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- Inspiration Videos – 5 Ways to Use Video to help promote your Flower Business
- Monday, September 06, 2010
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Opening a florist boutique can be a daunting experience, especially if you are located in a big city with many competitors or a rural village with little traffic. However, if you develop a successful marketing campaign, it can also be very profitable as there are always events, celebrations and holidays that require flowers. There are also long term contracts which can be established with local churches, hotels, hospitals, restaurants and other businesses, who need flowers delivered or arranged on a regular basis. So how do people search or find the right florist for their event or special occasion in their area? Why not create a video demonstrating the flowers you have on offer, the bouquets you design, the custom services that you provide and your location. All this information will help potential clients choose your outlet or designs, as well as building brand awareness and presenting your business as being professional and accessible.
In the videos below, we see a range of florists who have used video to help promote and market their businesses, as well as highlight their skills, services and flowers on offer.
1. Overview of Florist Shop.
If you are a florist located in a large city, an excellent way to market your business is to create a short video giving an brief overview of your business. The Windsor Florist in New York is a great example of a business which has exploited the opportunities of video to promote their business but also highlight their location, services and their specialty products. Sam Karalis, part-owner of Windsor florist, makes us feel welcome and establishes a personal connection with potential clients. We discover they have been in business since 1936, specialise in orchids and are Zagat rated. These simple pieces of information convey to the client that they are a creditable and reputable outlet and if I were in the neighbourhood, I would certainly pop in to say hello.
What you’ll need:
- A Microphone to record your voice-over.
- A tripod – see here for a selection of affordable tripods
- A Camcorder - Flip Camcorders and Kodak Zi8 camcorders are available from $120
- trakAxPC – Buy now for $24.95
2. Location.
Before you select the location for your florist shop, be sure that a market exists for your flowers in that community. You should find out how many consumers are there in your marketplace? What is their income? How old are they? How often do your target customers buy flowers? Where do they live?etc. If you are located in a small neighbourhood or city, a promotional video, as part of a marketing campaign, is a great way to target these customers and highlight your location, services and unique designs on offer. If you are successful, you can become rooted (excuse the pun) in the community and develop long lasting relationships. Norwood Florist and Gift shop is one such example. Firstly, they show us where they are located and explain to us the services they provide. However, you get this overwhelming feeling that they are an important part of the community and they really consider their clients as friends and are honoured to share their special moments in their lives. What a great way to make a connection and attract new customers.
What you’ll need:
- A Microphone to record your voice-over.
- A tripod – see here for a selection of affordable tripods
- A Camcorder - Flip Camcorders and Kodak Zi8 camcorders are available from $120
- trakAxPC – Buy now for $24.95
3. Weddings & Special Events.
Providing flowers for weddings and special events can really help increase your brand awareness and in turn increase your profits. Beautiful flower arrangements at a wedding or special event can be a real conversation piece. After the wedding dress and food, the next major talking point is the flowers. Get this right and people may come to you for their own flower arrangements or spread positive comments through word of mouth.
In the first video, we see Beth Leon Guerrero of WildFlowers Inc, who specialises in weddings and special events. From the outset, we get a clear understanding that they take care and pride in their work and their goal is to bring their client’s vision to life through beautiful arrangements. As they cater for events, they also provide flower accessories, lights, fabric, furniture rentals, etc. Most importantly, this video highlights the passion they have for their work and clients, which a printed brochure can never convey.
In the second video, we see an excellent example of a florist taking the initiative and actually recording and presenting their work in a real life situation. The people at Dutch Bloemen Winkel show evidence of their work in a real setting and would give any potential client a reassuring feeling that they can achieve your vision and make it a truly special day.
(Tip: If you are providing flowers for a wedding or event, simply ask the bride or organiser if you can take some footage before the guests arrive).
What you’ll need:
- A Microphone to record your voice-over.
- A tripod – see here for a selection of affordable tripods
- A Camcorder - Flip Camcorders and Kodak Zi8 camcorders are available from $120
- trakAxPC – Buy now for $24.95
4. Create a Slideshow.
Are you running your florist by yourself? Are you stuck for time? Are you on a tight budget? Then why not use some of your photos to create a slideshow of your creations. Lisa Foster Floral Design is one such example of how to create a slideshow of your work. If you have professional photos lying around why not use them to make a photo slideshow. If you don’t have any photos and are on a tight budget, use a digital camera or borrow one from a friend and take some yourself. This is a very quick and cheap option, nevertheless it is a great way to promote your business and allow potential clients to view your work. To achieve a similar effect to the video above, add some “Zoom” effects and keep your font choice crisp and simple (see here for more ideas on fonts).
What you’ll need:
- Photos
- A Digital Camera or Borrowed Camera
- trakAxPC – Buy now for $24.95
5 . Become an Expert.
As mentioned in previous blogs, creating a weblog for your site or video hosting sites like YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, etc. is a great way to promote your business and share your knowledge and experience. If you constantly submit quality content, not only will you soon become recognised as a local expert in your field but also enhance your creditability while increasing your web traffic and search engine rankings. Here we see an expert from ProFlowers.com, a flower delivery service, explaining to us how to prep and position a wonderful rose arrangement. This is a great way to promote and market proflowers as you can visually see the results that the vendor can achieve. It also provides great tips to clients on how to present their flower arrangement.
What you’ll need:
- A Microphone to record your voice-over.
- A tripod – see here for a selection of affordable tripods
- A Camcorder - Flip Camcorders and Kodak Zi8 camcorders are available from $120
- trakAxPC – Buy now for $24.95
Remember trakAxPC can be used for all your video editing needs. Take advantage of our special price - buy trakAxPC today for just $24.95.
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Hi - unfortunately the iPad and the iPhone do not support Flash which is used to embed the videos on this page, so they are not playing correctly. Sorry about this!