1-800-flowers takes a page from Meola

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CHR

CHR

Design matters
Nov 28, 2002
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Have you looked at superpages.com, switchboard.com, Yahoo local or AOL Yellow Pages the last few days?

You might be in for a surprise. Suddenly, 1-800-Flowers is appearing with local phone numbers in listings in loads of cities. I tried a few and all were forwarded to the 1800flowers.com call center.

Pittsburgh http://local.yahoo.com/results?p=(412)+308-5393&csz=Pittsburgh,+PA
Philadelphia http://local.yahoo.com/details;_ylt...lorist&csz=Philadelphia,+PA&lcscb=Q4elTZkG2R6
Boston http://local.yahoo.com/results?p=1-800-flowers&csz=boston+ma
Seattle http://local.yahoo.com/results?p=1-800-flowers&csz=seattle+wa
St. Louis http://local.yahoo.com/results?p=1-800-flowers&csz=st.+louis+mo

So the YP ads with 1-800-flowers 'in your neighborhood' could be sporting a local number soon.

McCann said they were going after the customers that wanted to send flowers in their own neighborhoods - what better way than to appear truly local and pocket some easy money. They've got brand recognition and now need to look like 'they' are just down the street.

According to their corporate site, their own stores are only located in a few states: http://ww11.1800flowers.com/storelocator.do They've basically stopped opening stores and are closing them in some markets (Veldkamp's/1-800 Denver). Too much work, not enough profits?

Why run a B&M when you can just pretend you do?

Keep filling orders and supporting your competition so he can buy more local numbers. *sheesh*
 
Nope, not surprised at all. ;) I'm not going to make my expected comments about supporting companies that directly compete against you...you've already heard it.
 
So what's the answer? I'd guess since you can't beat them the only choice, other than griping about it - is to try to play that game....?????

and I know how opinions vary on that one
 
I was just in Boston's North End. The Kabloom there closed down and the sign said coming soon 1-800-FLOWERS...So I don't know about them not opening new stores....
 
David said:
The local number 800 shows has an address of their LFC in Needham
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Yes, they have one in needham and one in woburn. The one in needham is not a retail location(I think) just a fulfillment warehouse. The one in Woburn is actually a florist with three or four locations and does not carry the 800 name but delivers with an 800-flowers vehicle. The spot in Boston is an actual 800-flowers retail flower shop taking the place of a kabloom. Most of the kablooms in this area do very well as far as I can see. I am not sure how, but they do at least enough to get by....
 
David said:
They had 31 stores in Metro Boston. They now have 16
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That to me is doing pretty good, seeing as some people can't even keep 1 store afloat...All kidding aside, I did not think any would make it after they ran out of venture capital....
 
Update

Not sure what part of this will be really true, and what part will be "they said" but I'm going to put up a little bit of what I was told yesterday by Mark Nance regarding the post that started this thread.

When Cathy put this up last week, I immediately contacted 800Flowers about the items listed in the post via email, and also immediately received a call stating that "we will look into it". Evidently they did do just that. Yesterday I got two calls, almost back to back, the first from Mark, and the second from Doug Parks (still one of the few guys I trust in the wire side of the biz). Doug was actually calling to tell me they just left a meeting, and that Mark would be calling me, but Mark beat him to it.

If you check the links in the original post, they no longer work, or go to 800Flowers site/sites and return results of "not found" in one case. Also the original phone numbers on the original sites are no longer functioning (?).

Here's the story in part...again...not sure whats true, I still have to do some checking, and I'm sure some of you web wizards will also...

According to Mark... they have taken down the sites that they had control of, and are communicating with their (hired) marketing company to remove anything that appears to be a "local" listing that is in fact not. They do not want to be part of listing local numbers that forward to their call centers, they use 800 numbers for corp. ads.

