Teleflora Summer Success Guide 2024

04

TREND REPORTS

See what’s trending this summer with merchandising tips for customer-favorite bouquets

06

ASK A FLORIST

Hear from partner florists on how they manage summer months

09

BEST SELLERS

Teleflora’s projected best sellers for summer 2024

10 SOCIAL MEDIA

Editorial Calendars Explained

12

FLORIST FEATURE

99 Years Young: George’s Flowers

RED, WHITE, AND BLOOM

MERCHANDISING TIP: Set off some floral fireworks this summer with an arrangement of red, white, and blue blooms. Pair this playful nod to Old Glory with sparklers and a barbecue for a perfectly patriotic party.

SOAK UP THE SUN

MERCHANDISING TIP: Vibrant yellows of every summertime shade highlight this bouquet placed in a vintage butterfly cube. Drop this bright arrangement near a window or seasonal display, and it will appear to soak up every golden ray of sun.

OLD SCHOOL COOL

Keep Trucking Chevy Bouquet TEV69-1

MERCHANDISING TIP: This classic Chevy truck is the bee’s knees! The complementary colors of the truck’s baby blue exterior combined with a bright spray of orange roses and carnations will provide old-school summer vibes.

LIGHT THE LANTERN

MERCHANDISING TIP: Light summer up like a firefly with this sage green lantern filled with bright hues of lavender, orange, and peach. Display these multi-use containers with candles or flowers to remind us that summer’s hot days and warm tones are here.

ASK A FLORIST

MICHELLE MORGAN, AIFD, NDSF, CFD, MIFL KUHN FLOWERS (JACKSONVILLE, FL)

What's your approach to sourcing staff for big summer events, weddings, or larger orders?

Finding reliable staff is definitely a challenge these days. We've addressed this by developing a pool of experienced designers we can call upon for seasonal surges. This way, we already understand each individual's strengths, which minimizes frustration and maximizes productivity. Often, with good planning, our core team of 10 designers can handle major events without needing additional hires.

How do you keep flowers at the top of customers' minds during non-floral holidays?

Social media is a game-changer! We create a monthly social media schedule that highlights different products and services. This, coupled with targeted email marketing campaigns, keeps our brand fresh in customers' minds. We also leverage different platforms to reach specific demographics. Facebook is great for older audiences, while TikTok and Instagram help us connect with younger customers.

Beyond social media, we actively participate in our local chamber of commerce and partner with complementary businesses like wedding venues, funeral homes, and even concert arenas. We sometimes offer exclusive floral packages for these partners, increasing brand awareness and driving referral business.

Local radio advertising during peak seasons, like Mother's Day or Valentine's Day, is another tool we use to reach a wider audience. This allows us to target specific areas and programming to help us stay top of mind in relevant communities.

We also leverage targeted advertising on cable networks like the Hallmark Channel, particularly during holidays associated with gift-giving. This allows us to reach a demographic known for appreciating flowers and sentimental gestures.

How do you prepare your shop and staff for large order volumes (e.g. weddings, events, holidays, etc.) in order to set everyone up for the best success heading into it?

Preparation is key! We approach large events with the same organizational structure we use for major holidays. While holiday planning is typically more in-depth due to sheer volume, the core principles remain consistent. Here's a breakdown of our process:

PLANNING

PARALLELS: THE BIG PICTURE REMAINS SIMILAR FOR BOTH LARGE EVENTS AND HOLIDAYS.

6–9 MONTHS PRIOR: Pre-Holiday/Event Planning

Analyze past sales data to determine best-selling price points and unit volumes for each product. This allows for pre-ordering hard goods (vases, ribbons, etc.) at the most profitable price points.

PRO TIP: Allocate no more than 10% of the total unit price toward hard goods, and don't forget essentials like foam and ribbon!

3 MONTHS PRIOR: Sample Development and Marketing

Order sample containers beforehand.

Design and photograph arrangements for later use in advertising and website promotions.

Develop flower recipes (lists of specific flowers needed for arrangements) and collate them to create comprehensive buying lists.

