The search engines have created enormous issues for local florists.
SEO = search engine optimized/optimization
As a local florist you are competing with the directories and order gathers.
Neither of which is actually in the florist business.
The directories and order gathers skillfully apply very competent SEO techniques for favorable positioning on search result pages,i.e. Google, MSN, Yahoo,Ask,etc.
The directories for the most part are just advertisers piled on top of each other creating an enormous amount of related content... which search engine algorithms embrace.
Sites like wesleyberry have elaborate schemes for SEO. They have every state in the US and Canada covered, with practically every city and town in those states SEO. The sites further carry through nearest zipcodes for delivery, funeral homes, and hospitals as well.
I googled with three search terms
flowers surfside ca
Shouldn't all local listings follow a guideline similar to this...
The search flowers surfside ca - should yield up those florists with surfside first, and all listings from other cities should follow thereafter. That is not the case... the term NEAREST is vague. This could very well be a way loyal advertisers are perked by the respective search engines. Just review the florists under local listings and you will see it is almost randomized information about florists scattered all around a radius of several miles from surside ca.
So if you had a florist shop in surfside you might be on page 9 and florists from a multitude of other areas would be listed before you. Again, remember the search terms were flowers surfside ca. All florists in surfside ca should head the list in search return results.
Looking at the local search results with the little map look just below the map and you will see who heads up the search results for the first few pages of search results.
In this case, Wesleyberry heads up the list of search results just below the local map. Other searches yield up other order gatherers and directories in the first pages of search results.
If you click on th wesleyberry about page you see this nice little florist van sitting in front of a flower shop. The funny part is, it doesn't matter what state, city,zipcode,funeral home, hospital you use to search when you click the about page you see the exact same picture.
This is outright deceit, because wesleyberry represent themselves to be something they aren't. You the local florist get those orders from them through your wire service and yield up approximately 27% of the price each time just to acquire the order. There isn't enough profit left, if you fill and deliver the order at the wire service recommended prices. That is just your variable costs not counting all your credit card transaction and wire service fees, bonds, vases,etc.
If the local florist trys to make it up with delivery charges, that won't work. Other florists are wary of larger delivery fees, because they feel the florist filling their orders will skimp on the quality of the flowers in the ordered arrrangement. At least that is what the wire services advise.
The wire services are a problem that is sure, because they have become order gatherers as well. Some have alter-ego websites they own represented as quality florists from states outside your local service area.
They do this because instead of just a wire service fee, they pick up another 20% as the originating florist.
Then of course you have to couple all this outrageous search engine problem, and wire services issues, with no information provided to you as the filling and deliverer of the flowers.
Purchaser information is the life blood to any business trying to develop a clientele. Previous satisfied customers build businesses, and the order gatherers take away the opportunties for improving the local florist's business.
The order gatherers use email campaigns and telemarketing to previous purchasers during peak sales times. Email adverting campaigns can be very effective, if they are timely and not overly applied.
There are plenty of legitimate store front florists who have taken on the dual role as local florist and order gatherers. Do I fault these florists?
No, I do not. Afterall, when you do a competent SEO of your website you have spent a great deal of time, effort and in many cases dollars to get favorable positioning on search results.
If the only way for local florists to get properly listed continues there are a few imperatives they must address to stay in business. They must have competent and continuous upgrades to SEO of their websites.
Again there are simple fixes -- local search results should be applied as the searcher applied keywords to the search. This is a no brainer for the search engines.
Honestly, it is beyond me why this isn't the rule instead of the exception.
The problem may just be the search engines are too involved in their adwords, adsense and other advertising to seriously address the needs of small businesses, not just the florist industry.
I reviewed the local listings and they are just a random grouping of florists within Google areas for defining a local search.
Fixing this is a no brainer... Local listings should fall directly under the terms searched first. That would probably be amenable all local businesses. They wouldn't be getting preferential treatment. They would be local companies described in the searchers terms and listed accordingly.
If you click on search return results of listings that are below the map of so-called local NEAREST you will have page after page of directories and SEO order gatherers.
The yellow pages was the original best source for finding a local florist.
The day of the yellow pages is just about done, as broadband internet connections have become more available and people are better educated to use computers.
The yellow pages criteria could be easily followed. The yellow page search was defined just like a google search. The user searches for the product or service, has options to choose advertisers or go through an alphabetical listing of local businesses providers. This is too simple for the search engines... I don't think so.
Any florist that wants to succeed today and tomorrow will have a website, and it most be SEO if you want to make it work. The days of the yellow pages are done. I haven't looked at a yellow page in two years to make a purchase of any kind. Most under 50 year olds are internet savvy and embrace technolgy.
The Florist industry has been very favored with customers for many generations. Customers opened the local phone book and found a local florist to take an order over the phone, and made sight unseen purchases. The ability to sell flowers and have them delivered required a great deal of trust and confidence by the customer. A confidence that florist shops enjoy to this day.
Yet, even this may be affected by the order gatherers over the near term.
Now the wire services have bonding requirements and other quality controls that assure some level of quality control. As it is, local florists accepting wire orders are basically compelled to provide the purchased product or close facsimile to order quality requirements. This is basically a self policing mechanism enforced by the wire services.
Don't get me wrong. I think overall the florist industry is made up of some very exceptional and caring people. Yet, when people are suffering in their businesses from lack of profits they do take drastic measures. Quality of product could definitely be affected at some point by trouble florists.
During the past mother's day period I helped my wife by making deliveries. Just for my own information I made it a point to ask each person I delvered flowers to who the order was from and where they were located. Yeah, nosey me. The results were astonishing.
The wire orders were all placed with order gatherers and the purchasers of the flowers lived within 9 miles of our shop. Effectlvely, I was delivering the flowers at discounted prices for order gatherers who were taking the business right out of our primary service area.
Needless to say, when I saw a purple van with proflowers on it it thought... fragmentation in the this industry has to be dealt with or the number of florist shop failures will continue to increase.
It is tough enough competing for florist business with the Grocery stores, Costco, Wal-Mart, Home Depot, then you pile on the internet order gatherers and complicitous wire services the future looks bleak.
The best and brightest florists that compensate for the changing ways of doing business and applying technology will survive. Stoic conventional attitudes among florists will lead to failure.
At some point, in the very near future the only salvation for this industry will be unifying florists. The combined clout of an organized industry can make demands and acquire more favorable treatment for florists.
