Hard work and high quality
make good business sense
There is a saying that a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. That is particularly true of the Teleflora florist network as we band together to protect our livelihoods.
In October, we introduced our Save the Florists campaign, which is designed to alert florists to the magnitude of the damage that drop shippers like FTD and 1-800 Flowers/Bloomnet do to local florists.
{and proflowers?}
Sending flowers in boxes takes more than $500 million worth of orders away from you. As always, Teleflora promises that 100% of orders are hand-arranged and hand-delivered by local florists.
As you know, the Teleflora difference is unique in the industry. And so we must be vigilant about maintaining excellence in terms of our florist network. To that end, our enhanced Network Quality program will accomplish several important goals. Most importantly it should lead to improved customer satisfaction, which will lead to increased profitability for all in the industry.
Increasingly, consumers demand high quality at reasonable prices. We all must meet and exceed these expectations to remain competitive. Florists with high marks on customer satisfaction are more likely to receive orders from Teleflora headquarters and other florists. It’s important to remember: a healthy network directly benefits you. If your reputation of excellence precedes you, it means you will be at the front of the line when other members send florist-to-florist orders.
The Network Quality program will have several components, including incentives, recognition and rewards for top-performing florists and penalties for those who are consistently and markedly under par. If you do your best to deliver orders promptly without extensive substitutions, you should have no problem maintaining network quality standards.
Adhering to high standards simply makes good business sense. A key element is that we will require delivery confirmation on all orders. Many of you already do this and know that it reduces delivery issues as well as related calls and complaints.
Our research shows that the majority of consumers with issues indicated the bouquet did not look like the picture. So, we are making the substitution policy more specific, promoting Florist Choice and everyday keepsakes, expanding tests of delivered bouquets, fine-tuning SKUs and synthesizing findings from customer-service surveys. We will share more details on these activities and on the Network Quality program as a whole early next year.
Until then, I would like to thank you for your hard work and perseverance, and encourage you to hold to your dreams. For small business owners, there is much cause to be hopeful, over the holidays and for 2010. I look forward to seeing you flourish.
Sincerely,
shawn weidmann {president of teleflora}
