Over the next three weeks we’re breaking down three of the top marketing trends and predictions for 2018 and offering practical ways event florists can apply them.
2018 is here! You can literally unlock your phone with your face now (crazy...we know). These advances in tech are going to make a lot of changes necessary...specifically this blog, changes in florist marketing trends. The floral industry thrives in the midst of all this tech because designers creating authentic, beautiful designs and deliver an experience that leaves clients raving. So how does the word get out about your incredible designs? Instagram of course!
Focus on Micro-Influencers
What's better than a formal florist review that's raving about your work? These days, it's an Instagram post by a well-followed client that's showcasing the quality of your work and how easy you are to work with. Many large companies that invest into influencer marketing will pay a person with 500,000 followers upwards of $10,000 to post about their product. However, unless you're doing a celebrity wedding, your clients likely don't have nearly that many followers on social media and, because engagement periods tend to be under a year--and some clients like to book as last minute as possible--there's a rather short period of time that a client has to really help get your name out there. So what do you do?
We've worked with many florists who offer added value to clients who have a significant number of Instagram followers with a high engagement rate. For example, you may have a client with 10,000 Instagram followers and regularly gets several thousand likes on their posts. By doing a bit of on the client in advance of the initial consultation, you can know if they're in your target audience (and also reaching people in your target audience) and decide to add value to their proposal by offering them an upgrade on their rentals (no extra cost to you!) in exchange for 2 posts before and 3 posts after the wedding. The key here is that you do your research on the client beforehand. While it's great to have clients who organically share your work, you want to be proactive in determining which clients you use as micro-influencers. NOTE: If a potential client comes to you offering to be a micro-influencer, be very careful because they may just be looking for a quick discount and may not bring much value to your business.
You want any posts that they do to be natural and truly an honest experience. You can almost make it a "wedding reveal" that they have their florist. You should ask your micro-influencers to vary their posts between traditional posts and stories but the posts should 1) mention how great you are to work with (and, if you're a Curate florist, how easy the proposal process was), 2) express what they love about your style, 3) showcase your work or your process, and 4) tag your floral company's Instagram account (this is a big one; if they showcase your work but don't give a way for people to connect with you, their posts have very limited value). If you are going to ask a client to intentionally promote your work, be sure to mention the ramifications in your florist contract if they fail to follow through on their part. Typically you'll want this to be a simple clause that still gives them an incredible event.
As with all florist marketing efforts, micro-influencer marketing can take a bit of trial and error before you really get it right and, as with many things in the floral industry, there isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Be sure to set some very defined goals; know the story you want to tell (i.e. if you're a florist who specializes in luxurious events or if you have a more earthy style), who your audience is, and what results you want from your influencers (give a quantity of the number of referrals you're hoping for from your investment). Then use real metrics to track the performance of your influencer(s) and adjust both your qualifications for finding your next influencer and strategy for the type of content you'll want them to share.
All in all, a shift towards using micro-influencers to market your florist business can turn very profitable. If you're already using micro-influencers to market your floral company, we'd love to hear from you in the comments below! And don't forget to keep an eye out for next week's post about our second florist marketing trend for 2018.
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Curate is a floral software that helps event florists create quick, beautiful, and accurate, proposals in less time than it takes to make a toss bouquet. Want to see how Curate can help your business like the many other florists that are using it? Click the button below!