Tips for Prequalifying Clients

How do you prequalify clients?

It took me several years of building my floral design business before I felt like I finally started to hone in on my pre-qualification process.

**Not every customer can be my customer.**

OK, I’d heard that before, but I really, really wanted more customers! How was I supposed to ignore perfectly decent customers in pursuit of only the right ones? (This felt risky.)

Well, it wasn’t “easy” and it did take some practice, but I spent the new few years zeroing-in on the clients that I really wanted to work with and soon, I had a calendar that was 90% filled with “my ideal customers”.

(OK, I totally made up that number….maybe it was 88%?….maybe 95%….I didn’t do the math, but my customers rocked. I was psyched with almost every single client.)

It took me years, but now I understand that attracting the right customers to my business is not about mass appeal; it’s about niche appeal.

So what’s unique about you?

That’s what’s marketable about you/your brand.

If we want to attract “better gigs”, we must show our ideal customers who we are.

Click to watch: Prequalifying Clients, Live from Facebook.

Prequalifying is a form of customer service.

Save yourself time and save clients time, too, by identifying early-on that you’re just not the right fit.

Make prequalifying part of your workflow.

Successful business owners don’t waste time in unnecessary meetings.

CEO’s say No to things that don’t fit the vision.

Prequalify.

We must be in love with our brand if we want customers to love it, too.

I know so much about my potential clients, even the ones who don’t book me, because their inquiry forms tell me a lot of important details about who they are….beyond just “we’re planning a wedding”.

My pre-qualification process feels like customer service.

It’s worth taking the time to get to know my ideal clients so I can more easily attract them AND more easily identify the clients who won’t be “ideal” for my company.

Remember: Ideal customers don’t need convincing. They already dig you.

Thanks for reading & watching!

With love from me to you,

Alison

Click for more:

What I’m obsessed with in my business right now.

By Alison Ellis

My first podcast interview

I am happy to share my first podcast interview on From The Ground Up Floral.

When Gina invited me on, I was an immediate yes….I love talking to florists about business so this was a fun opportunity for me.

I hope you’ll take a few minutes to check it out! You can listen here: fromthegroundupfloral.media/podcast/2019/6/14/flower-math-with-alison-ellis

Here are some of the topics we talk about in our chat:

How I got started in the floral industry;
How do you make money as a home-based floral business?;
Industry standards on pricing;
Lessons from my best-worst boss;
A misconception I used to have about “ideal clients”;
The Art of Good Business (my online branding and biz building course);
Gina mentions that one of her favorite videos about the consequences of “adding one extra rose” (see below);
Should a newer designer charge less?;
Quoting on the spot;
Why grocery stores are losing out by not using Flower Math Fomulas!

You can find the podcast on iTunes and subscribe to future episodes as well! I hope you’ll make some time to listen.

Here’s the video mentioned in our interview:

Thanks to Gina for inviting me to your podcast!

Floralpreneurs sometimes ask me if I’ll ever do a podcast and while I’d never say never, you can currently find me on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram & Pinterest!

xo. -Alison

By Alison Ellis

What happens after you meet a bride?

What do you do after meeting a potential client?

A floralpreneur® submitted this question in my Facebook group:

Q: What is your workflow after meeting a bride? Do you give them an estimate or a detailed proposal?

She went onto say: “Right now after meeting with a bride we figure up what flowers we are using and recipes and build our proposals. I am always calling getting prices on flowers for whatever month it is unless it is something I already have an idea about. It is so time consuming! Are we going about this all wrong?”

Well, if it’s taking more time than you’re willing to commit before booking a client, then the answers is YES!

It’s essential to streamline your workflow and create processes that are:

easy to follow,
accommodating to potential clients,
and allow you to take complete control over the booking process, planning process and beyond.

Over the past 15 years I’ve developed my proposal template so that I’m spending no more than 2 hours on the pre-qualification, consultation and proposal writing process.

You can sign up for my FREE e-mail course “How To Book More Weddings More Quickly” HERE where I share some of my best tips to booking the right clients more quickly.

I do not create recipes before booking an event. If I’ve “never made something like this before” I will create some recipes to determine a stem count and possibly bounce ideas off of another floral designer, but I don’t create a recipe for every single bouquet and centerpiece before I get a commitment from the client.

Here’s why….

I’ve set some minimums on each piece which I can use as a jumping off point when I create a quote.

A professional florist should be able to determine the baseline price for a bouquet based on an inspiration photo and their own pricing experience.

Do your centerpieces start at $75? $95? $125?….what is your starting point? What’s your “average”? What’s your “premium” price?

When you’re unsure about pricing, you must do the math! Will you use 12 roses, 6 callas and 5 dahlias? Can you make it with 9 roses, 5 callas and 3 dahlias? What’s the price difference in each of these designs? What price will you quote to THIS client for THEIR desired look? What does it cost to achieve their ideal outcome?

It’s so important to “think like a flower shop”, as I always say, and think of flowers in retail dollars. Yes, it may take time to learn the “average wholesale cost of snapdragons in August”, but it’s not hard to remember that snapdragons are usually $3 retail or $2.50 or $4….what do you SELL it for? That’s the number to focus on.

Moral of the story….