2 MONTHS PRIOR: Marketing and Staffing

Finalize promotional plans, advertising methods, and social media campaigns.

Discuss and finalize advertising budgets, analyzing past successful campaigns to maximize effectiveness. Secure additional delivery drivers and staff.

1 MONTH PRIOR: Pre-Production and Logistics

Upload flower recipes to designers' monitors for easy reference (including design, size, and picture). Launch holiday marketing campaigns.

2 WEEKS PRIOR: Final Touches

Secure additional delivery vehicles, including refrigerated trucks if necessary.

1 WEEK PRIOR: Production Begins

Floral deliveries begin arriving.

Production starts in full swing.

Advertising continues until the holiday.

By following these steps, we ensure that our floral business thrives during peak seasons. From staffing to customer awareness and finally gearing up for high-volume orders, this roadmap equips us to navigate the busiest times confidently.

LOVE OUT LOUD: YEAR IN REVIEW

Over the past 12 months, Teleflora’s Love Out Loud Campaigns continued to highlight the special role flowers play in peoples’ lives. From empowering America to embrace the joy of giving through a simple gesture, to showcasing special stories that made us believe in love, to celebrating the stories of moms before they became mothers, our national advertising demonstrated unforgettable and beautiful ways to Love Out Loud every holiday season.

MOTHER’S DAY 2024 — MotHER

This Mother’s Day, Teleflora reminded audiences that before she was a mother, she was HER. She was ambitious, adventurous, wideeyed, and wild … and she’s still all those things. This Mother’s Day, Teleflora celebrated all the sides of Mom, even the ones she doesn’t always show.

MotHER: A Teleflora Love Story captured the pivotal moments that shaped Mom before motherhood. From jumping out of planes, to traveling the world, to singing in a band, Teleflora’s latest ad is a reminder to cherish every magnificent part of Mom – who she is now and the past that shaped HER.

VALENTINE’S DAY 2024 — BELIEVE IN LOVE

This past Valentine’s Day, Teleflora reminded audiences that in today’s modern world, the journey to finding love begins with the belief that it’s out there, waiting to be discovered.

Believe in Love followed five couples as they vulnerably shared their unique love stories, which all began with skepticism, in a documentary-style interview. Supported by a national campaign and featuring Teleflora’s new Valentine’s Day codified bouquets, the ad concluded the story by providing audiences with the inspiration to believe in the power of love.

CHRISTMAS 2023 — A HOLIDAY WISH

This past holiday season, Teleflora empowered America to experience the joy of giving through our national partnership with Make-A-Wish . Our national advertising put flowers at the heart of the ad, serving as a reminder that the smallest gesture can mean the world to someone.

While families across America prepared for holiday celebrations, more than 4,000 children will have received a devastating diagnosis. Through our new campaign, everyone was able to join Teleflora in supporting the mission of Make-A-Wish in creating life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses and their families.

A Holiday Wish served as a reminder to inspire humanity and the communities around us through the smallest of gestures.

SUMMER 2024 PROJECTED BEST SELLERS

Teleflora's Choose Happy Bouquet TEV68-3

Teleflora's Blooming Modern Bouquet TEV70-1

Teleflora's Citrus Dream Bouquet TEV66-1

TEV71-1

EDITORIAL CALENDARS EXPLAINED!

What is an editorial calendar? These calendars are used to help plan the creation and promotion of content across multiple channels. When you’re busy running a business, social media might be the last thing on your mind. However, in today’s world, consumers turn to social platforms for just about everything. Here’s a quick guide to planning content to make your life easier!

WHERE TO START:

When you begin planning content, here are a couple of things to consider:

Look at your inventory – is there any stock you want to move? Showcase it on your social media!

Are there any holidays or national days you can capitalize on?

You can visit https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/ for reference!

Example: April 16th is National Orchid Day

Example: June 12th is National Red Rose Day

Using video content can help engage users and showcase your product. Check out one of the following ideas to get you started!

Day in the life of a florist

Behind the scenes or flower prep

Timelapse of a florist arranging bouquets

Trending videos

Teleflora Social Media Kits – during holiday periods Teleflora releases social media images and captions that are completely free for you to use!

