How To Stop Losing Weddings

Everyone has to start somewhere in their business, but what do you do when you’re really ready to level-up your brand and attract better clients?

My business started organically and it was ALL DIY!–from business cards I printed on my home computer to the “flyers” and occasional print ads I ran in the local papers.

I only booked 1 wedding my first year in business–it was ALL sunflowers–and I felt lucky to book the work! The next year I grew my bookings to 5 weddings (thanks to some friends, and friends of friends, getting married, of course!) and then, I slowly began to build from there….10 weddings, 25 weddings, 34 weddings!….but my business still wasn’t growing the way I wanted it to.

You see, even after 7 or 8 years in business, I kept losing the “better events” to another florist. (Like the same florist every time.)

Was this other florist more established than me? YES.

Did they have a team that did 20+ weddings per month? YES.

Was I capable of designing flowers as beautiful as their team? YES!

So why was I losing out over and over again?

Simple. They Had Better Brand Position.

I had to face the fact that even though I’d been in business for a little while and I had a lot to be proud of already, my business simply didn’t have the appearance on the outside that reflected how professional and capable I was in real life (on the inside)! Choosing me wasn’t a “no brainer”…yet!

And frankly, this was really maddening! Because time and time again I’d get the same basic reply, “We really enjoyed talking to you and we’re sure you’d do a wonderful job, but we went with another florist.”

So I decided I had to take action to figure out how to level-up to become the CLEAR choice from now on.

The action I took was to invest in a higher-level marketing and branding course (it was about $3,000 at the time, which was 20x more than I’d ever invested before!) and I committed to following the program and completing the course assignments.

It took me about 6 weeks of training (oh, and I had a tiny little newborn baby to contend with as well!), but I slowly started to put the pieces of my own marketing and branding puzzle together and you know what?….I started to feel a little differently about my business.

Now I won’t lie and tell you that I saw an immediate turnaround in my booking rate or my brand position–building a better brand doesn’t happen overnight!

BUT what I did begin to understand right away was how much OPPORTUNITY I had to actually reach those “better clients” (my ideal clients) with some strategic messaging and a more functional website!

And that opportunity began to give me a lot of useful information (as well as a little bit of optimism) that I had the power to turn this thing around!

So I continued the work and continued to get OBSESSED with my ideal clients and to find out who they really were and what they really needed to hear from me to get to a YES!

Now, when clients inquire with me, they are interested in working with ME, not just any florist.

Now, when clients go to my website they tell me how much they LOVE it.

Now, when I send a proposal, they book me quickly, instead of shopping around.

Now, when clients DON’T book with me, I am not worried that it’s because I didn’t put my best foot forward!

And now, that “other florist” still has a good brand position, but clients choose ME OVER THEM lots of times!

And after years and years of doing this work to attract the right clients and build an integrity brand, it’s a genuine passion of mine to help florists do the same thing by tapping into your own unique branding potential!

The floral designers and flower farmers who’ve already enrolled in my program, The Art of Good Business, know that you have to leverage your own inner potential so you can make a great first impression that looks as awesome on the outside as you KNOW you are on the inside!

You can CLICK HERE for all the details on this January Training and Enroll today if it’s a good fit for you!

If any of my business journey sounds relatable and you want to unlock your earning potential by attracting more clients who can afford to pay you to create work that also lights you up and fills your creative bucket, I would be delighted to have you join me in January for The Art of Good Business.

You can get started for only $129!

More income, more creativity, more freedom…it all starts to fall into place more easily with a better brand position!

I won’t just throw a bunch of strategies at you and teach you how to build a business exactly like my own. This course will walk you step-by-step towards creating your own, unique, special, floral business.

I don’t teach florists how to “be like me” in order to succeed. The goal of this course is to get to the heart of what makes your business special. My hope is that by signing up for this course, you can position yourself better in your local market, that you can find the courage to try new things in your business, and that you can be happier in business and in life.

In short in this 4 Week Course we’re going to:

*Get to the heart of who your ideal clients are so you can create a magnetic marketing message that attracts more of the best customers to you

*Improve your website so it converts to more sales with qualified customers

*Lead clients through your sales process to help them get to a YES more quickly

*Establish your own unique brand strategy that stands out above the competition without posting on social media every day

I see each of my students as individuals with their own hopes, dreams, and talents, so I put my personal time into teaching this course…

* I answer all questions personally and promptly.

* I teach the course live every January so you can continue to get support year after year.

* If you have questions after the live sessions, you can still reach out–you’re not alone.

I want you to know that you will get special attention when you enroll in this course, and you will be supported in building a business that is perfect for you.

