oh why did I take this?”….And that’s certainly contributing to a feeling of success.
I hope you are off and running with a busy and successful season!…and lots of ideal customers of your own.
This year I’ve been relying more on others to assist in running my biz (and my life…thanks to an awesome part-time nanny. This is the first time I’ve had reliable childcare in 4 years!).
I brought in 3 designers for my “big, big” wedding in June and I’ve had more “hands on deck” on a weekly basis than I have for the past 15 years. It’s been worth every penny!
Labor is cutting into my profit margin by about 8-10% which I hear is about the norm.
AND IF YOU NEED A STRATEGY TO ATTRACT MORE IDEAL CUSTOMERS…
Check out The Art of Good Business. This is my newest course on building an integrity brand, choreographing customer service and attracting ideal clients. Click HERE to read the details. Course begins Jan. 9th, 2017. Registration closes 1-7-17. Payment plan options are available until Dec. 19th. I’ll be walking through this course with you from start to finish. It’s going to be 5 weeks of awesome.
As always…
Keep
doing
beautiful
work.
With love from me to you,
Alison
P.S. If you’d like to submit a question for a future video or live broadcast CLICK HERE for an anonymous survey or simply shoot me an e-mail anytime at info@floralartvt.com.
P.P.S. If you’re a floral designer who’s digging my content and/or my courses, please share the Real Flower Business love via e-mail, Facebook, Instagram, sky writing, what-have-you with a florist you know and love. (I truly appreciate your support in cultivating other floral pros.)
