Hurrah, another prom is finished with sales up 30% over last year, thanks to John Henry's Fiber Optics. They were a little more labor intencive but the things sold like hot cakes. For a 2 buck investment and a 10 buck return, that ain't bad..........
Hurrah, Prom Finished
- Thread starter Gilliland
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BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Gilliland said:
here, one prom down, 4 to go...
Our average with lights is 37.50 on corsages, and 17.50 on bouts...
Our main prom is 5-21...expecting 300+ orders...
Ours are just as BAD 
Our Proms are not until June 1 and 2nd for the Four Highschools here Yeepie! Right? Cool you think, it's NOT because June 1 is Tuesday the day after Monday Memorial Day May 31st.
NO ONE orders early because the Family splits out of town On Vacation or everyone is TOO busy with THEIR LIFE only to get back Monday nite to their lifes routine and start calling on Tuesday about Noon and needing a Corsage and can they pick this up within 15 minutes or better yet..walk in and be pissed because they have to wait since we don't have them premade ready to GO.
We have adjusted ourselves with this type of Public Buying Habits within our community and I'm sure lot's of the folks here have seen it also in their area.
So regardless of having Mother's Day Weekend Proms or June 01, 2005 Proms..were all just pretty much stuck with it and don't you just this love this Business?
Somewhere down the line we chose this path.
Our Proms are not until June 1 and 2nd for the Four Highschools here Yeepie! Right? Cool you think, it's NOT because June 1 is Tuesday the day after Monday Memorial Day May 31st.
NO ONE orders early because the Family splits out of town On Vacation or everyone is TOO busy with THEIR LIFE only to get back Monday nite to their lifes routine and start calling on Tuesday about Noon and needing a Corsage and can they pick this up within 15 minutes or better yet..walk in and be pissed because they have to wait since we don't have them premade ready to GO.
We have adjusted ourselves with this type of Public Buying Habits within our community and I'm sure lot's of the folks here have seen it also in their area.
So regardless of having Mother's Day Weekend Proms or June 01, 2005 Proms..were all just pretty much stuck with it and don't you just this love this Business?
Somewhere down the line we chose this path.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Do what we did, went to all the tanning places and put up flyers telling kids to order early...seems to be working...Blue Oyster Cult said:
Blue Oyster Cult said:
Yup...I do
Thanks Bud
Your Ideas are good and have been used but it's a different animal in regards to advertising in different areas with so many folks today too busy to order early type of folks. Trust me I have seen our community going from sleepy bedroom community to, NEED IT NOW community and get out of my way if you cannot provide me with what I NEED NOW within 10 minutes and huff and puff out the door because we have no Lavender Roses.
It's part of the Job to Vent here!
Your Ideas are good and have been used but it's a different animal in regards to advertising in different areas with so many folks today too busy to order early type of folks. Trust me I have seen our community going from sleepy bedroom community to, NEED IT NOW community and get out of my way if you cannot provide me with what I NEED NOW within 10 minutes and huff and puff out the door because we have no Lavender Roses.
It's part of the Job to Vent here!
Connie
New Member
Gilliland said:
We used another kind of light (cannot remember the name now), and they sold really well for our largest prom April 16, but have not sold a single light after that prom. I think that part of the reason is that the kids coming in now are going as dates to someone else's prom, and they are not as interested in the show of the light.
An interesting thing about last week's proms was that we had several orders for 2-3 corsages and bouts. One person would come in and order for 2-3 couples in one order. No problem, just a curious thing to have happen.
Reading all of these posts is making me want to take a second look at our pricing.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
One other thing Blue
We offered a 10% discount if they ordered both a corsage and bout on the same order, and made it date specific ie: order by xx-xx-05. Quite a few took advantage of the deal....(should add that we made it clear that if they tried to order durring Mothers Week, the discount did not apply, thinking this would keep them outa our hair next week)
And yes, there are alot of different demographics that play into why some folks will do things and others won't...in this case (prom) I think you have to go after the kids, and not the parents...hence our going to the tanner...
We offered a 10% discount if they ordered both a corsage and bout on the same order, and made it date specific ie: order by xx-xx-05. Quite a few took advantage of the deal....(should add that we made it clear that if they tried to order durring Mothers Week, the discount did not apply, thinking this would keep them outa our hair next week)
And yes, there are alot of different demographics that play into why some folks will do things and others won't...in this case (prom) I think you have to go after the kids, and not the parents...hence our going to the tanner...
Tanners...
