Online #Flower Orders Made REALLY Easy

In this high tech world, we can sometimes over-complicate things.

Like ordering flowers.

Yes you can order flower arrangements online, and yes you can still order by phone.

But why not a simple email?

But here's what happened to a returning customer that simply wanted to send another floral gift to her friend:

> Hi Dale and Simon(?)
> And a Merry Christmas to you too.
> Yesterday I submitted an order for Santa's Rosy Cheeks SSR1-2932 $53.99, promotion code SSR-CY13 for Patricia D on Salt Spring Island to be delivered December 21st.
> You have delivered flowers to her for me before.
> I did not receive a confirmation email from you so attempted to resubmit this morning. My cart came up as a double order so I did not submit it. My mistake??
> Do you want me to start over again or do you have my original order from yesterday and just not had time to confirm? I know it's a busy time.
> Awaiting your instructions, Iris F

Our response was simple. This was a returning customer. We had all the sender's information already on file. We had all the info for the recipient too.

So instead of asking our customer to go through the entire online ordering process one more time, we sent a simple email reply.

"Thanks, Iris. We have almost everything we need for your flower order in Salt Spring. Can we use the same credit card as your last order, with the number ending in 7654? And if yes, please email reply with the greeting card message. Once received, we'll send you an Order Confirmation Invoice."

Two minutes later, our customer replied authorizing the credit card and supplying the card message.

It can be SO easy sometimes, that we sometimes forget to K.I.S.S.

Do YOU Answer Your Own Phones 24/7?

No, not a secretary or an answering service.

I'm talking about YOU the business owner...actually answering the phone.

Because THAT was our niche.

We answered our own phones...24/7...365. Just call 1-800-705-ROSE(7673) and not only did you get a live body, you got the owner.

When we started with their website back in 1998, we were going to be different.


When you wanted us...you got us...at any time of day or night.

Which was fine during regular business hours.

But how about in the middle of the night? Yup, had to answer within 3 rings and try to sound intelligent when the customer in Singapore wanted to place a flower order for delivery in Kenora.

Washroom break? Not going to happen...the mobile phone & order pad went with me.

Watching my daughter's softball game? Mobile phone & clipboard with order forms attached. Sometimes I even brought my laptop & tethered to my cell phone to get wifi...so I could process the order and our customers didn't have to wait for an Order Confirmation.

Holidays? Nope...the phone went with me.

But did it work? Sure did! We built our internet business from 0 customers to a database of over 37,000 customers today.

But growth has its price.

Something had to give...and it did.

In 2004 at the ripe old age of 43, I had the heart attack. A stent and two angioplasties.

And two days after surgery I was back at my desk taking calls.

But the writing was seriously on the wall. Enough was enough.

We actually incorporated an online shopping cart AND started with an answering service soon after.

Today, I still answer the phones. From 6:00 in the morning to 4:00 in the afternoon Monday to Friday, and from 8:00 to 2:00 on Saturday and Sunday.

That's only 62 hours a week, but still better than 168, don't you think?

Are You the Closest #Florist to...???

Do you want the closest florist...or the best flower shop to deliver your gift?

Since when did proximity mean quality?

With over 18,000 florists in Canada & the U.S....

How do YOU know whether a shop is good?

The answer is...you probably won't have a clue.

 
There are three ways to find a florist in Canada on the 'net for nationwide deliveries:

1. Search for florist or flowers, plus the city you're looking for. This will give you a whole pile of results whether you're using Google, Bing, or Yahoo. There is no certainty as to what flower shop is good or not. Roll the dice & take your chances.
2. Go to a "monster" brand like FTD or Teleflora that have a number of members. They will chose the shop that will fill your order. Again, it won't necessarily be the best shop...it might even be the shop that owes them the most money that fills your order!
3. Use a trusted internet florist like Simon Says Roses. We know the best shops in all cities and major towns in Canada. We've developed a relationship with shop owners & staff all over the country, as we've been in the business for over 20 years. Many shops get hundreds of orders a year from us, worth thousands of dollars. You get a professional, quality gift...or it gets replaced. And the shop may lose our business if they mess up your order, so chances are small that it won't be done properly.

Our motto is "our job is to make you look good".

We take our job very seriously!

The Internet's Broken...I Can't Find a Florist!

So we take an order for birthday flowers in Princeton, B.C.