CONTENT DAYS

You don’t have to film/photograph content every single day. Plan a few days a month where you prioritize getting both photo and video content. This allows you to be more efficient with your time!

IT’S ALL IN

THE DETAILS

If you want to take your content to the next level, you can switch out your Facebook covers and social profile pictures with the seasons to showcase your holiday

Editorial calendars can also help you create a visually cohesive feed by mapping out your content. In the displayed example, you can see exactly where the transition from fall to winter takes place. Not only is the calendar aesthetically pleasing, but it is a great opportunity to promote your seasonal product and create demand!

SCHEDULING

Next, you’ll map out your content and schedule what you’d like to post on which days. You can experiment with which days and times give the most engagement, but generally posting on weekdays between 9am to 12pm works best. We recommend having 2 to 3 posts a week, and remember, consistency is key!

Once you have your content, schedule your posts in advance with Meta’s Business Suite to save time.

When it comes to scheduling, find a routine that works for you, whether it’s weekly, monthly, or quarterly!

99 YEARS YOUNG: GEORGE’S FLOWERS

Decades before George Choles created his flower shop in 1984, his floral career started in the 1920s with his father’s stand, which operated out of a hotel. George grew up helping his family, and as the years went on, he continued his family’s entrepreneurial tradition, first by opening a restaurant, then by getting back into the original family business: florals.

However, not every aspect of George’s career has been about flowers. He was born in 1924 to Greek immigrant parents, and at the age of 18, he was drafted for World War II. He was assigned to the Navy, but due to his strong insistence, he was re-assigned to the Army. He completed his service as a Staff Sergeant in General Patton’s Army, moving up four ranks in three years. After the war, George returned home, where he took classes at the University of WisconsinMadison and was on the 1947 UW Boxing Team. In 1955, he married his wife, Nia, and together they have four children, two of whom, Conn and Denise, are in the floral business with him.

When George started the shop, Conn and Denise were already adults, but in 2014, they decided to buy the shop from their parents, with Denise as the designer and Conn working on the product. From the beginning, George and Nia have been very receptive to their children taking over, making progress, and continuing to move the business forward.

“We’ve made improvements to save us time over the years with Teleflora. When mom would do billing, it would take a couple of days; now I can do it in a couple of minutes. We used to plan our truck’s routes the night before. Now, we use Teleflora’s technology to print delivery routes. As a Teleflora member, we’re treated respectfully and customer service has consistently been friendly and helpful,” said Denise.

George Choles George’s Flowers MADISON, WISCONSIN

Of course, being an entrepreneur in a family business has its challenges: the rise of inflation, supply chain mergers, and consistent battles with Amazon for next-day gifting. However, the community that George’s serves has always been supportive of the family flower shop: George's Flowers is regularly featured as a “Best of Madison” nominee; they are the regular floral choice for the UW athletic department’s Senior Day celebrations; and the matriarch of the family, Nia, was President of the Men’s UW Basketball Booster Club.

“Thank God the University of Wisconsin’s colors are red and white! That makes it so much easier for a florist than if our colors were black and orange,” said Conn laughing.

George is still regularly in the shop, working at the age of 99 years young! Through all the hard work of being an entrepreneur in a family business, he enjoys working together with his children and grandchildren to create beautiful, high-quality arrangements as a team. Some say that it’s tough going into business with family members, but George has seen it in a different light.

“In a family business, you can make a decision. There aren’t twelve committees. You’re looking out for your best interests for yourself and your staff. We work together well as a family because there’s love. We don’t have any problems, and even if we did, we’d be able to solve the problems ourselves as a family,” George reminisced over his career fondly.

FLOWERBUYER AUCTION PRICES

DESTROY YOUR FLOWER BUDGET THIS SUMMER WITH FLOWERBUYER LIVE AUCTIONS!

Flowerbuyer online auctions are built to help you save the most on your flower costs, and they’re really fun to play! Modeled after the famous Dutch flower auctions, you can bid from the comfort of your home or business.