Yep, great idea....sure wish the schools would let me pass out those flyers on the campus but for some reason the schools just want our tax monies without allowing advertising.
Yep, great idea....sure wish the schools would let me pass out those flyers on the campus but for some reason the schools just want our tax monies without allowing advertising.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
Blue Oyster Cult said:
Better than that....we made up some of our CorRings (front page smithsflowers.com) and gave them to girls to wear to school!!!
Subliminal advertising...and as one of my old hero's used to say "fast as fast can be, you can;t stop me"
Frank
New Member
Congratulations on a successful prom Rod! We were thinking about those JH fiber optics but were not sure if they would sell. Do you sell a variety of colors? Do you keep samples in the display cooler?
Connie
New Member
Blue Oyster Cult said:
We do a lot for our local high school, giving them balloons and helium for certain occasions, discounts on everything (including prom orders), buying ads in lots of their publications, etc. Therefore, it was almost like a sucker punch when an angry parent brought me a flyer that had been sent home with the students. The flyer named my closest competitor as the preferred prom florist because, "she has helped so much with her ideas for prom decorations, and she is giving a discount on the orders." The parent was angry because she knew how I have worked over the years with the school. It might have backfired on the other florist because I began to have frantic moms appear in my shop asking if I could make something up because the other florist did not get everything ready. Some brought in their corsages and asked if I could do anything to make them look better. The florist had obviously received very small spray roses and her dendrobiums were past their prime. My contract driver helps with her deliveries in emergencies, and the florist asked her if she had heard any complaints because she had received some very angry phone calls. I really could not see that my business was hurt because we had to turn away some prom orders on Friday before the prom because we were also hit with 2 funerals. We began taking orders again on Saturday. I actually felt sorry for the other florist, but I'm still a bit dismayed at whoever sent out that flyer at the school.
Fiber Optic Samples
They came in a pack of 12 with 6 white, 2 red, 2 blue and 2 lavender. We sold a total of 43 lights, ordered 48.
I fudged a bit by making my samples (3) out of silks and I had them on a display table in the showroom along with other samples of prom flowers, beads, ribbons, pictures, etc..
Frank said:
They came in a pack of 12 with 6 white, 2 red, 2 blue and 2 lavender. We sold a total of 43 lights, ordered 48.
I fudged a bit by making my samples (3) out of silks and I had them on a display table in the showroom along with other samples of prom flowers, beads, ribbons, pictures, etc..
With every corsage order, we do the matching botonniere Free. That works great for us. We have a huge Prom this weekend which we are already turning kids away because we reached our max number we commited to. (Wish the schools would catch on about our holidays!) We have 3 more biggies in the next three weeks. Thank goodness for Oasis glue! Saves time & my hands from getting cramped!
Tried the fiber optic thing.... didn't do well. They just didn't get it sometimes. But we've come up with our own design that incorporates marabou feathers and rhinestones. We now get calls asking if we're the shop that uses feathers. Trying the feather cuffs this year..... let you know how it goes!
We also use the velcro wristlets. We spray the band the same color as the ribbon, if possible. That made a big difference with the kids too.
Tried the fiber optic thing.... didn't do well. They just didn't get it sometimes. But we've come up with our own design that incorporates marabou feathers and rhinestones. We now get calls asking if we're the shop that uses feathers. Trying the feather cuffs this year..... let you know how it goes!
We also use the velcro wristlets. We spray the band the same color as the ribbon, if possible. That made a big difference with the kids too.
BOSS
FlowerChat Administrator
FlowerDiva said:
Dang...not me...with bout's running $7-12.00 each, on top of $20-35.00 corsages...no way...
Too much time involved to do 'em for free...
Rhonda
Well-Known Member
had a girl come in today to order two wrist corsages. I quoted $15 for mini carns..$18.50 for spray roses..she says "gee my friend said they were $8.00"..here we go again....cheap shop down the street? more tree fern and baby's breath than flowers. Gonna be a long couple of weeks I can tell.
This is the first time in over 10 years prom has NOT been on Mother's Day weekend.
This is the first time in over 10 years prom has NOT been on Mother's Day weekend.
This was our biggest year ever for prom. What would you say the % of kids who shop around or Mother's buying for their sons? lol
If that % is lower, instead of higher, I would never offer bouts for free. But it really depends on your competition and customers shopping habits. So what works for one florist might not work for another.