Shouldn't be a problem as we've sent orders to the only shop in town a number of times before.

The town is too small for the florist to be a member of FTD, Teleflora, or 1-800 flowers as there simply isn't the volume of orders to make it worthwhile.

But as a service to our customers, we end up putting these orders on our business credit card. We don't get any commission on these orders...it's simply a service we're providing.

So we start calling at noon yesterday. Once an hour until closing. Hmmm...no answer...so we start again at 9:00 this morning with the same result.

No answer...no voice mail....is the shop out of business?

So now I put on my detective's cap.

The order was going to a nursing home, so I tried phoning there.

"Yes, the shop that you've always used in the past is now closed. There's a new place that opened two weeks ago. Sweet Somethingorother. Nope...sorry...don't know the phone number."

Not exactly the answer I was looking for, but it was a start.

So we tried a Google search...no luck. Probably too new for a website.

Sat back & thought for a minute as to where else in Princeton might receive a lot of flowers. The hospital!!!

Did a Google search & called, but the operator had no answer...BUT...the hairdresser might know!

So she gives me the number for the hair salon and I call over there.

"YES...there is a shop that just opened a few doors down. Hold on a second, and I'll walk over there with the phone...Hi, it's Ron speaking...sure we'll take your order".

Long story short, we placed the order over the phone.

Gotta' love small towns.

Easiest Way to Order ANYTHING on the Internet

We all want an easy way to order things on the 'net. We want to do it fast...and keep it simple.

Is it online through a shopping cart with a bunch of information that you have to fill out?

How about picking up the phone? But you still need to recite all the information.

Or maybe the single easiest way to order anything on the internet might be...

EMAIL!!!

Just received this email from a customer...

"Hi, Frank. I'd like to order flowers again for my Mom (Julie Smith) on her birthday for November 12th. Her information hasn't changed, and mine hasn't either.
Please send the same thing as last year (she loved what you sent), with the same card message. Use the credit card we used for Mother's Day, ending in "4398". Please send me an Invoice by email once it's done. Any problems, let me know.

Thanks much. Jim Smith."


We pulled up Jim's file by searching on his name, together with his Mom's name, and we copied last year's order changing only the delivery date to this year.

Short...sweet...and all the information we need is there.

When you have a relationship with your customers, ordering can be REALLY easy!

Did We Miss Christmas Already?

And here I thought there was plenty of time.

Christmas was almost two months away, so I thought I could wait. NOT!

 

I had two reminders this week to update our Christmas flowers web page.

The first was an online order. Granted it was for a birthday and not the holidays, but the customer had ordered a Christmas flower centrepiece from last year's product offerings that I hadn't planned on putting out there for this year.

I changed my mind really quick. When somebody buys a flower arrangement, it tells me that people like the style and price, so it's going to stay on the site!

The second reminder came in a phone call. The customer had just ordered two sympathy pieces for Norway last week, and loved the quality of the flowers and the customer service we provided. She now wanted to order Christmas floral arrangements for Canada as she was leaving for a six month stay in Mexico, and wanted to get her shopping out of the way.

The problem with our website is that it had a couple of products with "Sold Out" on them. Thinking this was last year's Christmas catalogue, she called asking when this year's products would be available online.

I'm a little slow, and hate promoting Christmas way in advance. But I also get the message.

So effect immediately, our Christmas flower & gift page is now updated and active.

Thanks as always to our customers (you don't have to tell me three times to get things done)!

You've Had a Website for HOW long?

I'm feeling very "experienced" today.

I just realized that we're coming up to 15 years with our website at www.simonsaysroses.com

In terms of the internet, we're ancient.

But we were far from "cutting edge". The flower industry in Canada is SO competitive that we were the fifth flowershop with a website in Victoria. We weren't leaders...we were followers. But instead of the standard 2 or 3 page site, we went big with a page for every city and town in Canada, and catalogues for over 150 countries as well. Our site became huge...very quickly.

After all, if people wanted flowers anywhere in the world, why not order them from us?


Have you ever heard of AltaVista, Lycos, Excite, or HotBot? These were the popular search engines before Google became a noun AND a verb. We had a lot of people in the early days that found us in directories that weren't Google, Yahoo or MSN/Bing.

Yup, we've been around that long.