Here are some of the amazing deals our customers saw last year on our most popular flower varieties:

Alstroemeria Assorted 70cm 4BL

Carnation Assorted Fancy 55cm 25st/bu

Carnation Assorted Standard 45cm 25st/bu

Carnation Novelty Mix Fancy 55cm 25st/bu

Chrysanthemum Spray Daisy Assorted 70cm 300gr/bu 7-10st/bu

Chrysanthemum Spray Daisy White 70cm 300gr/bu 7-10st/bu

Gypsophila Million Star 70cm 250gr/bu 8-10st/bu

Hydrangea Medium Kiwi 15-20cm 60cm

Hydrangea Medium White 15-20cm 60cm

Hydrangea Mini Green 8-12cm 60cm

Leatherleaf Costa Rica Small 40-45cm 20st/bu Sleeved

Leatherleaf Florida Medium 46-55cm 20st/bu

Leucadendron Safari Sunset 50cm

Lily Oriental Assorted 2-3BL 70cm

Lily Oriental White 2-3BL 70cm

Pittosporum Green 40-55cm 450gr/bu 7-8st/bu

Rose Freedom 50cm 25st/bu

Rose Spray Assorted 60cm

Rose Spray Majolica White 40cm

Sunflower Yellow with Black Center Petite 70cm 120?

$0.23/stem

$0.19/stem

$0.16/stem

$0.14/stem

$1.45/bunch

$1.47/bunch

$3.03/bunch

$0.65/stem

$0.74/stem

$0.36/stem

$0.73/bunch

$1.46/bunch

$0.27/stem

$0.79/stem

$0.55/stem

$2.28/bunch

$0.27/stem

$0.37/stem

$0.28/stem

$0.25/stem

*Prices listed above reflect FOB Miami pricing. Freight cost not included.

If you are interested in learning more about the live auction, call 1-877-625-3243 and we will be happy to teach you how it works. Don’t have time for the auction? Use our auto-bid feature and we’ll attend the auction for you!

Our live auctions run every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 2pm EST. Join thousands of other florists and see how much you can save!

POS & QUICKBOOKS® ONLINE INTERFACE

Built to give real-time access to your accounting data, QuickBooks® Online is becoming a popular choice for POS users. We are excited to offer an interface solution for our Point-of-Sale systems!

EASY SETUP & INTERFACE

Our systems offer an easy setup and process to interface your POS system with QuickBooks ® Online, including the ability to use custom accounts.

AUTOMATION

Accounting data is automatically transferred from your POS system to QuickBooks ® Online. Cut costs and time by eliminating the need for re-entry.

USE PAYROLL

If you are using QuickBooks® Online for your payroll, you can easily transfer your employees’ time data from your POS. Track your employees’ time and run your own payroll.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT POS OR A DEMO

BEEF UP YOUR WEB MARKETING THIS SUMMER

The warm summer months are a great time to dip a toe into broader marketing for your website. All marketing efforts take time to perfect, whether you fine-tune your audience, your messaging, or your budget; or even analyze which platform makes sense for you and your customer base. Take the next few months to test out digital marketing, in preparation for the fall season.

START WITH SEARCH

If you aren’t investing in paid search advertising, whether you’ve tried it in the past or not, now is a great time to start. In the last year, Google searches for flowers have flattened, implying that the only way to grow is to grow your share of the market. eFlorist offers a fully managed paid search program to member shops, so you can focus on the other aspects of your business. Whether you want to try paid search advertising yourself or let us manage it for you, here are a few things to remember:

START SMALL: if you’re hesitant to invest, start with a smaller budget to see how paid search performs

GIVE IT 90 DAYS: especially if you are new to paid search, it takes time for Google to recognize your website’s relevance to the search terms you are advertising for

REVIEW YOUR RESULTS: paid search is a highly transparent tactic, one which allows you to track how many customers clicked your ad and ultimately, made a purchase on-site

If you’re not sold on whether paid search is right for your business, consider maintaining a social media account or email marketing to re-engage existing customers.

HELPFUL CONTACT NUMBERS