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Extra Features and Video Online FloristsReview.com R E A D O N L I N E 47 Extra Features and Video Online FloristsReview.com R E A D O N L I N E 47 Marketing is all about promoting your company. You sell flowers, but so does your competition. What's the difference between your business and your competitors'? Length of time in a community? Better value? Professional world-class service? e longest-lasting flowers? Outrageously beautiful and creative floral designs? Whatever it is, just make sure that whatever you promote is true—a real, provable point of differentiation. After all, every florist claims to provide great service, have fresh flowers and design beautiful arrangements. ese claims are so common, in fact, that they no longer resonate with many consumers. e main differentiating factor in all of this is, often, you and your management style. ROUGH E OKING GSS You sell beautiful things, and you must show the world the beauty you offer. One way to do that is to create traffic- stopping storefront displays. People do still walk around town to shop— and they don't always have their snoots buried in their smartphones. Give these people something to look at that will stop them in their tracks— and that showcases your most desirable and innovative products as well as the creative talents of you and your staff. Keep things fresh, colorful and interesting, so change your displays up a bit every few days. Yes, every few days. You want consumers to think that you constantly have something new to offer, and, as everyone knows, simply moving items around will cause people to notice items they may not have seen during their previous visits to your store. It's an interesting phenomenon. One of the biggest mistakes any florist can make is not developing marketing plans for the fall and winter holidays. e first thing to do is determine which holidays you want to focus on. anksgiving and Christmas are gimmes. But also consider the ethnic and religious diversity of your market area, which could present possibilities for Hanukkah or Kwanzaa. Another often overlooked marketing opportunity during December is engagements. Yes, according to WeddingWire, December is, surprisingly, the most popular month for couples to get engaged, with 19 percent of couples becoming betrothed during the month. at's more than double the number of proposals during any other month, with percentages ranging from 6 percent (September and October) to 9 percent ( July).

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