So where were our customers coming from? Is there a way to analyze this information? Considering Google Analytics started in November, 2005, our analytics program started in October of 1998.

That's 7 years BEFORE Google!

These analytics programs are great. I found out that:

1. Over 1.2 million searches have been done on Google that resulted in people hitting the Simon Says Roses website.
2. The most popular keyword is "flower", with over 274,000 searches.
3. Our rose page at www.simonsaysroses.com/telerose.htm is our most popular page, with 5.5% of people viewing that page.
4. Although the vast majority of people finding us have a .com, .net, or .ca domain, we have had one page view from the .va domain...which is for Vatican City!
5. Of our top 6 customers, three live in Toronto, one in Vancouver, one in Calgary, and the other is from Yellowknife.

All six have been ordering from us for years and although we've never met personally, we do have great phone conversations and have built long term relationships.

And that's the fun part of having an online flower business...even after 15 years!

Good Deeds Sometimes DO Get Punished

So we had an order come in online, at 2:20 in the afternoon.

It was for same day flower delivery to the Lions Gate Hospital in North Vancouver.

I knew it was tight for time. I knew I had to rush to process the order in our point of sale, and send it to our sister shop in Vancouver. I knew that a miracle had to happen!

IT DIDN'T.

Normally I don't accept orders past 1:00 for same day delivery, because orders take time to process, the arrangement has to be constructed, and hopefully a driver is still around at the end of the day for delivery. I had my fingers crossed, but a busy shop in a big city like Vancouver might make it work.


I took a chance...and it backfired big time.

In Special Instructions, I informed the delivery service to deliver the following morning if it was too late for today. The sender of the floral arrangement didn't see these instructions when I emailed her Order Confirmation Invoice.

So.....the order didn't get delivered until the following morning, BUT...


...when we mark an order delivered, it triggers a Delivery Confirmation email to the sender.

And the Confirmation had the previous day's date!

So the sender thinks it was delivered on the day she requested, but it wasn't.

It was just an oversight in not changing the date, but now the trouble begins.

We were liars...incompetent...rude...you name it. "You said it was delivered on Monday and it wasn't delivered until Tuesday morning. Your business is terrible and I'll never use you again!"  And of course this all gets posted to Social Media as a negative review about how awful our business is.

All because we over-promised and under-delivered.

We tried to be accommodating, and it didn't work.

So we get a negative review, for the world to see.

Lesson learned!

Thank you for calling Simon Says Roses...Frank Speaking...

So it's Friday afternoon, and the phone rings.

I answer the phone in my usual way.

"Thank you for calling Simon Says Roses...Frank speaking."

The reply?

F**k off !!!

I didn't know how to respond.


There must have been 10 seconds of silence.

I finally blurted out "hello", not sure of what the caller might say next.

Was this a harassment call? An obscene caller? Someone upset about their flower order?

Nope.

He thought he was getting a pre-recorded voice message.

 WOW.

Now I've been told I have a "radio voice", but to think my greeting was a pre-recorded voice message?

And then to be told my two favourite words of all time?

I warned the sender I was posting this on my blog...but I'll not provide his name...to protect the "innocent".

Heck of a way to start my weekend, I'll have to admit...

You Don't Bring Me #Flowers Anymore :l

Florists sell flowers. Duh.

Loose wrapped flowers to arrange in her own vase basket arrangements, wreaths, funeral sprays,  & floral arrangements are what florists are known for.

BUT...times they are a-changin'!

Did you know we now do fruit baskets, gourmet food baskets...even meat & cheese or all chocolate baskets?

Our customers tastes have dictated that we change our product offerings.

We've almost become your "gift concierge", as given enough advance time (and the money to do the shopping), we can construct almost any basket you can think of.

Give us a call for a custom order.

You may be surprised at what we can do for you!

#Canada Florist Detectives?

We expect a lot from our customers when it comes to ordering flowers online.

Just think of all the information you need to send an online gift in Canada:

• recipient's name
• address
• name of the company, if delivery to a business
• phone number
• postal code
• greeting card message
• your name
• address
• phone number
• postal code
• email address
• credit card information
• delivery date
• Product Order Code

 Many times, some of this information is simply not available.

Our customers at Simon Says often phone for help.

As "Florist Detectives", there are a number of tools that we use to find missing information.