Your time is valuable and so are your design ideas, which is why you have to create processes that allow you to provide potential clients with enough information that they can easily choose you, but not so much information that feel like you’re giving away too many ideas to a client who’s “shopping around” and may decide to just take your ideas somewhere else. (Speaking of which, have you seen my post on O.P.P? check it out here.)

Thanks for checking out my Real Flower Business “stuff”….keep doing beautiful work!

xo. -Alison

Additional resources:

Grab my FREE e-mail course “How To Book More Weddings More Quickly” here!
Get my 16 Steps To Client Management HERE in my Wedding Workflow!
Can Florists Write Proposals Without A Recipe? read it here!

By Alison Ellis

Contracts For Florists

I’ve been asked about florist contracts and my usual response has been, “I am not a lawyer. I don’t give advice on contracts.”

I’ve received quite a few questions on contracts over the past few months, which indicates that this is something floralpreneurs really need, so I decided to open up my wedding contract to you, and added some important notes, plus 10 additional clauses you might want to consider for your own contract….then, I threw in a bonus e-mail template, “How to tell someone you cannot modify your contract.”

Voila! Contracts For Florists is available NOW. And it’s On Sale for $79 ’til 11pm Monday, 7/17.

real flower business, florist contract, contracts for florists

Here’s what’s included:

Contracts For Florists includes 14 Terms & Conditions of my contract,

10 Additional clauses or phrases you may consider adding,

1 parting thought, “Not everyone can be your customer!”,

Plus a Bonus E-mail Template: Can You Modify Your Contract?

Here are 10 Points Not To Miss:

Acceptance clause. (Section 3 of my contract! This one is essential.)
Things I won’t agree to. (Can I get an A-mend?)
Minimums and reduction clauses. (What’s the bottom line?)
Exclusivity clause. (Only You.)
Disputes. (Who’ll litigate, mediate or arbitrate?)
Rights to use images & Make substitutions!
Force majeur. (‘cause every contract’s gotta have one.)
Rentals. (Security deposits and billing for damaged goods.)
Additional work. (May be billed.)
Payments & Termination. (Who can cancel?)

LEGAL DISCLAIMER: I AM NOT A LAWYER. I’M A FLORIST! (BUT YOU KNOW THAT!) The information in this course is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. The author is not liable for any losses or damages related to actions of failure to act related to the content in this course. If you need specific legal advice, consult with an attorney.

THIS COURSE INCLUDES THE EXACT LANGUAGE OF MY WEDDINGS/EVENTS CONTRACT, AS WELL ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS FOR TERMS & CONDITIONS YOU MAY WANT TO CONSIDER ADDING, HOWEVER, YOU SHOULD CONSULT AN ATTORNEY WHEN DRAFTING A CONTRACT.

Click HERE to buy Contracts For Florists. Retail Price $99. On Sale Now for just $79 (1-day-only-price!)

Click here to watch my video “If you’re eager to book weddings….First, consider this…”

By Alison Ellis

What does great customer service feel like?

The most important thing I’ve done for my floral design business is work towards perfecting a customer service experience that reflects the values of my brand and speaks directly to the heart of my ideal clients.

Want to find better clients?

Create a better customer experience.

What does great customer service feel like?

Do you remember the best customer service experience you ever had? A time when YOU were the customer and something stellar happened that made you feel great?

Maybe it was an unexpected refund you didn’t even have to ask for, or a hotel staff member who went above and beyond for you….maybe it was the super comfy leather chair in a waiting room that made your wait time a little more enjoyable…or the free refills…or the personal touch…a time when you experienced a better-than-average “result”.

How can you make you customers feel special?

1. Think of a real life customer service experience where you were wowed. [Even better, think of a brand that continually wows you with their service.]

2. Write down all the details….what did you expect to happen? How was this experience with this company or brand different/better?

3. Now consider how YOU can translate what was special about your experience into a customer experience for your ideal clients?

Tapping into what makes you one-of-a-kind propels your business.

Now…to expand on that…

Tapping into what your customers need is another meaningful way to speak to your ideal customers.

My downloadable pdf, Wedding Workflow, gives you a behind-the-scenes look at my 16 Steps to Client Management from the initial e-mail inquiry to a post-wedding followup.

Create a better customer service experience.

You can read the details on this downloadable course here including the table of contents with a list of all 16 steps!

It’s priced at just $19 and you can CLICK HERE TO GET IT.

DOES YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER READ YOUR BLOG?

I challenged floralpreneurs to blog every week in November…HOW’D YOU DO?

I hope you’ll consider taking this challenge and show your blog some love with 4 fresh posts!

If this is the first time you’re hearing of the challenge, can you blog 4 times over the next 4 weeks, then?…

WHY DO YOU NEED TO BLOG?

Your website is where you really want to talk to your ideal customers.

Your website is the only thing you own.

JOIN ME LIVE ON FACEBOOK!

I’ve been livestreaming on Facebook.

Real Flower Business is the name of the group and it’s a great group of floral pros.

Join us in the group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RealFlowersBusiness

Thanks to everyone who’s already joined me!

As always…

Keep doing beautiful work.”

With love from me to you,

Alison

Find a list of my course offerings HERE.

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.)

P.P.S. Are you still on the fence about Flower Math? Buy it today for 10% off HERE. (Get it before the end of the year and it’s a business expense for 2016.) Keep more of the money you’re already making in 2017!