The Floral CEO

On this week's episode, we're going to talk about sales in proposals and having a proposal that sells you, your company, your designs, your execution, and everything to that client. I do visually curated proposals. I have seen lots of proposals and I've done lots of different types of proposals. I do visually driven proposals so that when somebody opens this proposal, they feel their wedding. They can see the soft fluffiness of the blooms. They can see the bold colors, they can see the softness or the muted colors - and they can feel what their wedding is like.A lot of people are resistant and feel they can't do that kind of proposal, because it would take a lot of time, and they would spend more time in addition to meeting with the client for the consultation. This does not have to be that hard. You can simplify this process immensely. Tune in to this episode and learn the way you can add visual proposals to your process, painlessly.

In this episode of the Floral Hustle podcast, Jen shares her tips and insights on handling deposits in the floral business. She talks about simplifying the deposit process, offering clients different payment options, and how she handles the deposits she receives. Jen also discusses how she approaches special circumstances when it comes to keeping or refunding deposits and shares the importance of having a kindhearted approach in the business. Additionally, she touches on the topic of monthly coaching and the importance of growing revenue to solve various business problems.

In this week's episode of the Floral Hustle podcast, Jen discusses the three things that may be holding you back in your business. She emphasizes the importance of consistency in building relationships, responding to clients, and posting on social media. Jen also talks about how having the right mindset and thinking bigger can lead to significant growth and success in your business. Tune in to learn how to overcome these challenges and achieve your goals in the floral industry.

Notes:In this episode of the Floral Hustle podcast, Jen discusses the importance of forecasting for your wedding floral business and shares tips on how to accurately predict and manage your finances. Learn how to use simple tools like Google Sheets to track your revenue, expenses, and profit margin, and understand how to make adjustments throughout the year to ensure you meet your income goals.

In this episode we talk all about optimizing your ordering and strategizing on where the best place for that item is.We talk through ordering through multiple wholesalers and sourcing direct from rose farms. Leave this episode prepared to smart source this wedding season.

In this episode I want to talk about some of the signs that you should be raising your pricing.

Do you have a never ending to do list? Do you feel like you never make traction on your to do list? Here are three ways for you to ditch the overwhelm and get more done.#1 Lists- Use a notes app like Evernote to create folders for different subjects in your life. Capture things pouring out of your head so you can feel like you are not loosing things.#2 Sunday night prep- prepare for your week so you are setup for self. With Sunday night prep I make sure calendars are setup and filled up the info for everyone to be on the same stage. Then you can go through things like mail, figure out your plan for the week.#3 Make sure you are hiring the help you need to accomplish anything you have/need to be done. Most early entrepreneurs try to do it all and that gets you in trouble and leads to burn out. Having the help you need makes you feel more fulfilled.

When you get an inquiry the next steps are critical on wether you will end up with the wedding. I walk you through my consultation process that will help perfect your consultations for a higher average wedding and closing more couples.First thing you should do is make sure the inquiry is a good fit for business. Does the design match your aesthetic and is the budget in line with your minimum? Then I share my brochure that has starting at pricing in it. I then ask additional questions to make sure the inquiry is in alignment with the additional factors I have asked for further details on such as number of bridesmaids, if they need centerpieces, and the number of guest tables they estimate having. With this information I can determine if I need to educate them on their budget a bit or do I need to setup a consultation. With asking clarifying questions you are setting up your interactions to be worth your time investment.

This episode highlights some essential factors to consider when sourcing products from overseas factories. - Sourcing is not limited to just China, as factories from other countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Korea, and Thailand also participate in sourcing. - Alibaba.com and the Alibaba sites provide a vast range of countries and manufacturers enrolled in their supplier program, and so do other sites like DHgate. - There's typically a three-week shutdown of Chinese factories during Chinese New Year that buyers should note. To avoid delays, it's critical to place orders early during holiday seasons. - Asking for a real photo from a seller before ordering a sample is advisable, mainly to ensure that the product is not a mock-up and is what it actually looks like. - The shipping time for a product can vary depending on whether it is shipped by air or sea. The processing time also differs, similar to ordering from Amazon. - Checking communication in a timely manner with overseas suppliers is important due to the time difference. Many factories use translators, so clarifying misunderstandings is essential. - Paying through Alibaba guarantees that the factories listed will stand behind the terms of service. Alibaba has guarantees in place for payments made through their platform to ensure buyers are working with reputable factories. - There are reviews on the website to provide transparency on factory performance. A processing fee for payment protection on products is also involved. - It's crucial to remind shippers to use strong packaging to prevent damage to the product during shipping. - Samples are necessary to avoid surprises in size or color when the actual product arrives. It's advisable to request samples to be sent by air for items ranging from $50 to $150. - The pricing on Alibaba is generally more competitive than other sources, but other sources often offer fast shipping and allow customers to buy in lower quantities. - Customizations can be made to items listed on Alibaba, depending on the factory and the product being sold. - Customers can search for specific products on Alibaba and find them on the summary page, which is a collection of items under that search word. I hope these tips help you when sourcing from overseas, and I look forward to sharing more insights with you!

The ping in your email is real with requests for your to participate in a styled shoot. Your heart flutters and sinks at the opportunity. With so many florists agreeing to any styled shoot because they think they are supposed to- let me tell you that is not what you need to do. You should be inspired and have the ability to do something that you have been craving to create. When you are inspired the work is often a fun experience to create and it usually is your best work you are putting out there.

Avoid ghosting and spend time with customers that are more impactful and higher probability of closing. First thing I pay attention to is did the customer fill out all the information in your inquiry. If they did not- there is a high chance they are shotgunning pricing requests. I will give them an opportunity to answer the questions by asking again. I then am asking more details of their wedding to get a feel if their budget aligns with the floral needs they have. I also ask for inspiration photos for me to make sure it aligns with your design style.