Hardly anybody uses the phone book anymore, but at http://whitepages.ca/ we can search based on a little bit of information, and find out a lot! This site allows us to search the name of the recipient, the name of a business, the phone number, or the address, and all the information comes up that we need (as long as the person has a landline).

At https://maps.google.com/ we can type in the address, to see if the location even exists.

With our point of sale system, there are data bases included which allows us to type in the name of a hospital, funeral home, or nursing home, and the address and phone number automatically pops up.

Sometimes we have requests to deliver in rural areas. That's where a postal code comes in handy. We Google the postal code, up comes a map, we expand the map view to see the surrounding area, and figure out where to look for a florist in a surrounding community. Then with the FTD or Teleflora order transmission systems, we can quickly find an affiliate shop across Canada or the U.S. as part of their database of flowershops.

And yes, there are remote areas where NO florist is willing to deliver, or where courier charges make it too expensive.

So if you're stuck...give us a call (shameless plug) at 1-800-705-7673. Please don't let missing information cause you to miss an important occasion. Part of our service as Canadian florists is to help our customers...in any way we can!

Trying to Make Lemonade out of Flowers

We all try to be perfect.We try to never screw up. But sometimes *hit happens.

We had flowers going to a customer that worked in the Prince Rupert Hospital. The sender was prepared, as he ordered over a week in advance.

And the designer blew it.

Instead of reading the delivery date, she assumed the order was for same day flower delivery. She sent out the flower order with the delivery service that very day. Then we found out that the recipient wasn't going to be at work for the next week!

She lived on an island outside of Rupert, and now had to come in to retrieve her gift.

The sender was irate, to say the least.

So how do you fix a colossal screw up?

What we did at Simon Says Roses is to send out a replacement flower arrangement on the proper delivery date to the hospital, AND you add a box of chocolates as an apology. Of course at our cost.

...and hope like he** that the sender accepts your apology, and is willing to do business with you again.

Lesson learned...we all screw up sometime, but hopefully it's how we handle our mistakes that keeps us in business!

Profile of an Ideal Florist Customer

I am part of a couple of marketing groups at the local level.

I'm the co-organizer of the Victoria Marketing Meetup Group and also an active member of the Top 100 Victoria Referral Group on LinkedIn.

Someone at one of the groups asked me the other day of what our "ideal customer" would look like.

What a great question!

I've never really thought of it.

There have been a number of fantastic customers that have been very kind to Simon Says Roses over the years, but one client in particular comes to mind.

She is a realtor of higher end properties in the GTA, and loves to send Toronto gourmet food baskets to her customers. She also sends gourmet baskets in Germany to her family as well.  Every year since 2005, she orders 10-12 of these baskets, each for $100 plus.

Meaty cheesy gourmet food basket

But it's not the money (hey, we're not complaining).

It's the conversation. Once the order details have been taken, we take the time to chat. It's only for 5 or 10 minutes, but it's a time I think we both look forward to.

Because we've made a connection.

We've built a relationship.

We've never met in person, but I feel that we've known each other for years.

She could easily Google the 150 plus florists in the Greater Toronto area to find a shop "close by" to her delivery address, but she doesn't.

She prefers to deal with me.

This customer has forced me to remember the reason why I love this business. It's not just the product whether it's a flower arrangement, plant basket, or fruit or gourmet basket. It's not the price, as you can always find cheap flowers if you look hard enough. It's not even necessarily the customer service with emailing back & forth with Order Confirmations, Delivery Confirmations, our feedback survey, or answering customer inquiries.

It's the connection (written or voice) over a long period of time that our customers depend on.

Like an old dog, our customers rely on us. They become part of our extended family. We depend on each other.

That's what makes business enjoyable...and I certainly don't forget it!

Killing Anonymous Orders

We process lots of different orders, from many different senders.

It's rare, but some flower orders we just have to refuse....on principle.

At Simon Says Roses, we recently received an online order with the following information:

Billing Information

 

Delivery Instructions

Now let's get serious.

No contact information for the sender.

No name, no address, and a phone number that we couldn't find through http://www.whitepages.ca/ our trusted resource for researching information.

Instructions not to let the recipient know who the flowers came from.

An unsigned greeting card.

What are we to think?

Stalker?

Ex-lover?

Too shy to reveal?

