Real Flower Business

Education and Business Training for Floral Designers.

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5 Ways To Grow Your Floral Business

What are you doing to move your business forward right now?

A designer asked about any upcoming business trainings I’m offering. so to help make it easier for you to plan ahead and join me, here’s a list of 5 Ways To Grow Your Business With Me!

I have more than one LIVE business training for florists that you can take advantage of before the end of the year!

And as always, if you have any questions, please reach out anytime.

5 Ways To Grow Your Floral Business

#1. Improve your customer management and workflow to book weddings in less time with less effort.

Join me live on November 12th at 12pm Eastern/9am Pacific for 5 Steps To Book Weddings More Quickly!

It’s just $37 and you can get all the details here and I’ll see you LIVE on Wednesday, November 12th.

A replay will be available so you can watch anytime.

Sign Up Here!

#2. Create an intentional marketing and branding strategy beyond posting on Instagram!

Join me for the Marketing Workshop for Florists! This 3-day Live Virtual Training will take place December 8-10th at 12pm Eastern.

Learn how to market your business to build your brand and attract better clients without posting on social media every day.

Doors open soon….get on the waitlist here to stay in the loop!

Get on Waitlist

#3. Map out your business plan in 2 hours with this Business Plan Jumpstart and Next Level Business Planning Session!

Your business plan serves as a compass when you’re trying to find your way in your business and it’s the first place to start if you’re feeling lost, overwhelmed, or like it’s time to level-up and make a change in your current trajectory.

This workbook + video training is available on demand and you can get it right now when you sign up here for $27!

Get the Jumpstart

#4. Get answers to your specific business questions with Monthly Group Coaching Calls with Alison.

You can join me for Monthly Q&A Calls as a member of my Patreon Community for $29/month.

There is no longterm commitment–you can try it for one month and cancel anytime.

In addition to our Monthly Q&As, you’ll find a vault of lessons on business strategies, design tips and customer management strategies inside the membership.

Join on Patreon

#5. Private Coaching Calls.

If you prefer one-on-one attention for your specific situation, we can book a call to talk about your business goals or struggles.

Whether you need a mentor, a floral business coach or a sounding board, Coaching Sessions are designed to facilitate a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires you to maximize your potential (both professional and personal) and develop a plan to reach your goals.

Learn more about coaching here.

Request A Coaching Call

If you have any questions for me, reach out via email at info@realflowerbusiness.com

I’m here to provide support and point you in the right direction as you continue to grow your floral design business.

Keep doing beautiful work!

I hope to see you in one of the upcoming trainings.

xo. -Alison Ellis

 

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4 Words for Difficult Customers

How do you deal with difficult customers?

A florist asked the other day, “How do you “break up” with a customer?” In other words, what should you say when you can tell that a client isn’t going to be a good fit?

In this case, the customer did not sign a contract or send a deposit yet, so it’s really more like parting ways than breaking up.

And while it’s not always easy to do, telling a client that you won’t be working with them doesn’t have to be complicated.

The fact is there are 4 little words you can use to handle a difficult customer: “I’m no longer available.”

That’s it!

  • No need to say you’ve booked another event if that’s untrue!
  • Don’t over explain your reason for deciding  they’re “not a good fit”.
  • And you certainly shouldn’t pretend that you “appreciate their interest in working with you” if you’re about to give them the boot!

“I’m/we’re no longer available” is all you need, followed by a referral to another florist if possible.

You don’t want to say the wrong thing and insult a customer while trying to let them down easy.

But do you know what might be worse? Sticking with a customer who isn’t a good fit because you simply didn’t know how to bow out gracefully!

The reason I share this is because difficult customer conversations need to happen from time to time, but it shouldn’t be a mystery to you or your employees on how to deal with them swiftly and professionally.

And I’ve been making these tough conversations easier for the past decade with Email Templates for Florists.

Get my Emails HERE!