Social media should not just be pretty pictures. Your social media can of course be a place for pretty pictures but having a place for you to talk and help educate your potential clients. You should be driving your content around driving business, positioning yourself as an expert, showing your potential and help educate your client. You should also be focusing on driving connections with niche’s you target or venues you want to focus on.Walk through this strategy that will drive connects through your ideal client.Download our social media guide at thefloralhustle.com/social

Start going all in on the main client you want to attract.Posting on social media should be centered around who you want to attract. With these posts you should consider also what you love doing and highlighting that so you start attracting what you love to do and what you want to attract more.Here is one strategy-You want to attract more clients that are getting married at this venue you love. Clients at this venue have larger budgets and also the style of flowers you love to create.Step 1. You create a blog post on your website of a wedding you did at this venue highlighting what you can do, how beautiful your work is and more of what you want to attract at this venue.Step 2. You then make graphics about this wedding you featured in this blog post. You create a Instagram post graphic and take text from your blog post to post on Instagram. Use the venue’s hashtags and tag the venue in the post.Step 3. You can resize that post and create and Instagram story graphic. Then you can use the Instagram sticker saying - NEW BLOG POST and then link the url from your blog.Step 4. Resize that graphic again to a Pinterest image. Create a total of 10 Pinterest graphics and use photos from your wedding highlighted in the post and have that link to your blog post. Trickle these out via a scheduling tool.Step 5. Next level- create a long form video tagging the video talking about areas you can put floral and share your excitement about the venue. Tag the venue and use their hashtags.Step 6. Make a reel with a quick 30-60 video of you talking about a fun idea for that venue, key floral considerations or something that speaks to that couple and that would benefit them to watch your video. You could also make a reel with trending music with a carousel of images from that wedding.

Some clients are flat out difficult. You struggle to answer why you should even be working with them. How do you stick up for yourself but still try to get business to fill your schedule. Sometimes you will need to walk away from unreasonable clients. Sometimes you will need to stand up to a client with unrealistic expectations and nicely explain that what they want will not work with their budget. Often you will need to educate your client because they have no idea what things cost and you need to show them in a nice way- that they cost way more than the current budget.Often when you are frustrated it is hard to educate someone who seems impossible. Pricing transparency is part of educating. If they get a brochure before meeting they have part of the education already. Just continue to show them simple math

In this episode I break down the day by day production of wedding week.Monday- I normally get roses delivered so they have a day to fully hydrate before processing.Tuesday- Pickup up local wholesaler flowers, process roses, do processing of other flowers.Wednesday- Start designing- Bouquets first, vase arrangementsThursday- Greening foam, start personals and hydration chamber them.Friday- Wrap bouquets, finish foam work, pack things up

When you get an initial consult my first step is to start to help educate a client on pricing of flowers. In my response with asking key questions about their wedding I attach a brochure to help them get an understanding of costs.Other questions I ask to help understand if they did note a budget so I can get more information to see if their budget is realistic.How many bridesmaids do you have?In addition to personal flowers do you need centerpieces?If you need centerpieces what is your approximate guest count?Can you send me your Pinterest board or 3 images that captures your floral vision?From a floral perspective what is one area you would like to focus on with your floral budget?If they do not have budget noted- ask again. I see you did not fill out the budget section of my inquiry. Normally peoples budget for basic floral wedding needs is 10-15% with that in mind do you have any initial budget guidance so I can start formulating ideas for your wedding.If this looks like responses that are in alignment with your design style and the pieces make sense with their budget then I will setup a time to meet to go through and formulate a formal estimate.Then I make a Bloom board which is a visual proposal in Canva.I put a deadline of 7-10 days and then followup if I have not received a reply within 3 days.This process has transparency around pricing that helps you have customers that understand your basic pricing structure before you move forward with investing time in proposals and consultations.

Its a lofty goal to say change your entire business in 3 months, but it is possible I’ve done it.What needs to change in your business?Sales? Profits? Not attracting enough leads? Attracting the wrong kind of leads? Are you in survival mode in your business and your life? Logistic breakdowns? Expenses out of control? Does your business feel overwhelming? Lack of fulfillment?The different sections of change needed need to be broken into sections to attack.Mindset-Your business and life together- Work/Life balanceNot enough leads- Wrong type- Marketing issueSales/Profits - Process breakdown.Mindset-Start building habits to support the version of you want to be.Start reading 10 pages of self development books a day.Positive affirmationsMeditationExercisingWork/Life Balance-You need to go and define what success looks like and how you want your business and life to fit together. Define success so you know the goal and vision moving forward.Not enough leads- Wrong type of leads-Are you putting 110% of your energy into getting there? Are you taking daily action to move towards your goals. What daily action will help kickstart your business. Start digging into what does your brand say? What is it attracting?Sales/ProfitsDive into what your profit margin is and is that where you want to be?For your goals what would your weddings need to look like. Average pricing, costs, profit margin and so on.What plans or actions can you take to attract sales.Are you networking with people that can make a difference in your business? That are in front of your ideal customers?Are you processes in place so you are not making last minute ordering decisions? Estimating your orders to not over order and eat away at your profits? Underordering to make last minute decisions.-

What makes people stand out? What makes a business stand out and what makes a business owner stand out?What do you want your stand out- be bold and different from the competition. How do you want to stand out as a business owner? How do you want to stand out in your life?Show work that is innovativeShow how your business is different.Does you business deliver educational value?Identify what stands out in your business. What makes someone want to book with you?Communication- Timely and concisePresentation- Visual proposals that sell!