Will she really appreciate the gesture, or spend the rest of the day "freaking out" about who sent the gift?

Will she associate our name with this deed?

It doesn't matter, as this order was killed before it hit our point of sale system.

We need to know some basic information about our customers. This order didn't meet those criteria.

In the end, not all business is good business, so on this order we had to pass...

International flower orders can be difficult

It's normally an easy process.

Go to the Simon Says Roses website, click on the image or the text link below, and place your order online.

But sometimes the easiest things are hard to do.

Especially when you're overseas, and the bank puts a block on your credit card. They often do that, to protect you from unauthorized purchases.

But when it's legitimate, it can be a royal pain in the *ss.

We had an order the other day from a customer in Tokyo, Japan wanting to send flowers in Toronto.

The credit card "declined". The point-of-sale system doesn't tell us why it was declined, just that it couldn't be processed. It could be that the card number is input incorrectly, or the expiry date was wrong.

Or...it could be that the bank wouldn't allow an international transaction.Which we determined after a number of back & forth emails.

We had 3 days time before delivery date, so our customer had plenty of time to get the block removed.

Thankfully it got resolved, but please remember to give us some lead time...just in case there are "unusual" problems to get fixed!

Don't Leave Voice Mail...I Don't Return Calls

This is a tough one to deal with.

"Don't leave a message...I won't return your call".

As florists, we want to call first to arrange for delivery every time possible.

Sure we can leave flowers at the door, but we all know about Canadian floral arrangements and weather..Don't forget the animals as well!

Snow, wind, hail, monsoon rains...not to mention deer eating the flowers, and yes...even a dog peeing on them!

It turns out our recipient was hard of hearing, and her message on voice mail clearly stated that she was not going to return our call.

Sooooo...we told the delivery service to send the order anyway. He tried knocking, but she couldn't hear him, so he left it tucked next to her door. Sometimes you just have to take chances. He HAD to leave it at the door, as we didn't want to miss her birthday and the gift was from her son overseas.

Then...we emailed the sender notifying him that delivery had been made to her door.

He thanked us for our efforts, and then emailed his Mom telling her that her gift was waiting for her once she opened her door.

Voila!

Another "different" delivery, completed without a hitch and "Mom" got her birthday flowers on time.

WHEW!

Why Next Day Delivery on Gourmet Food & Fruit Baskets?

It's (relatively) easy when you want to deliver flowers, as the "raw materials" are sitting in a flower cooler, waiting for the designer to work his/his magic and construct an arrangement.

But gourmet & fruit basket delivery in Canada by Simon Says Roses is a whole different ball game.

We need time, and some things take more time than others.

The last thing we want to send is rotting fruit or stale chips, and we can't store the raw materials in our floral coolers.

Fruit (& especially apples) generate ethylene gas as they ripen.

Ethylene kills flowers.

So when we get an order for fruit or gourmet, we have to go shopping to ensure the freshest product possible. That takes time

We drive to the grocer or specialty market, and hand-pick each item that goes into the basket. That takes time.

We have to return to shop, wash & dry the fruit, and then arrange the items in the wicker basket, including cellophane wrapping and tying off with a bow. Again...more time.

Then the order is finally ready for delivery...but the driver has already gone with the last orders of the day.

Give us that one day lead time and we'll get it right, because it's our job to make YOU look good!

Seriously...Free Flower Delivery?

Free delivery is just a marketing ploy.

Because it seems like a great deal...but it's not.

WOW! No delivery charge when sending out flowers, gourmet food baskets, balloons or fruit baskets anywhere in Canada...nice try...

But is "free" really "free"?

Think about it.

What does it take to make a flower delivery in Canada?

• a driver's wages & benefits
• gas & oil for the vehicle
• vehicle repairs & maintenance
• insurance
• a GPS system so they know where the heck they're going

...and the last time I checked, these costs are going up all the time. With gas, sometimes 2 or 3 times in the same day.

So how can it be free?

Some of our deliveries are out in the "boonies". There's no chance that there are 3 or 4 deliveries to the same area. It might be a half an hour to the destination, and another half hour back to the delivery centre.

An hour round trip, for free?

At Simon Says Roses, we've tried to average our costs by charging a flat $9.99 delivery fee...which we haven't changed in the last 5 years. One some orders we make money, and some we don't.

But free?

NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!

