8 tips to prep your flower shop for Mother's Day spending.

Valentine’s Day isn’t the only time when florists get a chance to shine. Coming soon on the calendar is Mother’s Day, celebrated in the United States on the second Sunday of May. As a florist, you can’t afford to be a shrinking violet when it comes to this lucrative holiday when Mom is queen and sales can be king.

1. Update your Google Business Profile for the season.

It’s no secret that Google is the most popular search engine in the U.S. That’s why you should already have taken the time to make a business profile for your shop that people see when they look for stores of your type in the area.

Mother’s Day offers you additional opportunities to harness the power of your listing. First, take a look to be sure that your basic information is up-to-date, including vital details such as your address, phone number, and email. Pay special attention to your business hours, especially if you plan to change them to accommodate last-minute loved ones looking for a beautiful way to honor a mom in their life.

2. Tweak your website.

Flowers and plants particularly lend themselves to long-distance shoppers looking to have a special delivery made. Therefore, your website will frequently be the face and voice of your shop. It should always be easy to navigate, fast-loading, mobile-friendly, and clear.

Around Mother’s Day, your site should also make special note of the occasion. Promote your products with beautiful photos of the arrangements and plants you want to highlight, making certain that you use your point of sale system and its inventory functions to ensure that you have enough stock on hand. Your POS can also give you an idea of what sold well last year or on other holidays such as Valentine’s Day.

3. Consider adding subscriptions to your Mother’s Day portfolio.

Subscriptions aren’t just for gyms or daycare centers anymore. Moms will love that they are receiving a different arrangement regularly for three, six, nine months, or even a year. Advertise your initiative on all your channels as a way for customers to gain extra brownie points with Mom, and have fun with it.

There’s just one more preparatory step that you need to take before launching your subscription promotion. Since many of your customers might want to pay for it using recurring billing, talk to your payment processing for flower shops provider so that they can help you to configure your POS accordingly.

4. Put social media to work for your shop.

Sites like Instagram and YouTube give you multiple vehicles for interacting with your customers before, during, and after their purchases. A true case in point is during the Mother’s Day season. A couple weeks before the actual day, start populating your pages with content designed to create a buzz and drive customers into your store or onto your website.

You can engage potential buyers in numerous ways. Take photos of your most innovative or popular arrangements; capture yourself on video at work making a special vase, or run some fun polls or contests. The idea is to generate interest that brings your brand to the top of buyers’ awareness.

5. Don’t forget about email.

Amidst all of the hubbub about social media, it’s easy to overlook your customers’ inboxes, but doing so would be a huge mistake. Four to six weeks before Mother’s Day, start a campaign in which you begin to feature your key products, including captivating photos. Make the emails fun and short with clear subject lines, and increase their frequency as the day approaches.

6. Get on the phone.

Speaking of often overlooked advertising vehicles, the phone remains extremely relevant. In an era when the personalized shopping experience has become the gold standard for businesses, there is nothing like a call directly from you or one of your staff to your most loyal buyers.

Use this one-on-one contact to refresh the person’s memory about what they have bought in the past, suggest new products and peripheral gifts, or answer any questions they may have. It’s also a great chance to gather opinions about their shopping experience in your store or online that can help you to make improvements or grow in a particular direction.

7. Let your blog do the talking.

Mother’s Day is a great time to write some holiday-specific articles for your blog. (We know that finding topics can be a challenge.) Remember, the purpose of your blog is twofold: providing information that interests and captivates while simultaneously and subtly encouraging sales.

To that end, craft some mom-friendly articles. Possible subject matter could include “Top Five Pieces of Advice from Your Mom,” “What You Probably Never Knew About Mother’s Day,” “Tips for Choosing Mother’s Day Flowers,” and the list goes on and on.

8. Take actions that help you in the future.

Although Mother’s Day only comes once a year, it can be a gift that keeps on giving for your business if you play your cards right. On a basic level, providing top-tier customer service is a great way to get repeat business for other occasions, but there is more that you can do.

When someone makes a purchase, think of it as a chance to cultivate two customers: the buyer and the person they’re buying for. To that end, include a coupon on your customer’s receipt that incentivizes them to return in future. Additionally, write a friendly “about us” card to be placed in the mom’s planter or arrangement that also includes a discount for them.

Pulling out all the stops for Mother’s Day gives you a chance to celebrate the new life of spring while helping your customers to honor moms with anything from a tasteful vase of May blooms to a statement piece of two or three dozen roses. As a flower shop owner, this is the season when you pour your heart and soul into making these beautiful gifts possible. When you prepare well ahead of time and engage your customers, you can ensure that all of your passion and effort will be shared with the mothers who so richly deserve to be appreciated.