I am happy to answer questions about my program prior to enrolling if you have them! Registration Closes Jan. 4th.

If you don’t want to be in the same place you were last year, I would love to help you level-up in 2024.

-Alison

By Alison Ellis

August Sale

August Sale Is On Now!

If you’re in charge of sales and marketing in your floral business, you can get my BEST tips for attracting great customers and talking about your brand with confidence inside 2 of my MOST popular courses on sale now! (Sale Ends August 31st!) Here’s what you get: [Read more…]

By Alison Ellis

11 Tips To Update Your About Page

Do you know that your About Us Page is one of the MOST viewed pages on your website?

An interesting About Page works like a magnet to attract great clients to your business. But if your website is “borderline boring”, you could actually be repelling clients.

I know it’s not always easy to talk about yourself with confidence, but your About Page MUST tell a compelling story that establishes trust and makes it clear that you are the BEST choice! [Read more…]

By Alison Ellis

What Can Florists Do To Level Up Your Marketing Strategy?

I know so many florists out there are trying to go it alone when they try and build their businesses, AND 97% of florists are working without an actual marketing strategy! But how are you supposed to stand out above the competition and find great clients if you don’t have a plan to attract them to your business? If you’d like to work with me in 2022 on your branding and marketing strategy as well as systems to help close sales more quickly, my program, The Art of Good Business, is a high-quality, comprehensive course with live group coaching to support you in January and enrollment is open NOW-Dec. 16th at 5pm PST/8pm EST.

Click Here To Learn More

I went live on Instagram on Monday to share a little bit about WHY marketing and branding is such an important aspect of your business to master. Click below to watch!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Alison Ellis (@realflowerbusiness)

Enroll Today!

Florists recommend this course…

“I recommend The Art of Good Business to anyone who has been trying to go it alone. I tried to figure out my business path on my own and found a patchwork of information. The Art of Good Business puts a plan out there to follow step by step. Also, because it is cohesive it puts all the information you need into one clear class. I have taken my binder with me everywhere I go to read and re-read the course. I find new depth in the material each time. It is wonderful that this course continues to grow with your business.

The Art of Good Business is a guide book for my future.“

-Rebecca Raymond

Please feel free to reach out with questions for me. We can even schedule a free 20-minute call if you’re not 100% sure this program is right for you!

Doors close & the price is going up on Dec 16 @ 8pm EST!

Enroll Today!

By Alison Ellis

What Is Sales Copy?

If you’re like me, you fell in love with floral design and decided to turn your passion for flowers into a small business. And if you’re also like me, you didn’t know much about how to market your flower business so you can book clients consistently and stand out against your competition.

I can tell you after 20 years of running my small business, the most effective way to book the best clients year after year is to follow an intentional marketing and branding strategy that speaks to the hearts of your ideal customers so that they KNOW you’re the best choice for them!

97% of the Florists I Surveyed Said They Do NOT Have A Marketing Plan…

I’ve spent the last 12 years learning how to get as good at branding my business as I am at floral design. In fact, I just taught 3 days of marketing and branding strategies to the students in my Marketing Minicourse and it was so much fun that I decided I’m going to do it again in December, but these sessions are free! Click here to join me in the free training!

A florist asked: What is sales copy? Just in case you want to know the answer, too, you can click below for a quick video I shared over on Instagram.

Click Here to Join the free training

Without a doubt, learning how to attract the best customers to your business is one of the most important (and challenging) skills for any business owner to master, however, if you’re working without an intentional marketing strategy, you may find yourself “posting on social media often”, but without any idea of what you actually need to say to attract the best clients!

Instead of throwing out random content, it’s time to add intention to your marketing efforts so that you actually get the results you want–great clients, increased sales, consistent bookings, more joy and freedom in your work.

Whether you decide to join me in the free training or you choose to “go it alone” from here, the most important step is to add intention to your marketing plan so you can book great clients more consistently and create your own version of success.

I hope you’ll finish the year strong so you can have a great start to 2022!

xo. -Alison

P.S. This 3-Day Training won’t be like some of the free webinars you may have attended where it’s 90% sales pitch and tiny bits of info scatter here and there. We are going to do some work–in fact, I’m making a workbook to go along with it to help keep you moving forward. And if at the end of the training, you want to work further with me, there’ll be an opportunity to do that, too.

Every January I teach a group of highly motivated floralpreneurs how to build their own premium brand in my group coaching program, The Art of Good Business. Enrollment is officially opening Dec. 13-16th and I’ll have more details to share in the upcoming weeks if you’re interested.