So if you see a competitor offering free delivery...know that their delivery costs are being paid for in other areas...and it might be in the value of the flowers in the arrangement, or the price was inflated to begin with!

Florists in Canada do Baby Baskets?

Of course florists do flowers...but baby baskets for delivery in Canada?

Here is an email from the baby's father, forwarded to me by the sender (copied here with the sender's permission).


Subject: Prince Henry says Thanks for the basket of goodies...

Weighing in at 52.4 lbs, the gift basket is approximately 7.90 times Prince Henry's weight, rounded to one decimal place.

Due to his lack of teeth, the prince has decided to allow his subjects to partake in its deliciousness.  In particular, one subject who indirectly provides him food is supposed to be given preference ;=).

The prince has informed us he would love to come to Toronto someday in person to thank you properly.  He is still learning how to travel via car seat and stroller, but looks forward to using an airplane.

Thanks again for such a lovely gift. 

I attached a couple of photos for scale (ha ha).

The plush rabbit is larger than the baby...

 

...and the basket itself weighed over 52 lbs.!

Thank you for ordering from Simon Says Roses Florists & Gifts

Do Florists in Canada Still Need a Retail Location?

Boy, times have sure changed over the past 20 years.

Successful retail flower shops depended on location, location, location.

But location for many Canadian florists is now on the internet.

It's all about where you show up in Google, Bing, and Yahoo.

Today our customers order online, or go on our website and then order by phone.

Walking into a shop located in an enclosed mall or strip mall hardly ever happens.

So remind me again why a prime retail location is critical to success?

Flood Affects on Flowers in Canada

It can happen any where...at any time.

Sometimes with little or no warning.

Torrential rains, like what happened yesterday in Toronto (courtesy of the Globe and Mail) or earlier in the month flooding the Stampede grounds in Calgary (courtesy of thestar.com).

So what happens with flower deliveries in Canada, when entire sections of major metro areas are impassible?

A florist friend in Toronto was driving back from the airport to his home yesterday. An hour trip took him 5 hours!

Deliveries take longer...sometimes much longer than usual.


Flower availability is scarce, or even non-existent. We had an order to be delivered to a rural area outside of Okotoks last week. The order was placed on Friday for delivery that day.

But there were no flowers to be had. Not in Okotoks. Not in Nanton, or Claresholm, or High River.

There were no flowers to be had until the following Tuesday, at the earliest.

Because there were problems getting flowers into Calgary by the wholesalers.

So if the wholesaler can't get flowers, neither can the retail florists.

This same problem is likely happening today in the GTA.

So please be patient...we florists in Canada are doing the best we can...but it times like these, it just takes a little longer!

Cheap Flowers, Labour Not So Much...

It might seem strange, but steaks are a lot like flowers.

A local flyer had steak at around $6.88/lb, or $3.44 for 8 oz.

But when I go to a restaurant, that same steak (with a potato & a few veggies) is suddenly $28.99.

Why the difference? It's the time to marinate, age, cook, and present the steak.

It's all about labour.

Flowers are the same as a steak. If a florist in Canada doesn't have to pay for a lot of design time, there are more flowers in the arrangement.

Let me walk you through some examples.

This is what we call a "cut & plop". Flowers are not arranged, but rather simply cut down to fit the vase. Next to no labour, so more flowers. This item sells for $37.99 on the Simon Says Roses website.

Next, there is the "presentation style" bouquet. There is some labour time in structuring the bouquet, to make the flowers look presentable. This item sells for $49.99 on our website.

Taking another step up is the formal vase arrangement. Each & ever flower is strategically placed one at a time to give the best look to the flowers. That takes time. One of most popular flower vase arrangements sells for $69.99 to $89.99 at Simon Says Roses.

But the REALLY time consuming floral arrangements are often found when constructing sympathy designs. This sympathy casket floral arrangement is packed with exquisite high value flowers like Calla lilies, dendrobium orchids, ginger, & more. Each stem must be inserted into floral foam, ensuring that not one bit of foam can be seen when the design is completed. Time consuming to say the least!
This item sells for $799.99.

The dedication, time & skill of a trained floral designer is not much different than your favourite chef. It takes time to get it right!

Making Lemonade Out of Plants?

Sometimes we have to fix mistakes.

Things that are out of our control.

Things that aren't our fault...but we make it right.