This week - I'm going to give you a wedding season pep talk because I literally just had to give this to myself. The other night was looking at my calendar and I had just met with my decorator friend and like things felt heavy - it's gonna get real this year again!I'm very transparent and I want people to know that everybody struggles. I was worried - how am I going to do all of these things?I've made promises to myself. To make sure that I'm doing two podcasts a week to make sure I'm showing up on Monday, posting on social media and showing up in my social media and interacting and creating value, to make sure I'm sending an email that adds value.I stood back and said snap out of it!I don't do overwhelm. How am I going to fix it? What strategies am I going to put in place to help this feel lighter, feel easier?And then - I wondered if all my Flower Friends are trying to figure their stuff out right now and feeling the same way.Tune in to this episode to hear what you can do now to make sure you are prepared for wedding season - from actions you can take with your staffing, equipment and your own mindset.Check out my social media guide. thefloralhustle.com/social

You may heard you are the sum of the 5 people you hang out with the most. Those 5 friends could be- you parents, spouse, best friend and similar people in your life. Look at your friends- are they just getting by? Are they kicking butt and taking names- reaching and setting goals. Are they healthy? Stressed? Complaining? Happy? What are the traits that describe those people- that is what you are soaking up and that is driving you to your current position and state in life. You can change that- people can make an exit and you can bring in positive influences to fill those rolls. Your probably wondering how do I get these positive influence. You need to start putting yourself in scenarios that would foster those types of people. Podcasts, books and other personal development can also help you on your path to getting into a state of mind that will attract those types of friendships. Changing your circle will grow you in so many ways.

Growing you social media accounts is an exhausting affair is sometimes. Often you are looking at likes that aren’t translating to purchases. How do we get in front of people that need you or work with people who need your services.Getting in front of the right customers can be complicated. It is hard to way a flag that says couples come here. What if you were in front of other industry service providers that are constantly in front of clients needing your services. Winner! How do you do this?? Find industry professionals that. you can follow and support on social media and then during that time they to know you. Spend time interacting with other wedding professional to build relationships with them. Then start sharing content that they will want to put in front of their audience because it is filled with value.Check out my social media guide. thefloralhustle.com/social

What to post is a serious question that most business owners struggle with.Content ideas-Create a theme for days of the week.Meet us Monday- meet the owner, why we started this business, how you work with us? Are business offerings. Tip Tuesday or Wedding Wednesday is also a good theme day strategyTheme for the week- relevant topics for audience.Examples- Should you hire your florist for tear down, 3 ways to save money on your wedding flowers, top 2023 wedding trends, Who gets personal flowers in a wedding and so on. You can do a long form video, a 60 second reel and 30 second reel all out of your topic of the week.Stories content- wholesaler trip, unpacking, bouquet flowers filled and so on.Download our free social media guide at thefloralhustle.com/social

Isn’t it a crazy thing- you built a business and it looked like you are at the top of your game and success in yours! Sometimes you Girl Boss to much because you are afraid of fear- a fear of failure and a fear of judgement. If you have success in your business you have not failed so you are likely fearing rejection or potentially even fear success! The biggest thing is you need to define what your ideal business looks like. What needs to change? How does your mindset need to change and stop holding on to that you need to let go. You are the CEO of your business and can make those decisions. Get rid of everything that feels icky in your business and have a business that things feel good. Realign and redefine what feels good for you.You also could have Girl bossed to hard but love you business but there are parts that you don’t like. Figure out strategies to get those things that are on your plate. Is it worth it to get those things gone to free you to step back in as the CEO.You can do it! If you need additional support my one on one coaching could be the firecracker to get you back to a business you love! thefloralhustle.com/coachingn

Know where you are at closing percentage, average wedding costs, etc.Create a spreadsheet of current metrics to track the progress.Do a mental reset of your business- of your life if needed! Identify what you want- how you want your business to feel- what strategies you want to put in place.Look at your social- is it supporting the looks, feel, and direction you want to take your business? Are you showing up the way you need to in your business on social?Does your current portfolio support the work you want to attract? If not- change it!Look at how you are showing up in your business on all the different levels. Is that the experience the client you want to attract would expect? Are you standing out in the crowd of florists that a couple might meet with?Check out the Florist Start Kit for a bunch of goodies. thefloralhustle.com/startkit

Do you march to the beat of your own drum? Or do you follow the masses and try to make that work to drive your business? I think that many people have similar ways of getting to similar places in business.Fundamentally- you are the CEO of your business and can make decisions that feel good to you. The only thing I would consider is - is your changes to the standard pricing out there keep you profitable. If you aren't at the level of profitability what do you need to change- where are things breaking down?Download my florist pricing guide- thefloralhustle.com/pricing

There are a million different ways I have seen florists charge for these services. The fact is you need to do a system that works for you and makes you profitable. I look at each item as a separate item/cost. For delivery I look at the number of locations to deliver to, distance, the complexity of load in, does a truck need to be rented or is there parking to be paid. How easy is load in- small freight elevator- more $$$ Room flip- transition.This also is based on variables. Time frame, number of people needed, when timing, and if there is repurposing of flowers including deconstruction and moving something.Tear Down-I base this on timing-How long is the tear-down time frame? Some venues charge you for going over time so understanding you have enough time is critical. Do you need extra team members, are you disposing of things, how much glassware to clean up, how far is it to dump water, and so on? These are a few items I look at when estimating and then I put in an extra 30 min. charge clearly on the proposal so if it goes later I adjust the proposal without question.If you want my pricing guide that talks through this- visit thefloralhustle.com/pricing

