Real Flower Business

Education and Business Training for Floral Designers.

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How Will Coronavirus Impact Your Wedding Business?

How will Coronavirus impact your small business?

It’s impossible to say for sure, but one thing’s for certain: your business will be affected.

The truth is that everyone and every business will feel the economic and social impacts of this pandemic so the question you may have at this point is: how much will it actually hurt your business?

Instead of panic or worry, focus on how you can pivot.

I won’t pretend to have all the answers, but I want to encourage you to consider how you can react with compassion in a time of uncertainty.

Watch my quick IGTV chat below for some thoughts on how we should proceed!

The bottom line: This is not just about your bottom line.

I know this will be really hard on some small businesses, which is why I want to encourage you to consider how you can actually step up to help your community.

  • Can your flower delivery van bring meals to kids who are out of school or seniors who are staying at home?
  • Can you make a monetary donation to your local Foodbank or Meals On Wheels to help those who are most vulnerable right now?
  • Helping others may be of comfort to you, your staff and your family.

On a personal note…

I had my first cancellation due to COVID-19 when my speaking engagement at Koehler & Dramm’s Spring Wedding Show was postponed (but we shall reschedule for September and I will see you there!) and I expect that I may hear some concern from clients over the next few weeks as the United States starts to begin more testing (hopefully), which will reveal a bit more about the scope of the situation.

How this will impact each business and individual is unknown.

I know this isn’t easy, but you are not alone.

Stay well, floralpreneurs.

And be kind to others during this time of uncertainty and various levels of fear….(whether that be the fear of people you feel are “over reacting” or the fear that explains why others are “under reacting” or calling it media hype)…because the idea of a pandemic is hard to fathom.

Mind your health.
Think about your neighbors’ health.
Embrace “social distancing” (aka the word(s) of the year for 2020).

Buckle up for the unknowns that will come with this pandemic.

The Facts…

You may not get sick!
In fact, I truly hope you don’t!…
Yes, wash your hands.
No, this isn’t a “normal flu”.

Fact: Epidemiologists suggest that this is 10x more deadly than a “normal flu”.
So even though 80% of people are expected to make a full recovery from the virus at this point, it’s not comparable to a normal flu (so if you’re under that assumption or you’ve repeated this comparison, you can now change your frame of reference to consider this fact).

Fact: Epidemiologists say that you can transmit the virus EVEN IF YOU HAVE NO SYMPTOMS.
This is one of the reasons COVID-19 has the potential to get “out of control”–you can’t just avoid the sick people because they’re contagious before they’re sick.

Fact: Epidemiologists warn that it’s spread through the air so even though you should wash your hands (duh) that alone will not slow the spread or protect you.

This is why it’s suggested that we limit unnecessary travel and large gatherings….like weddings.
This is why events may be canceled (either BY you or ON you).
This is why we must acknowledge that we are in unfamiliar territory.

Different areas will be and are currently being affected in many different ways. I want to remain hopeful that our individual actions and our efforts as a community will end this uncertainty quickly, but it really is up to US….and I know this isn’t easy.

Again, you are not alone.

With love from me to you,

Alison

Additional resources with Tips for Wedding Experts from Wedding Experts:

via Think Splendid:

https://www.thinksplendid.com/blog/coronavirus-wedding-business

https://www.thinksplendid.com/blog/weddings-coronavirus

via Marie Forleo:

https://www.marieforleo.com/2020/03/coronavirus-support

via The Business Of Being Creative:

https://www.thebusinessofbeingcreative.com/we-are-in-it-now

via The Vendry:

https://www.thevendry.co/memo/coronavirus-a-guide-for-the-event-industry

Learn more about Alison HERE.

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10 Things I Did To Grow My Floral Business

flower business, learn to be a florist, floral design, florist education, flower school

It’s a snowy January and I’ve officially booked up my calendar for my 2019 wedding season. It feels kinda rock ‘n roll to realize I’m entering my 18th season in business! I’ve worked really hard over the years to build up my floral design business and it’s all been completely worth it.

Part of why my hard work has paid off is due to the fact that I’ve been really focused on what I want from my business and how I want my business to fit into my life. (Having a successful business isn’t just about making money or “being busy”; it’s about creating happiness and fulfillment, too.)

I’ve done a lot of things to grow my business, but I thought it would be helpful to narrow down the top 10 things that had the biggest impact on my business success and my overall happiness factor, too. [Read more…]

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Why you don’t want to book every customer

When you’re the boss in your business, you don’t want to book every customer! You only want to book the right customers.

When I was first starting out in my business, I thought the goal was to book every client….no matter what!

  • Lower the price on a few things to meet the budget?… Sure.
  • Meet at a super inconvenient time for me?… You bet!
  • Schedule a second call to go over “all the things” before you decide to work with me? Um, OK!

Whatever reassurance a customer needed to be persuaded that I was the right florist for the job, that’s what I’d do!