Also, the listings that were here, most likely were ( they are still looking into it) originally put up by LFC's and local operator/managers/owners and as they changed hands got moved to 800. As we all know, 800 used to operate many LFC's themselves, but they have come to realize that they can not make any money (themselves) operating "retail" outlets, and that the retail floral industry is HARD WORK. They are down to 5 "company owned" stores, and have purchase agreements on 2 of those, and want to unload the other 3 as well. They know, you have to have an owner/operator on site to make any money (yea, like WE did not know that already).

So anyway, I'll be checking, and I hope you all will send me things you find regarding these listings, and I'll keep sending them to 800 (since I seem to have their attention these days) and hopefully we can get them to clean up their act a little, and again hopefully they are serious about doing so.

Before ya'll shoot at me for this, remember this is just what I was told, but going by the fact that the links in the original post and now non-functioning, maybe...just maybe they really are being serious about this...

Opinions will vary ;)
 
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BOSS said:
Before ya'll shoot at me for this, remember this is just what I was told, but going by the fact that the links in the original post and now non-functioning, maybe...just maybe they really are being serious about this...
Opinions will vary ;)
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Mark Nance & Doug Parks eh??
Many US states, & many YP type advertising venues, have now "realized" their errors, and there is NO WAY that 1800, even at the "exec" was gonna lead the pack in deceptive location practices "removal", without the pressures that have been initiated by REAL FLORISTS everywhere.
1800, "sells" a lot of product...1800 is NOT all that profitable, but, it HAS "learned" to "adapt" very quickly, and ALL FLORISTS should be watching what this company is doing, along with ALL wire service type companies.
Guess what, NONE of them can "exist" without REAL FLORISTS...direct ship or not
 
The LFC's listings showed physical addresses. The remote-call-forwarded numbers did not.

I noticed at least one of the ads formerly sporting an RCF number in yellowpages.com lists their phone number now as (800) 356-9377 (FLO-WERS) (presumably for folks who don't want to or can't figure out the numbers on a keypad).

Changing/removing the RCFs and tracking URLs shows some very swift action on the part of 1-800 and illustrates just how quickly YP.com can make something happen too - since the numbers primarily appeared on the properties they control.

Were the RCFs authorized by someone else in the company in the first place, or were they created by an aggressive outside ad agency, or were they suggested by the YP company to help them improve conversions/profits? Enquiring minds want to know. :tongue

At any rate, big kudos to Boss to taking the questions direct to the source, getting answers - and more importantly - action! :blowkiss:
 
CHR said:
Were the RCFs authorized by someone else in the company in the first place, or were they created by an aggressive outside ad agency, or were they suggested by the YP company to help them improve conversions/profits?
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When I spoke to "them" they had no clue and I forwarded CHR's post...word came back that the ad agency had made the decision and was now sporting a new rear-end. I was impressed with how fast things moved as well! Kinda spooky when the "little" folks have trouble getting simple things changed but the Big guys can get it done within a week...sure would not like to be that agency and be thinking I get much more revenue from the big dog...too funny!
Sher
 
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no, actually, you deserve the big smoochies since I merely forward the info. Without you...we are nothing!!!!!! Half the stuff you talk about is so over my head but I follow like a lamb...lol
Sher
 
Sher said:
no, actually, you deserve the big smoochies since I merely forward the info. Without you...we are nothing!!!!!! Half the stuff you talk about is so over my head but I follow like a lamb...lol
Sher
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:) But at least we know when we follow Cathy we aren't heading for slaughter!

V
 
baaahhh baaahh baahhhhh I agree Lady V... one day I aspire to be able to understand all that she writes about the web, IT IS AWESOME WHAT SHE UNDERSTANDS, but just about the time I think I am getting it, in chimes the one eyed chicklet, RJD and even 2 bucks and my head explodes again...it's just too bad that the chatter about seo, meo's, black hats is so foreign to my advancing age group. Of course when Ryan talked about his "limitations" from his hand held thingy etc, well I just gave up and figured it was easier to follow the leaders...I have yet to figure out my new nano/mp something thing with the video...it was free but like where am I going to watch a movie..I mean really!
Sher
 
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