Want to start a floral business? What is holding you back? Fear? Mindset? Confidence?Fear can be overwhelming- most commonly people are afraid of failure, afraid of rejection and afraid of disappointment. But what if you couldn’t fail because you define your own success? What if you understood- rejection is a part of the process to help you the right customer that absolutely loves what you have to offer? What if you were disappointed because you gave yourself grace to grow a business on your own terms.What if you changed your mindset to from- I don’t think I can do this. This seems hard to I can succeed and I am capable. What if you had a mindset of abundance and that money flows freely to me. And the mindset that now is your time and you can make things happen!Confidence can be one of the biggest things to stand in your way! What if you had the confidence to think you are capable of anything. Confidence to show up in your business as the face of your business. What if you had the confidence to make things happen?All of those pieces start to fall in place- now what? Where do you get started.First thing- head to thefloralhustle.com/starterkit and download the Florist Start Kit Guide. This guide is backed with business fundamental information and all the steps of starting your business.Next thing is get the basics out of the way, don’t overthink it! Name, Sales tax id’s and any other formal business registration for your state and city if needed. One of the most overthought part is your logo. Make one in Canva or I love using design crowd and submitting my vision and have artists around the world submit designs for you to pick a winner from. You can buy number of submissions, ask for revisions and pick a winner. My current floral business logo had 235 submissions, not all were diamonds- some were awful and some were fascinating. Then- get your all of your social media pages.Now- to build confidence and a large part of floral confidence comes with practice. Head to your local wholesaler to investing in some flowers and practice making different pieces. You can make one piece then photograph- tear it apart and make another item. You can start with an altar vase, bride bouquet, bridesmaid, flower girl, centerpieces, bud vases, wrist corsage, boutonniere, wearable tattoo or lapel flowers. You could create- 10-12 creations with the same flowers.Then start posting on social media. Post and introduction video, introduce yourself. Then start to find industry peers to follow.Planners, Photographers, venues, other florists, DJ’s and other wedding professionals. When they follow you back- which usually 30-40% do send them a DM to say thank you for following me. Tell them you would love to hear more about their business and asked for a virtual coffee date. Its ok to play the new kid on the block card.Then lets build an easy to start out with plan. A la carte flowers can be an easy way for you to start with having templated offerings that give you flexibility in blooms and textures. With this you can cover basic items within your scope of confidence. Share your a la carte offerings on social media, with other industry professionals and on your website.Once you meet with someone ask them for feedback.

Want to hear how you become a freelancer? How do you gain exposure to other florists to do this? There is a strategic way for you to gain exposure to key florists in your market that would be looking for florists to help them. Start interacting with their posts, post in your stories that you are available for freelancing. If there is a local florist group you could post that you have some availability in that group as well. Even sending a DM or email to a local florist and tell them you are a huge fan and would love to work with them. Start building relationships with florists in your market by also going to say hi and introduce yourself at your wholesaler.I hope this episode helps propel your freelancing strategy and you are working on some amazing projects this wedding season.

Investing in yourself can be scary and overwhelming not knowing if what you will learn has value and if you will see a return on your investment. The question of should I take this course and spend $x or should I Youtube it and wing it.I used to be the florist who felt I had been a florist forever so what would I really learn from something. I also was scared to invest in myself because the money wasn’t there. At this point I didn’t think I was worth investing in and I treated my business the same way. That all changed when a friend talked me into going to Flowerstock on Holly Chapple's farm. This was my first immersion into education, surrounding myself with elevated floral minds and being exposed to amazing floral educators. My mind was blown by the artistic out of the box designs of Sue McCleary, Gabriela Salazar of La Musa de las Flores, creative business like coach Julie Tobi and of course Holly Chapple. When I left that farm my mind was blown and my life was forever changed. That may sound dramatic but that trip inspired me to start my urban flower farm and take the Floret Farms workshop. It made me dig deep into defining what I truly want my business to look like in a creative business mastermind with Julie Tobi and enrolling in Sue McCleary’s virtual studio. This was just the tip of the iceberg because I started to notice the more design and business knowledge growth I had the more my average wedding increased. I then started consuming all sorts of personal development media- podcasts, books and our pal YouTube. But my investment didn’t stop there- I did design days with two local florists that I admired. I did coaching with a florist I admired that looked like she unapologetically did weddings she wanted to do and was paid accordingly to her amazing talents with grand and beautifully curated weddings filling her calendar.After my large initial investment I continue to try to learn and soak up knowledge from anyone I feel can add value to my business or even me as a person. Every year I have invested my business has grown in revenue and shrank in the volume of weddings I did.So the initial question is- should I invest in myself or Youtube it and I am on team invest in yourself. Part of the reason I am a coach is because I know that coaching/training can change someones life. The foundation of what education or coaching can give you is confidence. Confidence in your design work, confidence in your pricing, confidence in your proposals and during your consultations. Confidence drives a business forward in so many ways. People often take for granted how experience in making something again or working at a venue can close the couple you are meeting with.Sometimes learning something is not only or even a financial investment it is an investment of time. Sometimes that is the biggest investment of them all as an entrepreneur.Ways to invest in yourself without spending a dime: Podcasts- not just floral geared podcasts.Goaldigger podcastWomen of ImpactShe Means Business ShowThe Mindset MentorEarn Your HappyFlorist geared podcastsOf course -The Floral HustleBotanical BrouhahaFlower Ed.The Flower PodcastTeam Flower PodcastCountless opportunities to invest in design courses- online and in person. If you are looking to invest in yourself in a way that is unlike most courses or in person coaching I would love to work with you one on one to elevate your business, your mindset and the overall direction in your business. I have one spot available as of this recording so please send me a DM on Instagram or reach out on my website and so we can connect and see if coaching is right for you.

Do you want your social media to be simpler? Do you feel like you are always working on creating content, pushing content out and you are on the hamster wheel of content creation?Let me introduce you to a process called batching. Batching helps you take a focused amount of time and producing your content for the week/month or whatever time frame you choose. Because you are focused on creating in an efficient manner of focused time you will get so much done compared to broken amounts of time that literally has your brain changing focus every other second.But really to simplify your strategy of developing content, you need a plan. One plan is to pic one main source of content- your queen content. That content is the foundation for information to be trickled out to various sources because you will take that content and then take bits and pieces for that and make multiple types of content. For example- Blog on three ways to save money on your wedding flowers. The blog has your three main points. Then you take those three points and make a video of your 2-3 minutes talking about that content- This is a post for Instagram, Facebook and Tik Tok. Then you take 1 of those points that you are excited about and you make a 30-60 second video for a reel on that point- this could also be repurposed to Pinterest and Tik Tok. Then you could make a carousel post talking about your points of the week and various Pinterest graphics to drive traffic to your blog. All of this off of one piece of content.Want even more help with your social media? Head to thefloralhustle.com/social for a free guide that walks you through a successful social media account.