But over time, with experience and concerted efforts to understand who my ideal customers actually are, I’ve come to realize that I don’t want to book every customer!….not by a long shot.

Who’s “the right customer”?…

Well, it’s someone who doesn’t need to be convinced that I’m the right choice because she can already feel that I’m the right choice from the preliminary experience she had with my company and my brand (via my website and e-mail communication).

By tapping into who my clients really are and what they really care about, I’m able to reach them on a deeper level and develop a level of trust before we even speak and that means that “the right clients” get to “yes” more easily.

I’ve learned to let go of the clients who aren’t an easy fit. I only want to book the right customers for me.

I’ve streamlined my proposal process so that I’m not “giving away too many details”, yet I still provide enough detail that a client can trust that we’re on the same page…

And I clearly communicate the steps in our booking process, so neither one of us invests too much time before we’ve decided we’re a good match.

I share exactly how I’ve perfected this process over the past 16 years in my templates for florists!

My downloadable pdfs, How To Write Proposals That Sell  and Wedding Workflow show you how to spend less time before booking a client and how to lay out the steps for clients from the initial inquiry to post-wedding day follow-up! Combine them with my E-Mail Templates and Wedding Contract, you’ll have my entire communication package, plus you’ll save $30 off when you buy all 5 templates here.

real flower business, courses for florists, business coaching for florists

“Alison’s email templates are an absolute life saver!

The email templates have taken off so much stress…just copy + paste, tweak a bit to customize with your own personality, and hit send. Client responses to the email templates I’ve used have been positive…the message is clear, and the tone is professional + kind. Absolutely worth the price in time saved!!” -Bethany

It takes a lot of work to learn how to speak directly to the heart of your ideal clients.

It may not happen over night, but with time and practice, the booking process starts to take shape and you’ll be able to prequalify clients before investing too much time.

You can find all my downloadable pdfs here!

Keep doing beautiful work!

With love from me to you,

Alison

P.S. If you have questions for me, don’t hesitate to drop me a line right here: floralartvt@gmail.com 

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Reaching Your Potential As A Florist

Can you remember who you were, before the world told you who you should be?

-Danielle LaPorte (from The Fire Starter Sessions)

In The Fire Starter Sessions, Danielle LaPorte writes, “Invest in your second nature.” She goes on to talk about “the acorn theory”; the idea that we’re all “born with a soul that shapes our destiny–that our full potential already lives within us.”

The theory was first published by James Hillman. He explains it like this:

The acorn theory expresses that unique something that we carry into the world, that is particular to us, which is connected to our “daimon”.

(The Greek word, daimon, can be considered your “inner voice”. The Roman word was genius, and the Christian word is guardian angel.)

To quote Hillman, “They are all a little bit different, yet each expresses something that you are, that you have, that is not the same as the personality you think you are.”

In other words, we must make our way through the layers of soil and compost and debris until the conditions are right and we’re ready to grow to our true potential.

Because you were born an acorn…with everything it takes to become a huge oak right inside you. And it’s been there all along.

It does take time to perfect your processes and meet (or exceed) your goals and make enough money to quit your “other job“….and the time it takes to streamline or perfect…and practice can feel pretty dark some days.

We’re going to spend some time in the dark before we can burst into the light!

So…are you reaching your full potential or are you ready for a break through?

Pro Tip: If you want to break through, you have to make sure that your brand is seen in it’s best light from the first point of contact!

And there’s a good chance that you rely on your website to make your brand’s first impression!

It’s easy to fall into a trap of thinking, “I have a website. I mean, it exists!…I updated it a year or two ago…so I’m good, right?…”

But just like anyone striving to reach their potential, your website has to break through many layers to grow from an acorn to an oak. (It’s a process!)

If you’re ready to make a stronger first impression and represent your brand in its best light, I can help you do that work in my Website Bootcamp! I share easy and effective shortcuts to help you increase engagement and attract awesome clients so that you can keep striving to reach your potential year after year! 

Every year is a good year to learn and grow (and improve your website).

CLICK HERE to learn more about how you can create your own website break through in 3 days or less!

realflowerbusiness.com Website Bootcamp

BOOTCAMP SIGN UP!

 

Thanks for taking the time to read my blog today.

Keep doing beautiful work!

With love from me to you,

Alison

P.S. This post is for the late bloomers–the floralpreneurs who’ve lived a first life before pursuing a floral dream or falling into flowers as a side-hustle…

And it’s for the determined–the florists who try and try and then, try again, because there are always more layers to break through in this work to get to the light….

The florists who’ve worked slinging stems in someone else’s flower shop for a decade or two, and are finally branching out on their own….

The newly retired, newly single, new moms, new grandmas, new floristry students, basement Betty’s….

This one is for you….wherever you are on your floral journey….

I’m honored to be on this journey with you.

how to start a floral design business, how to become a florist, floristry

 

Whether you’re a newly aspiring floral designer or a seasoned pro, I hope you’ll take advantage of some of my free resources, as well as my pdfs and online courses for florists.

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