Things like a plant basket that left the greenhouse in great shape, but something happened in the home of the recipient.

We received the following email from a dissatisfied customer:

From: "Bev B"
Cc: simonsaysroses@shaw.ca
Sent: Thursday, 23 May, 2013 10:58:07 AM
Subject: Mother's Day Delivery

The weekend of May 4/5 I had a 4 plant basket delivered to my Mother.
As I live in Calgary, I did not actually see what was delivered. I recently learned that the basket was infested with small flies and that the plants were sub-par.
Unfortunately I will not be using your companies for any future business.
Thank you.
Bev. B

 Aphids spreading from other plants in the home, nesting on our arrangement!

WOW! Not good! We're not even given the chance to fix the problem (*sigh*).

This is the first we heard of any problem. We know that if there was a "bug problem", it would have infested the entire greenhouse, and that wasn't the case. It sure looked like the bugs came from within the home.

It would be so easy to "write this one off" and lose the customer forever, based on the tone of the email.

But good florists in Canada don't do that, however. It's not in our nature.

We fight to retain every customer, no matter how hard it might be. My reply:

From: FRANK SIMON [mailto:simonsaysroses@shaw.ca]
Sent: May-24-13 9:30 AM
To: Bev B
Subject: Re: Mother's Day Delivery

Thank you for comments, Bev.
We have spoken with the delivering shop and the owner knows Margaret personally. She will be speaking with your Mother to determine the problem with the order.
Thank you for letting us know.

Frank Simon
Simon Says Roses Florists & Gifts
Local, national, & worldwide flower & gift delivery Winner of 2012 award for Community Business Integrity at http://twitter.yfrog.com/h6kvfjqj
FTD Top 10 Canadian florists since 2003
1-800-705-ROSE(7673).
Website: http://www.simonsaysroses.com

And the customer's response?

"Thank you for looking into this matter.  I appreciate it. Bev."

That's all it takes sometimes. An acknowledgement of the problem. A promise that we will follow up. And sometimes replacements are sent out (with some education to check for bugs on other plants before the problem happens again).

Such is the life of a florist!

This Balloon Order Almost Blew-up in My Face!

It happened at my first retail flower shop in Canada, about 20 years ago, but I've never forgotten it.

A young Navy fellow had come in to buy a small bouquet of flowers and a Happy Birthday ballloon for his sweetheart.

The problem happened a couple of days later.

The fellow comes back to the shop, looking somewhat like the guy above.

"I'd like my money for the balloon back...her birthday's over now!"

So what are you supposed to do?

Tell him to forget about it?

I had to think quick on this one.

There was no way that I was going to make any money on this sale. It's not like I could re-sell the balloon, as it had already started to deflate.

But the issue was important enough that he came back to the shop. The money was obviously very important to him.

All over a $4.99 balloon.

But if I sent him away, he'd never be back.

He'd probably go back to the Navy Base and tell all his friends what a jerk I was.

I had to remember that it's the long-term relationship with customers that counts. That's what Simon Says Roses depends on to build our customer base.

So yes, I refunded his money...and yes he came back for Valentine's Day (I know he did, as I'll never forget him!)

Short term pain...long term gain...such is the life of a florist in Canada.

These Flowers are a Mess!

Geez I hate when this happens.

Sending an order to another flower shop in Canada, and it turns out to be a total mess.

This is what it was supposed to look like...

We included a description of the item just to make it crystal clear...white wicker basket arrangement with handle to include pink roses, white alstromeria, pink snapdragons, pink carnations, filler flowers, and greenery.

This is what was delivered to the recipient...

No roses, carnations, alstromeria or snapdragons...and not in a white basket.

The flower arrangement didn't even have a pink colour theme...it looks more purple to me.

When confronted with this discrepancy, the shop agreed on the differences, but still claimed that the value was there. Apparently there was a snow storm, and the wholesale truck didn't arrive.

But that's not the point. They could have contacted us before the arrangement was sent. Let us know about flower availability, and we can correspond with the sender.

But instead of calling us, the shop sent out an inferior product.

AND THAT'S NOT GOOD ENOUGH!

The flowers bore no resemblance to the item on our website. It certainly wasn't what the customer ordered.

So guess what? Our affiliate was instructed to deliver another arrangement the following day...AT THEIR COST.