Want an easy way to dive into pricing correctly head to thefloralhustle.com/pricingIn the Facebook groups I am in- pricing is the most asked questions. A florist will post a picture then ask what would you charge. While I get some projects it is hard to know where to start with pricing a unique design concept, what other florists might charge for something could be drastically different from what you should/could be charging for that piece. When you step back from that statement you might ask yourself how would our pricing be different if we have the same inspiration picture? There are several ways that pricing could be different- #1 flower wholesale price could vary by region or even wholesaler. #2 The interpretation of the flowers used could be different from one florist to another. #3 The fullness of the completed piece could be different and with more flowers likely more cost is incurred. #4 Different markup thresholds- one florist could have a 3x markup on wholesale and another have a 4x markup. A florists labor cost could also be different- 20% with one and 25% with another.Normal pricing rule of thumb is-Wholesale cost of product x mark-up (3-4x)Plus Hard Goods Cost x markup (often 2x)Add design/labor fee 20-30%.Then on the whole wedding- Some florists charge a percentage of the total for setup/delivery/flip/tear down.I personally do not charge a flat fee and prefer the pay per item model. Then the couple is paying for the services they use and your not getting short changed by charging a flat rate and things are piled on you that weren’t originally agreed on.Setup/Delivery- On this cost I look at several factors. *Number of stops *Complexity of the stops *Is a delivery truck rental needed *How easy is it to load in. *Load in complexity- is it on the 15th floor of a huge building and you are loading into a tiny loading dock with a ridiculously small elevator. *Will I need a team of people to setup. *Is there a ton of work to get water if needed. *Is there a ton of onsite design work? This fee could be $250 up to several thousands of dollars or more if a luxury wedding.Room flip/repurposing- For this charge I look at complexity of the flip, time allotted for the flip, if things are being moved how complex is moving it and do I need additional team members. This could range $150- $500 or moreTear Down- This fee for me depends a ton on the timing. If the tear down is at 10pm, Midnight, 1am or next day I charge according to the time agreed and how long we have to have tear down complete. Timing I usually add an additional $50 for every half hour. Next day tear down which is my preferred I will position as half the price of late night tear down so they are incentivized to try and get the venue to allow next day. I also look at the complexity of the tear down and if there is a ton of water to dump or a ton of items to dispose of. This could range from $200-$750 and up depending on variables and more if it is a luxury wedding.But here is one thing that is the most important factor of them all- you are the CEO of your business and you determine your pricing. The only person who can truly dictate your pricing is you. I also think being the cheapest in town will leave you frustrated and feeling burnt out- you are running a business and need to make money.Want an easy way to dive into pricing correctly head to thefloralhustle.com/pricing

There are so many reasons to consider sourcing from local flower farms and with wedding season forecasted to be a big year now is the time to schedule in some research time to be able to incorporate locally sourced into the upcoming season.Adding this into your wedding flower business is going to really change so many things in your business. When I started incorporating locally grown flowers I felt like my portfolio instantly was more elevated. It brought unique blooms and the range of textures made things really pop.The freshness factor was really impacted when I started incorporating locally grown blooms. They are normally freshly cut by a flower flower, not packed in plastic and are in your hand to design with as much as a week sooner.My number on way I have found flower farmers is on Instagram. Other florists tagging using their product. You can also search slowflowers.com and the https://www.ascfg.org/Another huge factor that is I notice is the labor save of not having to unbox and unpackage a million things out of plastic. The waste of course is a total bummer but the time that it takes to get everything unpacked and out of the wrappers is a serious time investment. This is totally saved with buying local.

Social media seems like a scary and complicated place for most people to show up in any way shape or form but to show your face- is terrifying. When I ask most florists what is scary there are so many different answers.Even thinking about it gets me worried. I get anxious that I won’t know what to say. I’m worried what people will think. I don’t know what to talk about. I’m worried of what people will think.Another thing people are worried about is how they look. They potentially don’t like how they look or maybe they have a zit or something showing up that makes them feel less confident.They worry they are not an expert enough for people to listen to them. They worry about peers judgement.Thoughts of being made fun of or ridiculed.With all these worries and stories in your head that would be a big block to hit record or pull photos out of your photo phone folders wouldn’t it! How can we turn this around?Start changing the way you talk to yourself. If you have a-I am not good at statements in your head or that you are speaking into the universe. We need to start talking to ourselves better today!Start thinking about what a badass you are an how much knowledge that you haveYou are an expert- your deserve to be heard.Think about how you are helping the potential viewer.If this is free content you would putting out- its freeI Am affirmations.- Start training your brain. I am magnetic, I am good on camera, I am an expert in my field, people can learn from me andDo you feel braver in a certain outfit, underwear, boots or even a specific.Do you feel braver in a certain room or even with a filter on. If a filter help you how up- who cares - use it!Practice- Practice your craft to build confidence.Think about who will be watching your video- the majority are people you likely are more of a subject matter expert on what you are talking about. If another florist is watching if they can’t be kind or supportive they are not someone you want following your page anyways.The bottom line is- you are a badass and deserve success and to share your gift- now act according to that!Want more social media guidance- head on over to download our free social media guide. This guide is packed full of valuable content for you to elevate your social media. thefloralhustle.com/social