These templates save you time! And florists often tell me they use my e-mail templates the same day they buy them! Copy, paste, rinse, repeat! (You can see a list of the topics included in the templates below!).

You can also upgrade to add all of my Wedding Templates so you have everything you need at your fingertips to take the lead on client communication.

 

Get templates HERE

 

Here’s what you get in 10 Difficult Conversations:

How to…

  1. Tell someone you can no longer “hold their date”.
  2. Present a proposal that’s over budget.
  3. Ask someone why they did NOT book with you.
  4. Tell someone you’re not a good fit for their event.
  5. Reply to a complaint.
  6. Bill for damaged or missing rental items after an event.
  7. Explain you won’t order flowers until full payment is received.
  8. Tell someone that their most recent changes/additions will result in a price increase.
  9. Tell someone you will not update their proposal (again) or meet (again) without a deposit.
  10. Respond when a wedding is cancelled.

*Plus a bonus template: How to Ask For A Testimonial.

And here’s what’s included in 12 Frequent Conversations:

How to…

  1. Say, Hello in an introduction e-mail.
  2. Present a minimum.
  3. Present a proposal, contract and invoice.
  4. Tell someone you’re unavailable for their date.
  5. Tell someone you will not lower your price.
  6. Follow up if you don’t hear back from a prospect.
  7. Tell someone you cannot hold their date without deposit.
  8. Confirm receipt of contract & deposit.
  9. Confirm receipt of contract, but missing deposit.
  10. Confirm receipt of deposit, but missing contract.
  11. Request final changes and final payment.
  12. Confirm receipt of final payment before event.

*Plus I’ve added a bonus with 5 e-mail etiquette tips.

You can check out the EXACT way I address the most common and sometimes difficult customer conversations and take advantage of templates that are proven to work.

Just $58 HERE

On the other hand, you can ask ChatGPT (powered by Artificial Intelligence) to help you out with your customer service & communication, but I wouldn’t suggest it! Difficult conversations deserve a human touch. (And based on my real life experience, AI always says a little bit too much and that opens the door to customer pushback! And nobody’s looking for that.)

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Growing Your Business

Are you growing or maintaining your business?

To kick off the new year, I was live on YouTube to share some thoughts on growing your business and maintaining what you’ve built! You can watch it now!

This is the first topic for the year because not every year is a growing year in your business and it’s important to have a plan on what to do when growth isn’t the goal so you can maintain what you’ve built.

If you need some help reigniting your brand this month, I’m teaching every Tuesday in January, starting Jan. 7th, when you join me inside The Art of Good Business, 4-week training. (You can find details here & enroll today!)

Learn More & Enroll Here!

And if you’re already enrolled in The Art of Good Business, I can’t wait to get started next week!

Welcome to a new year, floralpreneur®. Keep doing beautiful work!

xo. -Alison Ellis

You May Also Be Interested In:

CEO Mindset In Your Business

Learn More About Alison

 

 

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CEO Mindset In Your Floral Business

How important is it to have a CEO mindset in your floral business?

Today, I have a few tips on how getting into a CEO mindset will help you to EASE into the new year–without adding anything to your to-do list!

Because when you run a business and you do “all the things”, it can be hard to zoom out to see the big picture and set next-level goals.

It takes intentional strategy and practice to get yourself into a CEO mindset that can chart your course and steer the ship (instead of just rowing the boat)!

Whether you work alone (like me!) or you lead a team, the most important thing is that you know where you want to go and what you need to let go of! Take a few moments to watch.

Things to consider now…

Do you work ON your business as much as you work IN your business?

Are your customer service systems seamless and effective?

Is your brand mission and message clear?

What are you paying attention to?

Are you spending your time wisely?

What is your next best step to get closer to your own unique goals?

How are you investing in your future growth?…

If you know it’s time to enter your CEO era, consider joining me in January for my 4-Week Training with Live Support, The Art of Good Business!

Learn More & Enroll Here!

And if you missed the Marketing Workshop for Florists, you can catch the limited time replay for just $37!