We don't offer any type of % off, but we do raise our prices about 10%. We had about 15-20% shop around and that number is low enough for me to justify a high price point. For me to capture that 15-20% I would of had to lower my price, hire another person and not make as much money. Plus when you offer a lower price, you can't use the nicer flowers, when you don't use the nicer flowers, your "Free advertisement" from word of mouth % goes way down. And by using more fun type of flowers, it sets my florist up, for what I believe, for what customers are expecting more and more in their arrangements. Again, what works for some florists won't work for others, so I don't have a magical bullet, just passing on what I do.
Oh and I think I speak for everyone here when I say, starting today I won’t be on this forum much for about a week. Lol But then again, I’m such a nerd, I’d stay up till 3am just to soak this stuff up.
If that % is lower, instead of higher, I would never offer bouts for free. But it really depends on your competition and customers shopping habits. So what works for one florist might not work for another.
We don't offer any type of % off, but we do raise our prices about 10%.
We had about 15-20% shop around and that number is low enough for me to justify a high price point. For me to capture that 15-20% I would of had to lower my price, hire another person and not make as much money. Plus when you offer a lower price, you can't use the nicer flowers, when you don't use the nicer flowers, your "Free advertisement" from word of mouth % goes way down. And by using more fun type of flowers, it sets my florist up, for what I believe, for what customers are expecting more and more in their arrangements. Again, what works for some florists won't work for others, so I don't have a magical bullet, just passing on what I do.Oh and I think I speak for everyone here when I say, starting today I won’t be on this forum much for about a week. Lol But then again, I’m such a nerd, I’d stay up till 3am just to soak this stuff up.
Trust me, we are not losing anything by giving away a boutonniere with every corsage order. They're nothing fancy. And take a couple of minutes, if that, to put together. We have 12+ high schools in our area. 4 large ones in our city alone. And we have about 30+ shops for everybody to choose from. We gotta do something to bring them in. Sure, our reputation is outstanding with these kids, but we always have that new batch of kids that haven't ever done this before and don't know where to go. Plus, if we make them happy, their parents are happy. We have gained many new customers due to our Prom work for their teenagers. So we count all those "Free" botonnieres into our advertising budget. With as much as adverstising costs these days, I wish it all only cost the same as a boutonniere!
Connie
New Member
We've never done the BOGOF thing either. We also do not advertise for prom. Call me foolish, but we have as much as we can do, usually 200+ orders for our biggest prom. Most of those orders are for both the bout and the wrist corsage, but a few are for only one. We have offered a discount for the largest prom, but if you've read my post above, you'll understand that I'm reconsidering that. Frankly, I ask myself, how many arrangements could I make for this same price while I'm making the wrist corsage (10-15 minutes), and the answer always leaves me wondering why I'm doing so many prom orders. The answer is that even those small, tedious orders help pay a bill or too. Besides I do get a kick out of (i. e., enjoy) most of those kids and sometimes even their moms.
Our wrist corsages currently start at $22.99 and include a minimum of 7 spray roses and BB. Our basic rose bout w/ BB is $6.99. Beads, lights, other flowers (dendros, etc.) are extra. I'm thinking of raising the price of the corsages to $25.99 for next year.
Our wrist corsages currently start at $22.99 and include a minimum of 7 spray roses and BB. Our basic rose bout w/ BB is $6.99. Beads, lights, other flowers (dendros, etc.) are extra. I'm thinking of raising the price of the corsages to $25.99 for next year.
This just came to me.
Marketing idea: Contact the schools student government... or cheerleading team...or whatever. Affiliate with them and give them 10% of each sale they make... let them take the orders and have them turn it in to you a week ahead of time, with the money. Then you give them their %. You might think... I'm not going to give up any % of my profits. You don't have to. Raise the price and have that % you are giving away, in the total cost of the bout/corsage. I.E. Your normal corsage price = $20. You are going to give them 10%. You now sell your corsages for $22.
I see a couple of slight problems that might occur of course, but if you can pull this off... let them take the order, let them collect, know how much product you'll need (roughly) the following week... you'll be sitting pretty. I am going to try this next year!
Marketing idea: Contact the schools student government... or cheerleading team...or whatever. Affiliate with them and give them 10% of each sale they make... let them take the orders and have them turn it in to you a week ahead of time, with the money. Then you give them their %. You might think... I'm not going to give up any % of my profits. You don't have to.
Raise the price and have that % you are giving away, in the total cost of the bout/corsage. I.E. Your normal corsage price = $20. You are going to give them 10%. You now sell your corsages for $22.I see a couple of slight problems that might occur of course, but if you can pull this off... let them take the order, let them collect, know how much product you'll need (roughly) the following week... you'll be sitting pretty. I am going to try this next year!
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