Growing flowers has been such an inspiring addition to my floral business in recent years. About 4 years ago I went to Flowerstock on Holly Chapple's farm and was so inspired by growing flowers and using them in your designs. This changed the direction of my business and made me start focusing on locally grown flowers. With that, I started my own growing journey and have learned so much along the way. If you want to start your growing journey the first thing I would start with is education. Learning all about growing flowers and the different steps was so helpful foundationally to help me have an amazing amount of blooms my first year. I started my education process by signing up for the Floret Farms workshop and which was an intensive course that gave me so much knowledge and ways to shorten the learning curve. Then I went and signed up for team flower membership and took the gardening portion of their course as well. That was great educational content because it focused on a smaller-scale grower that does most of the gardening herself.I then started deciding what I wanted to grow and picked blooms like Zinnias, scabiosa, strawflowers, rudbeckia, dahlias, silene lanterns, celosia, and lisianthus. I then sorted my seeds by the time it listed on each packet to plant. 8 weeks, 6-8 weeks, 4-6 weeks, and direct seed. At each time frame, I purchased a bunch of 4-tier greenhouses off of Amazon, grow lights, and seed starting mats. I then went and took my seed cells and filled them with Promix soil which I have found to be a great seed-starting soil. Then either covered the tray with a plastic tray it came with or saran wrap with a rubber band around it. I placed the tray on the seed mat in the greenhouse with a grow light directly overhead. The grow light is positioned above the actual tray but not very far above it that the plants are reaching for the light source. From there I watched and waited till the plant emerges then removed it from the seed mat and uncovered the plants. Then I watered and waited for them to grow and monitored the distance of the light so the plants would not become leggy from reaching for the light. When it is getting close to planting time I would harden off the plant by it having bits of exposure to the outdoors.When it was close to planting time I prepared my beds and prepared weed block fabric if I was using it which is plant-dependent. I prepared the beds with compost, garden soil, and peat moss, tilling all the soils into the existing ground. Then planted according to the plant spacing suggestions on the seed packet.For the dahlias I now wake up the dahlia tubers by removing them from the cold storage area and letting them wake up with their sprouts in the container/medium they were stored in. I then plant based on the tuber sprouting. I have found about 20% of purchased and reused do not sprout due to not having an eye or damage on the tuber.I hope you love this minisode- growing your own flowers can help elevate your designs, keep you creatively inspired and create a new love with being a florist.Greenhouses I used:https://www.amazon.com/Worth-Mini-Greenhouse-Collapsible-Propagation/dp/B06XBGC61D/ref=sr_1_5?crid=363XJJFE1LURV&keywords=mini+greenhouse&qid=1676356067&sprefix=mini+green%2Caps%2C665&sr=8-5My favorite seeds:https://shop.floretflowers.com/collections/seeds

Do not let social media anxiety get the best of you!3 ways to stop posting anxiety.#1 Have a plan! Build a concrete day or a theme for a week for you to post on that topic that day or multiple times in the week. Developing a strategy is critical for you to make social media happen consistently.#2 Do not post and ghost! To get interactions you need to spend time interacting with other accounts. I spend 15 min. a day to strategically interact with other people posts. I interact with florists and other wedding vendors to help build relationships. Being a better human is going to make and foster better human behavior.#3. Schedule it! Use a scheduling took such as Planoly, Tailwind or one of the social medias native tools. Remove the instability and batch your content.Have you downloaded the social media guide which walks through and audit and then it is filled with ideas to make social media less stressful! Download yours at thefloralhustle.com/social

A la carte flowers is an amazing way to add a lower budget option to your business without all the headache that comes with a full service wedding sometimes this is the is a great place to get started or add on smaller orders that are less work.I added a la carte flowers to my business 4 years. I was super inspired by Native Poppy in California. My a la carte flowers gives you the options to choose and be inspired by blooms you choose in the couples color palette. A customer can shop and buy it right on your website. I also give the option that they can do a contract/deposit to reserve the date if total numbers aren’t know yet. I give size options- small/petite Average/medium and large and lush for the custom to choose on bouquets. Then I made simple color palettes- autumn glow, simply white, bright and cherry, dark and moody and white with one or two accent colors. I made mockup using the color palettes to launch this and photographed everything for my website. I will deliver this if it is within 15 miles of my zip code for a fee. But I will not setup- then anyone can really drop off- easy.This is also a great way to have starting at pricing for your brochures, your communication and so on. It helps stop price shoppers because you are being transparent about your pricing.I hope you entertain adding this because it can be fun and great side revenue.

Want a guide to starting your floral business? - head to www.thefloralhustle.com/starterkit Wouldn’t you want to close more weddings? With these 5 ways to increase your bookings, you can go into this engagement season with a high closing ratio on the horizon.Prequalify with pricing guidanceMake your proposals more visualOffer price tiers of your itemsBuild repore during the consult and in email.Put an end date to your pricing. I often mention I will hold the date for one week and then that same thing is in the proposals.

Frankly social media can feel overwhelming. The trick to minimizing anxiety is to have less stressing about when and what you are posting and build a strategy behind the content you are producing and batch that content- LIKE A FLOWER BOSS! Batching is the practice of creating tons of content in a concentrated amount of time and then posting that content via a scheduling app so you are not actively having to post that content yourself.Let us start with the strategy behind posting- Let’s make a plan. That plan should not to be just posting pretty pictures. A plan that will help educate couples and wedding vendors to your page for informational content to help them on their wedding planning journey or vendor friends eager to share helpful content to their audience. You also could build in a strategy of introducing yourself and your business and have a strategy to help attract certain venues you love. Whatever it is you can create them days around those items- Meet us Monday- Tip Tuesday- Wedding Wednesday - Friday Fun- Friday flowers and on and on. Meet us Monday could have an intro post, then the next week a meet the team, an introduction to your service offerings and event a how can they work with your post. These could be done in a static, carousel or Video/Reel.You also could pick a theme of the week from an education standpoint. The best way to stretch your wedding flower budget- then several times a week you could do a video/reel, static post or carousel post giving various ideas. Then next week you pick a different topic and then it just evolves every week with fresh content.You can plan out a calander in advance but you will so much less anxiety knowing you have a plan of what to post.Now making and scheduling. I am a huge fan of Canva and when you have Canva pro it lets you resize to various social media posts sizing. You then could use a scheduling app like Planoly, Tailwind or the native scheduling apps. This is huge- schedule in a batch and then log on and verify your post is live when you are checking your feed.If you are looking for a little extra help on your planning adventure with social media head to https://www.thefloralhustle.com/social-media-guideThis free guide helps you audit your account to make sure foundationally it looks good. Then walks through strategy of the audited items. Plus there is a social media planning weekly schedule and a results tracking page so you can track your growth.

