To: Knife's Wife & Bloomz

[Lady Biker Florist]

You both have TF website's and have very different experiences. I am on the fence as to whether or not to accept the offer of a free TF website (my purpose is to get more 100% orders being placed through teleflora.com) and no $50.00 fee for 6 months.

I have a website through Media 99 and it is wonderful in every way. I will not let that one go, that's for sure. However, they cannot get me orders from teleflora.com so that is why I am considering it.

I have no problem buying holiday keepsakes as I have quite a few florists that I can split with and ever three ways. We will be the ONLY florist in our city with a TF website so will always be first so says out rep.IS THIS TRUE? Other florists in other surrounding cities are listed there also as they do deliver here, but they are in OTHER cities.

Why do you think your TF website experiences are so vastly different Knife's Wife and Bloomz?

I really need help on this one. Thanks much!

 

[bloomz]

I'll give you my take, especially since I was just going thru this today. I had 6 orders on my TF statement for April, so I went to their tracking system on mytf.com to see where they came from. Apparently 3 from dotcom and 3 from the find a florist. Problem is, their tracking shows NO orders for the last year, all the data they had. They told me "it wasn't working" so why do they even have it?

I got the site for the same reasons you stated, to get the traffic from tf.com IF anyone ever uses the findaflorist button (the whole site is designed NOT to use it tho, just like ftd's).

Here's the rub and something I don't like at all. I've said it before. Unless you stock all the products AND codify for them, you do not get the order. As matter of fact you get this. Directly from the site, cut and paste " The following florists can deliver to the ZIP code you entered, but are not recommended for your order because either they do not deliver on the date(s) you selected or do not carry the item(s) in your cart:"

let me say this loud, I DO NOT LIKE the "are not recommended" part of this, makes me look like a substandard shop and I consider it disparaging.

I will not be held hostage to having to buy AND CODIFY for the products, WHICH I DO STOCK.

In fairness, since it is not my main site, I do not promote it at all, for various reasons I could and would discuss at length with you Patty any time you wish to give me a call.

Free is free, but nothing also seems to give nothing. They recommend florists in my city who do not pay to have a site and the deal they cut with me is - if I don't have the product I still get the order. I want the chance to either get them the product or convert them to what I do have, and this removes the chance of me doing that, since the order goes elsewhere.

IF this ever gets corrected, I will reconsider, but at this point in time, unless you want cases of stuff sitting in the back room, the site is not worth having. It's an easy fix, simply use the data that is available on the sites and not from the codification directory. ALl I have to do is call and they will put any product I want on MY site, but if I never get orders directed to me, what use is that? But I think this is by design.

I'm sure Ms Knife has a better opinion, and she's welcome to post it, her site seems to perform better than mine.

Give me a call Patty and I will talk yer ear off.

And here's an aside, what happened to my hippo assez? Looks like they got fig leafed!

 

[theRKF]

Here's the rub and something I don't like at all. I've said it before. Unless you stock all the products AND codify for them, you do not get the order. As matter of fact you get this. Directly from the site, cut and paste " The following florists can deliver to the ZIP code you entered, but are not recommended for your order because either they do not deliver on the date(s) you selected or do not carry the item(s) in your cart:"
let me say this loud, I DO NOT LIKE the "are not recommended" part of this, makes me look like a substandard shop and I consider it disparaging.

Here's the thing,
When I am shopping online, I much prefer a site setup like TF has, rather than choosing the location first and product second.

Example: When I travel, I always use Enterprise Rent-a-Car, but I HATE that you have to choose location first, then see what's available. I often wind up going through several locations to find the vehicle I want. I would much rather say, "I want THIS, now tell me where it's available." It is much more user friendly. Only the extreme discounts keep me going back.

As to the "not reccommended" part, I know it doesn't sound too nice, but in my experience web customers are dumb. Unless you flash it right in their face (and even sometimes when you do) they tend to overlook details.

And here's an aside, what happened to my hippo assez? Looks like they got fig leafed!

Read the announcement - Custom Avatars got scrambled doing the move, and need to be re-upped.

 

[BOSS]

Example: When I travel, I always use Enterprise Rent-a-Car, but I HATE that you have to choose location first, then see what's available. I often wind up going through several locations to find the vehicle I want. I would much rather say, "I want THIS, now tell me where it's available." It is much more user friendly.

excpet...

Being one that uses alot of Avis's services, if I do not provide the location first, it makes little difference, what car I chose...

if I'm going to Killeen TX, and the Cady is in NYC, I'm (obviously) going to chose from whats available in Killeen...

 

[Griff]

Interesting numbers, Mr Bloomz

I always appreciate when florists are being honest with each other and this seems to be one of those times. I'm not against any website that sells itself has helping a florist get 100% orders, but I always want florists to do some math before committing to anything.

Bloomzie, using your 6 orders in April as an example, 3 thru .com and 3 from florist button, I submit the following scernario. Three $50 thru .com gives you $179.85 which includes the $9.95 sending fees and three $50 orders thru select a florist gives you $165 including $5 each for local delivery. The total is $344.85. Now if I remember correctlly, someone posted that TF was raising the charge per order to $3.95, therefore TF charges $23.70 for those 6 orders and the monthly fee of $50 brings the total to $73.70. That translates to 21.4% discount in my book. For those purist that say this is better than getting an order through the WS, your are right! However, next month you only receive 5 orders from this site and 2 are from the .com and 3 are from the find a florist, the discount now jumps to 24.9%

As in all these examples, there is a cross over point where it does not become economically advantageous for you to do this. For florists in large metro areas, it probably works, but in smaller communities it probably won't.
And no matter whether the site is free or not, as Bloomzie says, if you don't see any orders, what difference does it make if there is no business generated.

And Patty, don't let me talk you out of it just because of Bloomzie's numbers. Please do your own math. For example, it is more advantageous to get an order thru the site rather than the "find a florist" button because of the sending fee, but during the Summer, how many orders can you expect during that FREE period?

 

[BOSS]

sending fee, but during the Summer, how many orders can you expect during that FREE period?

A true test of any "Service" is October thru May, no two ways about it...