Real Flower Business

Education and Business Training for Floral Designers.

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Starting A Wedding Business

I am so excited to share that I’m a guest on The Flower Podcast this week! Scott and I have talked a few times before (you can find all of my past episodes HERE!) and this week we’re talking to floral designers and farmer-florists who want to add weddings into their current business model. Click below to listen or head to wherever you get your podcasts to tune into Episode 204 today!

 

 

As a home-based floral designer who specializes in weddings, I have been booking wedding clients for over 20+ years and it’s been a long journey as I’ve worked to perfect my processes, which is why I share what I’ve learned with florists around the world inside my Courses, Coaching and Community for Florists!

Learn More About Alison Here!

 

Find Floralpreneur® Workshop Details Here

 

Find A Full List of Course Offerings Here

 

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Should Florists Use Artificial Intelligence In Marketing?

Everyone’s talking about using AI to automate, but what role should automation play in your floral design business?

It’s tempting to lean into automating your business–and I get it, it’s enticing to take the “thinking” out of your work and let someone else handle it!

But there’s truly no replacing the human-to-human interaction and connection that your brand can create with your customers!

(By the way, that’s why the intern that’s assigned to “handle your social media” may not be getting the results you’d hoped for!…because they don’t have the client-focus that’s required to really connect with your ideal customers.)

Click to watch this short take on using AI in your business.

The Moral Of The Story

People buy from people. And good brands aren’t built on auto-pilot.

It’s wise to streamline your business processes whenever possible–as long as you’re not missing the customer connection! There’s a risk of over-automating and losing the special touch (and trust!) your customers are looking for.

I follow templates to help lead clients through the sales process with my email replies and proposals (which you can find here!), but I still take the time to craft customized communication for each client so they get the best experience with my brand.

Because personalized service is part of what I promise. And a computer can’t deliver that for me!

Keep doing beautiful work and keep showing up for your customers as ONLY you can!

(Click Here For More: Should You Lose Your Auto-Reply?)

With love from me to you,

Alison Ellis

(Learn more about Alison Here)

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How Should Florists Set A Minimum

I’ve heard a lot of questions from florists about Setting Minimums (and raising minimums!) lately, which is why I was live today on Instagram to talk about How Florists Should Set A Minimum in their business. You can catch the replay from Instagram below!

Whether you already have a minimum or you’re just figuring out how to establish a minimum, this chat is for YOU!

Here’s what’s covered:

➤Why Florists Need A Minimum

➤How To Determine A Minimum For Your Business

➤How To Communicate A Minimum To Customers

 

Fact: Setting a Minimum isn’t a strategy to “attract customers”; it is meant to help weed people out! And adding a minimum to your website isn’t enough.

That’s why it’s important to understand WHAT your minimum is and HOW to present it to your clients.

I hope you’ll enjoy the replay AND I really hope you’ll sign up HERE for the Free Pricing Chat for Florists on Oct. 13th with 3 Numbers Florists Need To Know! 

If you have any questions for me, feel free to get in touch!

xo. -Alison

 

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Don’t forget to register HERE for the Pricing Chat on October 13th at noon EDT/9am PDT!

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Do Florists Have To Go To Floristry School?

If you want to be a florist, do you have to go to Floristry School? It’s a question I see a lot and I know there can be some strong opinions on the subject. Click to see my answer to the question and let me know what you think!

The truth is, there isn’t just 1 right way to become a florist!

There are so many things to learn that you can’t learn “everything you need to know in just one place”. Whether you go to floristry school, or take an accredited floral design certification program, or you teach yourself through trial and error, there will always be something more for you to learn.

For example, I’ve heard from floristry students in Australia and England who enrolled in my Flower Math course and say that they got a much more thorough and clear explanation from my online course than they did in school! Even longtime florists have told me that they understand the design aspect of their work, but they’ve been kept mostly in the dark on the business-stuff.

And still, some floral designers manage to build a “busy” floral design business, but they struggle with attracting higher paying clients or creating systems to close sales (without a dozen meetings that drain their time and energy).

Let’s face it, there’s so much more to know as a florist than “just flowers”!

The secret to success in the floral industry is to keep learning and growing. Just going to floristry school isn’t enough.

And just learning from YouTube videos isn’t enough.

And letting 20 years pass between your last in-person learning experience isn’t enough either.

Never stop learning in your business and your life–and keep doing beautiful work!

With love from me to you,

Alison

Ready to learn proven strategies to streamline your workflow and create more freedom in your floral business?

See  A Full Course List

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Spring Pricing Chat for Florists

Spring is approaching–even here in Vermont where it’s still cold and snowy, I can see and hear the signs of spring–and for the 3rd spring in a row I’m inviting florists to join me for a free Pricing & Profitability Chat for Florists on Monday, March 21st, 2022 at 12pm EDT/9am PDT.

Click Here to Join The Pricing Chat

In this free live chat I’ll share:

  • 3 Numbers Florists Need To Know
  • 3 Easy Steps to calculate your profit margin
  • Why tracking your profit margins are SO important
  • The importance of setting a profit goal, NOT a spending goal
  • AND I’ll address your questions LIVE!

Think of it as a quick 1-hour spring business check-in. I’ll even have a special offer for those who attend live!

I’ll also be kicking off my Spring Flower Math Sale on March 21-23rd and I’ll have all the details for you on that soon! (Sign up for the pricing chat to be the first to know when the sale is live.)

In the meantime, I’m talking “all things pricing” over in my Instagram highlights HERE and you can watch a few short pricing tips below!

Sign Up For The Pricing Chat

 

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Sign Up For The Pricing Chat

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