Want a guide to start your floral business? - head to www.thefloralhustle.com/starterkit Key points from the podcast!Having the right mindset!Having a minimum so you are not running around with low budget weddings.Providing an experience that is higher end.Doing multiple weddings- event though it is more to coordinate it is more revenue.Having a team will help you have more capability!Providing a great experience- will lead to more referrals.Delivering what you promise.Keeping the promises you make to yourselfHaving a brand that speaks to your style and not budget.Connecting with other vendorsForming partnerships

Many florists struggle with money ebbing and flowing in their business with big bursts of revenue and then a month's time goes by without revenue coming in. In this episode, I talk about 3 ways to grow reoccurring revenue in your floral business.#1. Weekly church accounts- Finding local churches that want to incorporate a beautiful floral arrangement for their congregation. This could be funded for the church by members sponsoring the week (for a birthday, anniversary, remembrance etc.), by a donation to the church or from an altar guild fun. Spend time weekly reaching out and sharing your business with area churches to help grow your weekly floral orders.#2 Annual flower orders- As a gift that will keep on coming someone buying their loved one annual flowers which shows up as a monthly flower arrangement delivered to their loved one. Every month in the first week of the month someone pre-placed the order to make sure they show their love and appreciation to their partner, Mom or a special someone in their life. This can be sold at Valentines, Mothers Day, Sweetest Day, Admin day or even Christmas. The initial gift is shared celebrating that holiday and then its shared the big news of the monthly gift they will receive.#3 Local business client orders- Many businesses that are client based businesses send flowers to clients for special events, get well soon or sympathy arrangements. You could be the go to florist for that business to help them have a go to person that can make it easy for them and make their client feel special. Dedicate 10 minutes a week to reaching out to insurance companies, financial planning offices and any other that has a client base that could benefit or already sends their customers flowers.

That classes and education will elevate you to new heights.Its ok to court/work with multiple wholesalers.A cooler is needed- but your don’t need a new one.Investing in key pieces will build revenue quickly.I didn’t need to say yes to everything and everyone.I didn’t need to be the cheapest in town.I didn’t need to do 100 weddingsRenting a truck- is not a big dealAll the expensive solutions- seriously only need waterBeing an S-Corp didn’t require me to be a big companyWant a guide to start your floral business- head to www.thefloralhustle.com/starterkit

Does you floral business give you anxiety? Or has it made your chest feel tight, have a few tears roll down your face or even to the point of running to the bathroom and tossing your cookies sounded like I great idea. I get you! We are often in high intensity situations that can increase emotions and make us feel like the world is closing is on us…but the difference is we can make our reaction to stressful situations change today!This episode is filled with tips for you to be the boss of your anxiety and say- no today old friend.The 15 min. reset. When things are feeling tough this tool calm help calm your nerves and reset your energy. Step away from your situation and find a calming area- sitting down potentially away from the area causing your stress. Start to think about- in this situation what do I have control of? #1 you can control how you react and feel about a situation and start to feel the control you have in your emotions and as the CEO of your business.Do not put all your eggs in one wholesaler basket. Having sources gives you options. Order hard to find product from two places. Also do not promise specific flowers to clients- that can add so much anxiety.Making things easy for what your are available for. Don’t like funeral work?- You are not available for it.Pulling everything ahead of time. Making sure you have everything and have everything prepped.Book the help you need. Estimate the work on one wedding and book help accordingly.

Download our free guide to a social media audit and planning. Go to www.thefloralhustle.com/social to get yours today! Everyone is so focused on growing their social media followers but today let's stop and think about what we really want to accomplish. Are you looking for followers because you want notoriety or to live the influencer life when your social media account blows up? Being an influencer is the #1 career choice for people coming out of college. But- I run a business and want to attract the right client who needs my services - with that I want to help educate them, promote my offerings, be relatable to build trust and inspire the follower. Most people want to post pretty pictures- the end. To keep and gain an engaged audience you need more than just a pretty picture. There are 4 types of posts I recommend- Educate, Promote, Relatable, and Inspire.To help educate your potential clients and make your social media easier- take a single topic every week and dissect that into various forms of content all centered around that one idea. Concept- Winter weddings. Post #1 talks all about flowers freezing and ideas around getting outdoor photos but still having nice photos of your flowers outside. Long-form video - 3-4 minutes long.Post #2 Carousel posts of the main points from your video.Post #3 30-second video of one of your points from your long-form video.Post #4 Reel featuring winter bouquets with trending music.Post #4 Carousel post with more cold weather-friendly bouquet options (evergreen, pinecones, twigs etc.).Post #5 Your favorite winter bouquet inspiration and why- Things to have on your social profileWhere you areWhat you sellWho you areLinktree- is a great resource in your social media bio to help share different points in your business that you want to route your clients to.

Is that time of year that you are freaking out for the amount of weddings you have booked?Every year this happens to even the best florists.Step #1 Verify your feeling is realty. Apply numbers to truly investigate if what you are feeling is true. Data can shed light and help provide big insight into what the year is looking like. Go in and record in a spread sheet separated by month the weddings you have. Then go in and put the estimated gross of that wedding. How does it look?Then, if that looks bad. Test your connections points on your website. Inquiry forms, chat and any other connection point on your website. Make sure all of the basic things are functioning.Now-what can you do if it a realty.Put yourself out there showing the masses you are available! Created graphics in a place like Canva. Then make similar graphics explain how people can book your, what your process looks like, and even make a screen recording video of how they can connect with you.Release the energy of feeling things are out of your control. We re action taking problem solving people. Take action!Wedding planners can be in a constant source of couples needing to book florists. Think out of the box on how to get in front of wedding planners.