And yes, we apologized profusely to the sender. We can only hope that we've kept the customer, but only time will tell.

It doesn't happen often, but sometimes we have to clean up the mess...

You Florists are Morons!

This customer was pi**ed off!

We had sent him a Delivery Confirmation email, and he KNEW the flowers weren't delivered.

It started with an email, then a voice mail, and finally a private message on facebook.

He claimed that the flowers were never delivered, and they better not be sitting in a truck overnight!

So we tried confirming with the delivery service...no response. Didn't expect one, as it was 9:00 at night.

At 7:30 the following morning, the service confirmed the flowers were delivered the previous day, and SIGNED for by the recipient.

So what's going on here??

The sender phoned me later that morning...

You see he hadn't signed the greeting card.

He assumed that she would know the flowers were from him...but she thought they were from somebody else.

So when he called her, she didn't acknowledge the flowers as she thought they were from an OLD BOYFRIEND!

And when she phoned the "ex" to thank him, he didn't correct her. He let her think the flowers came from him!

Thankfully the sender & I had a good laugh...and hopefully proved to him we weren't total morons!

5 Great Reasons to Deliver Valentine's Flowers Early

1.       I'm a guy. 

      Procrastination is my middle name. 

Canada roses & alstromeria vase

      Come Valentine's Day, I probably wait until the last minute, and get really disappointed...even ANGRY when a florist can't "get 'er done".

      Here's 5 great reasons to order your Valenitne's Day gift for delivery A DAY EARLY (for Wednesday, February 13th):

1. Your "Valentine" will be the centre of attention at home or in the workplace, while others are still waiting...and hoping...all Valentine's Day.
2. Your Valentine will know you thought of them early, and it was not a "last minute" effort on Valentine's Day.
3. Deliveries can happen at any time throughout the day on the 14th at NO specific time, while your Valentine will feel loved all Valentine's Day.
4. Remember: The unexpected gets more "brownie points".
5. We sell out of roses & most flowers every year. Ordering & delivering early avoids any chance at disappointment!

This year, don't be the typical guy. Try ordering your Valentine's roses for delivery a day early.

A Happy Valentine's Day often means a Happy Valentine's night!!

Roses - Are You Sending the Wrong Message?

Red, white, yellow, pink, mixed colours...so many choices!

But are you sending the right message when you send roses, especially with Valentine's Day on February 14th?

Here's a list of the meaning of roses, to make sure you're sending the right message!

• Red - love, respect, courage, beauty, prosperity
• White - humility, innocence, purity
• Pink - grace, gratitude, admiration
• Hot Pink - desire
• Yellow - joy, freedom, slighted love, friendship
• Red & White together - unity
• Red & Yellow together - happiness.

And it's not just roses.

Over the years we've also compiled a long list of flower meanings of all types, at www.simonsaysroses.com/flowermeaning.htm

3 Reasons Why Rose Prices Skyrocket at Valentine's Day

We all know it's going to happen.

After all, it's happened every year in the 20 years we've been in business.

Rose prices go through the roof at Valentine's Day.

There are 3 reasons for it:

1. The grower/farm increases the price of roses.
2. Which in turn causes the wholesaler to increase their prices.
3. In the end, the florist must up their price to the consumer.

 3 pink rose bud vase

The key is that it all starts with the farms. Throughout the year, farms barely cover their costs. But they see a chance to make money when virtually everybody wants roses. And that time is Valentine's Day.

That's when the prices from the farm double!

 
We hear all the excuses from the growers. There was a cold snap. There was a heat wave. There was a drought. There was a flood.

The list of excuses goes on and on...but they really never change.

The reality is that this is the one time of the year when growers can make a profit. It's that profit that sustains the farms throughout the rest of the year.

But imagine if the florist passed this increase onto their customer...doubling their prices! It's easy to see that the rose market would disappear pretty quickly.

Yes, florists increase their prices for roses in Canada somewhat at Valentine's Day. We have to. But we certainly can't double prices for two or three weeks in February.

We florists have to hope that the volume of roses being sold will make up for smaller margins.

But there's no guarantee.

At face value the reasons for increased rose prices is simple, but it's really hard to explain to our customers.

We get flack because the florist is the face of the industry, so we bear the wrath of increased prices.

This year on Valentine's Day, Thursday February 14th...please be gentle!