Get The Replay Now!

I’m rooting for you and your business as you move through this season and into the next! If I can be of any help to you in reaching your goals, please get in touch!

You can also find a full list of courses for florists HERE!

Keep doing beautiful work!

xo. -Alison Ellis

 

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Luxury Weddings And Marketing Tips

Does your social media attract your ideal customers or are you repelling great clients accidentally?

Click to watch for some practical advice to help you course correct if your marketing has gotten a little off track!

FYI The Marketing Workshop for Florists starts on Monday, Dec. 4th! If you haven’t registered yet, Now’s the time to sign up so you can start attracting more of the BEST clients to your business.

>> Click Here for all the details!

As I mentioned in my live chat above, here are a few things to think about when marketing to “luxury” event!

Have you noticed that there are a lot of people who throw around the word “luxury” when it comes to weddings and events? Well, it turns out that “luxury” events may not be what you think.

To borrow a quote from one of my favorite movies of all time, The Princess Bride, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

That’s because every single wedding you design is a luxury!

 

Just think about it: You can get married without a single stem of flowers, which means when clients choose to hire you as their florists it IS a luxury. (Yup, you’re already in a luxury market!)

It’s easy to lose sight of this in the social media world where “luxury” seems to be described as $100,000 weddings and above.

 

But as a florist who’s done her fair share of $100K weddings, they aren’t necessarily “luxury” in the way that social media wants you to believe!

Because that $100K budget actually gets spent quickly!

 

And while there may be $10,000 (or even $15,000) for flowers, that might “just barely cover” what they’re asking for–it’s not “ample” or “over the top”, it’s adequate (depending on the guest count!) and you can make it a beautiful event!…

However, you’re probably NOT creating that grand entrance to the reception tent, lining the entire aisle with flowers, or hanging a floral installation over the dance floor…which is what we tend to think of when the word “luxury” is invoked.

So when we’re really talking about “luxury events” you’re working with MUCH BIGGER BUDGETS–maybe even 3x higher, for example.

 

What does it take to do a $30,000-$45,000 floral installation? Well, in short, it’s soooooo much!

From a team of 8-10 floral designers you can trust (at $20-$50 per hour!), to multiple vehicles that need to be rented and loaded, to long design days (and nights!) to get the job done, to the VERY high expectations that your clients and their planner communicate to you every step of the way for 6-12 months!

(The stress level, in other words, is probably more than 3x!)

This is why it’s important to be careful what you wish for in your own “luxury goals”. 

➤ How do YOU define luxury as it pertains to your customers and your own brand identity?

➤ What sorts of events do you want to attract?

➤ Do you want to do full-service weddings and events that are manageable, yet profitable, and don’t require a huge team?

➤ Are flowers for the wedding party your specialty, so you’ll happily design boutonnieres, bouquets and corsages, but leave the rest of the event to the DIY client?

➤ Or do you prefer the higher-ticket, higher-stress events because you thrive in that CEO position overseeing a team?

 

So before buying into the idea that you should be striving for “luxury”, recognize that you’re already doing it! 

Define for yourself what your brand of luxury looks like so that you know EXACTLY what it means to your customers.

 

In short, when it comes to folks trying to convince you to break into a “luxury market”, don’t believe the hype.

Whether it’s personal flowers only or the biggest wedding of your career, the artistry you provide matters.

Keep doing beautiful work!

xo. -Alison

 

REMINDER: The Marketing Workshop for Florists starts on Monday, Dec. 4th!

If you haven’t already registered, Now’s the time to sign up so you can start attracting more of the BEST clients to your business. Click Here for all the details!

  • We’ll meet for 3 Days, Mon, Tues and Weds for about 45 minutes each day.
  • Recordings will be available if you can’t join me live!
  • VIP sessions will take place each day at 1:30pm Eastern to answer YOUR specific questions and provide additional support!

Questions for me? Get in touch. I’m here to support you along the way!

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