For years in my business I felt like I had to give everyone a great deal and that was my path to success- but I also felt when I was working with such wonderful people that I wanted to give them a deal to give them what they really wanted but couldn't afford unless I was giving away the farm. I felt like Profit was a bad word. I started making it in my mind a hobby of creating something with joy is ok to not make a profit because the people are so great and I bet I'll get good photos after....and on and on.Changing that narrative was critical- because even though I wanted to start making some money- I now was attacking my unideal client because they wanted things as cheap as possible. I had the cheapest wins mentality forever- that was not how profitability works but I kept doing them and trying to grow a little bit more each time.Consumers often make Profit a bad word- you need to condition yourself that it is a critical part of your business and you deserve it.How can you change the narrative of profit in your business?What profit can help you accomplish?Why you need it!Looking at profits/costs in a transaction. Arrangement- shipping, freelancer, car insurance to delivery, delivery boxes etc.

My top 5 tools for your floral business. I breakdown why I love all of these amazing tools.Canva- Online and an appPhoto Shop Express- AppQuickbooksPlanoly Online and an appG-Suite Online and an appBonus- Zelle Online and an app. Works with more

Objections come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes it might not be a plain objection from you couple- it might be your objection. I want to talk about some objections I have heard from my couples, myself as my business has evolved, and what I have heard from coaching clients and fellow florists. Often reframing the objection and showing another perspectives can help lead the client. But you also need to define to yourself if this objection on their or your part come up if there is a hard line of something you are not willing to do.One of my biggest personal objection when someone says they want to use bridesmaids bouquets as centerpieces. When I hear this- It makes me scream inside my head- NO!!! But that probably wouldn't lead the conversation in a good direction so then I do my first step and ask a clarifying question to make sure I heard and understood what they said correctly. - Clarifying question- Just to make sure I understand what you are wanting to do- you are wanting to repurpose the bridesmaids bouquets and use them as centerpiece? Then they likely will save yes. I then help validate their idea to save money is a good one- so you acknowledge it was a good thought but....let me share some of the things that has happened with some of my other weddings when doing this very thing- bouquet didn't make it because bridesmaid forgot, bouquet was laid on its side and left in the sun and was brown and burnt., The flowers were out of water for 5 hours and were seriously drooping. Then suggest usage in a place that could be enhanced by the flowers but not be the only thing on it so the condition is a little less important. Offer budget centerpiece ideas, talk about the stress of worrying if they get there and talk about is $400 worth the stress, running around, making the head table not look as fabulous and potentially someone having a centerpiece with dead flowers.I want all tall centerpieces- this is often a bad idea because it is not the best look. I then pull up some photos and show them how your eye travels across the room and it travels flat with all tall. You could show them examples just using vases of how you look at it.Here are some additional questions I cover-I would like you to do the personals and Aunt Karen is going to do the centerpieces-Your bid is higher than another florist's- will you match it?Why are wedding flowers so expensive?Why are trader joe's flowers so much cheaperWill you take another event on that day?

Time to audit all the things related to your budget. First- check in with your website and technology products. What business tools do you have and are you utilizing them and are they working correctly, For each tool- expense- ROI- and am I utilizing all the tools.Then look at regular expenses. Look at your taxes, should you be starting a 401 Simple Plan. Dive into what you have forecasted so you can see what will help. Look at your expenses and what your ROI is and what things look like then make plans to be using tools that are, making your business more profitable. If you never take this time- things will never move forward.

You don't need to be a naptime warrior or work till midnight.1st off is to really identify what you are wanting from your business. Financially, how you want it to feel, and how much time you have to realistically invest. Then once you have that you need to talk to your support system and explain what you are wanting to do and the support you need. Explain your business to your kids and how things could look different.2nd- If this is a side hustle check if you have an employment agreement that prohibits another job. I ran into this struggle but luckily in my interview, I mentioned my side business. Look at how your job/motherhood will work if you have a consult request during the day or a Friday wedding. Plus if you have a local wholesaler is it close enough to do a lunchtime flower pickup?3rd- Systemize everything. Use things like QuickBooks, canva to create proposals from templates, email templates for quick responses, base floral prices so you can answer quick questions or have a brochure put together.4th Technology- a phone that can keep your email, canva proposals, and whatever else might be helpful when you are out an about.Calander reminders-When clients are booked put in calendar reminders for check-in times, when you need to order flowers and when the final payment is due. This will help keep you on track.Sunday prep- Get organized for the week. Touch base with your partner on what you need help with that week. Get pull lists ready and print anything you need for the week for production.Mom Hustle Support- you deserve to have something outside of your motherhood. Part-time childcare, working during school hours, partner support to work.Have a play area, crafts, independent games, distractions, tv- whatever can give you a little extra time to work when things are busy.Get help- So often we are afraid that getting help will make things less profitable or we wonder if you can afford it at all. You are not superwoman and events are very condensed so do not feel guilty when you hire help. Plus if you build a network of flower friends maybe at some points you can help them out so you build a support network.Give yourself Grace! Your learning and you are making big leaps.

Today you are in for a treat. We are talking about three tested tactics to grow your business in 2023. You're thinking - what do I want my business to do? How do I want my business to grow? These three ways have made an impact, of course, financially, but also just how my business feels in the culture I've created in growing my business.Reaching out to the wedding communityOne of the ways to really expand your reach is by networking with other vendors. One wedding vendor could come into contact with 30-50 couples and if you are their first thought if the couple asks about florists you want to be someone they think of. Vendors at the bottom of the booking funnel- like photographers, event decorators, venues, and most importantly wedding planners. Especially if you have a unique niche- sustainable weddings and cultural weddings. Flower friends are also a great source- they could be booked when they receive an inquiry. Referrals going around between flower friends are the best type of referrals.Previous clients- After so many years I have a large referral base from customers based on the years I have been doing this but you can start cultivating referrals. I have offered a bouquet of flowers delivered. Sent personal thank you notes and so on.A la carte floral-If you have the capacity to take on lower-budget weddings or you want a solution for referrals that are under your minimum. This has to be easy and not a lot of work with the revenue associated. Have an easy checkout process with the most popular items. I have woken up with $3000 orders which are great and this is also built-in creative freedom which is also amazing.