Key Takeaways
- Your floral business is in a highly competitive industry.
- Get an edge on the competition through strong online marketing.
- Take advantage of social media, eCommerce and online campaign tracking to plant the seeds of success.
The demand for flowers is ever growing. Over 60 percent of Americans say flowers are a special gift unlike any other. In addition, nearly a third of all U.S. households make multiple purchases of fresh flowers each year and annual floral sales equate to over $10 billion. In a fast-paced marketplace where you compete with supermarkets and mass merchandisers, how can you gain an edge locally and also expand regionally and even nationally?
Here are some online marketing ideas you can use to plant and nurture the seeds of success for your floral business, not only during your busiest times like Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day but also throughout the year.
Planting the Seeds of Online Marketing Success
Enhancing your online presence will help you reach more customers and grow your brand. Take a closer look at these easy and affordable strategies.
Connect with existing customers.
Start by getting to know the customers who shop in your store. Ask for their email address when they make a purchase and gather their milestone data such as birthday and anniversary dates, then send them email or text reminders leading up to the occasion. With nearly a third of men and women forgetting their anniversary date and other important events, it’s a great opportunity to help them (literally) save the day while increasing revenue.
Follow up each customer purchase with a thank you email and include a discount offer to keep them coming back. Use your customer email address list to send out monthly updates about your business. Email campaigns keep customers engaged, build loyalty and help you to form stronger relationships with your customers.
Build Your Brand – and Website
Your website is the hub of your brand. It allows your customers to see your flowers and gifts 24 hours a day without visiting your store. It also gives you instant credibility and puts you in the same marketplace as the largest florists and floral networks. Over 90 percent of consumers search online before making a purchase and your website is how they will discover you.
Establishing an online presence builds your brand image and is your virtual storefront. Your website can include a floral blog that positions you as an industry expert. It should include search engine optimization (SEO) content that helps your business rank higher in online directories where customers are searching for your business. It’s a great way to keep customers informed and attract more visitors to your website.
Creating a website is now easier and more affordable than ever. Web.com now offers three efficient and affordable website package solutions to fit your specific needs. All solutions come with a drag-and-drop website builder, security features to protect your business and professional domain-based email services, all backed by the award-winning Web.com support team.
eCommerce Means You Are Always Open for Business
Adding online sales (eCommerce) opportunities to your website allows customers to make purchases even while you sleep. This greatly increases your sales potential and allows you to expand your local, national and international customer base. With over half of all U.S. flower sales taking place online, eCommerce puts your business in this lucrative and growing market.
Protecting your customer’s private information is an important aspect of your website’s eCommerce channel. Including an SSL certificate and seal adds a high level of security to every purchase and gives credibility to your website. Buyers will know and trust the padlock icon on your web page that ensures their personal data is safe. Online search engines also notice SSL certificates and help your business to be ranked higher in online search directories.
Stay active on social media and grow your following.
Social media is a great way to reach your customers and allows you to share photos of your beautiful flower arrangements, remind them of upcoming holidays and keep them informed with your latest updates. With every post, be sure to include a link to your website, information about your fresh flowers and discount codes and specials.
This will help you build stronger relationships with existing and potential customers and attract more visitors to your website and store. You can also speak directly to your followers with personalized messages on special occasions and throughout the year. Focus on growing your online following and you’ll notice an increase in your online revenue as well.
Track the success of your online campaigns.
One of the best things about online marketing is that the results are trackable and measurable in real time with free and easy-to-use online tools like Google Analytics. Up-to-the-minute data allows you to monitor your website visitors, see what website pages they are focused on, determine how long they are spending with your web content and more.
Online analytics help you understand what types of online marketing tactics work best for your business, adapt your online strategy as necessary and make the most of your small business marketing budget.
Grow Your Business with Online Marketing
Online marketing makes it easy for customers to find your business and encourages online and in-store purchases. Use these tips to grow your floral business to new levels of success.
Web.com is always ready to help enhance your online presence and create a rosy outlook for your business.
Products mentioned in this blog post include:
eCommerce Website Builder for Small Business
Website Security for Small Business Safety
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