Virtual floral design consultations are going to be key for booking future weddings and events.

I’ve spoken to several floral designer friends about virtual floral design consultations recently. They’ve all told me that client meetings for weddings are starting to pick up again. Phew, that’s a relief. People are using the safety guidelines set forth by the CDC and other health organizations to return to wedding and event planning again. Things have changed. There’s no doubt that COVID-19 is still a health risk for all of us. So, in today's blog, I want to talk about how you can convey your confidence, build trust, and manage expectations through virtual consultations with your clients because virtual meetings are now the norm.

Let's start with how to get potential clients interested in booking you for starters. It's important to design your website and social media to set yourself apart to book more consultations. The way to go about this is by educating your client on why they need to choose you before they even meet you!

Before the virtual floral design consultation, your potential clients are finding you online.

This week take time to review your “about weddings” and “meeting with us” sections of your website or blog. Think about how you can improve these to better engage with potential clients. You can express your genuine interest in the reasons why you are the right choice for them. Use this platform as an opportunity to educate your potential clients on why they should take the next step and trust you to be their floral designer.

Virtual Floral Design Consultations are important to florists. Show your recent work on your website to engage potential clients

Recent professional wedding images and testimonials are a must have on your website.

Photo credit

ML Photo &Flim

Your website needs to be set up as an effective way to help potential clients prepare for your virtual floral design consultation.

Here's a great example from Roots Floral Design. I think Kaytee, the owner at Roots Floral Design, has a beautiful website that she is using to educate her clients. She touts the benefits and high level of customer service her business brings to attract her ideal client. Not many florists can say they have a floral trailer with a Coolbot installed for delivery, but she uses this to her advantage. This gets clients interested in working with her and thinking about what level of experience they want throughout their wedding planning process. It's sharing her attention to detail and customer care that sets her apart.

Take some time to review what sets you apart and highlight it!

If you don’t currently have personalized wording like Kaytee's on your website, make it a priority to add it soon! Until then write up something in this vein and share it on your social media. Also, be sure to share it with clients before your consultation meeting. You can email it to them or add it as a link for them to check out on your social media page. Don’t be afraid to ask them to follow your business page if they haven’t already done so.

Now that you have the interest of potential clients you’ll want to shift gears from an educational stance to a focus on ease of communication.

The client needs to see how easy it is to set up a virtual floral design consultation and book you for their event. It’s key to show them that it’s an enjoyable process too!

Use Zoom or Facetime for your virtual floral design consultation.

Meeting with clients virtually via zoom or facetime is all about active listening, engagement, and expectation management. These 3 key points dominate the field when it comes to customer experience. When your customer feels listened to they have a much deeper connection to you. Then the conversation becomes personal. That builds trust. When active listening is combined with the visual eye-to-eye contact of video, it keeps your potential client engaged in the conversation too. Once you have them engaged, you can control the dialogue and manage their expectations while showcasing your company’s exceptional customer service.

It’s up to you to be an effective listener and have a constructive conversation with your clients.

To do this well, they need to provide you with all the basic wedding information upfront via a questionnaire. Ideally, clients can access this directly on your website, but if you don't have that set up just yet, the first step is emailing them the questionnaire and having them send it back to you. That can be easier said than done so make sure you explain how imperative it is that you have that information before you can meet with them.

If you need a questionnaire template or want to make sure your questionnaire covers all the bases, I’ll be sharing one with you at the end of this blog post. So, be sure to grab your copy below. It’s a waste of your time to meet with clients before you get this basic information so make it a requirement for them to fill out. Also, make it as easy as possible for them. Hint, hint, get that questionnaire built into your website ASAP.

Here’s 1 more quick tip about questionnaires before I move on to the next topic. The information on the questionnaire is a way to pre-qualify your clients to make sure you’ll be a good fit for each other.

If they don’t fit your requirements you can kindly send them to another floral designer that would be a better match for them. If you have a minimum spend requirement, make sure that is noted on the questionnaire. A couple’s budget and style can be two indicators of fit so pay attention to those. If you feel they are not the right clients for you from the beginning be upfront and tell them that you think another florist would be better suited to their needs. You aren’t the right fit for everyone. Now is a good time to recall my mantra…Some will, Some won’t. So, what? Someone’s waiting. Time is so precious. You don’t need to spend it on potential clients that you can sense are not right for you. It’s okay to say no.

Make scheduling virtual floral design consultations easy for your clients.

One of the best ways to book your clients' consultation meeting is through an appointment scheduling app. Find a system that you like to automate this and your clients will be thankful that the scheduling process is easy for them. There are lots of options out there to automate this piece of the process. You’ll want to make sure that you block out any days or times you are not available for consultations in advance to avoid conflicts, but once that is done your clients can choose their meeting time easily. Automate this part of your process. It’s a time saver!

Another tip for encouraging your clients to attend the consultation is to use your scheduling app to send them a reminder the day before the appointment.

If you choose not to use an app go ahead and email your clients the day before with a friendly reminder. You must keep in mind that they are busy working, living life, and trying to plan an event on top of all that stuff. It’s your job to impress them from the start with customer service. A reminder before the meeting does just that. It will set you apart from the competition. It shows you care from the start.

Once you’ve got the basics of the wedding in front of you and an appointment scheduled, it’s time to get prepared.

Read your client’s questionnaire closely and commit some of the details to memory before your meeting. You want the client to feel like a friend from the very start of the consultation. So, bring your unique personality and let it shine!

Here are a few basic tips to make sure you bring your A-game to every virtual floral design consultation.

Make sure you have a dedicated quiet space for your meeting.

The backdrop should be a professional setting with good lighting. Also, be sure to avoid computer speaker-mic feedback by using headphones for your audio. You can also practice a mix of eye-contact and note-taking via video. You'll want to be able to keep your clients' attention while jotting down important details. Give it a test run with a friend first and get feedback from them on how you look and sound. Adjust if needed and always have a back-up plan in case technology fails. A phone consultation is a decent alternative when the video is not available.

Use zoom or facetime for virtual floral design consultations. Have a quiet, well lit space for your meetings.

A quiet space with good lighting and some fresh flowers are keys to a great virtual floral design consultation.

Let’s cover some insider tips on how to conduct an effective floral design consultation.

Here are a few tactics that I think set experienced designers apart when it comes to initial wedding consultations. If you aren't using these tactics give them a try and see if your clients respond positively.

Start with introductions and find a connection.

This seems so basic. I know, but hear me out. Many floral designers do not take the time to get to know their clients in the initial consultation meeting. They just jump right into the questionnaire and start asking about the flowers. That's a big mistake. It doesn't allow the client to warm up and find a connection with you. So, here is an opportunity to stand out. Introduce yourself and give them a little fun tidbit about you. Keep it short and sweet. You may think they already know you thanks to social media.

This is the first real impression they get of you. Here's your chance to impress upon them your exceptional level of customer service and connect to them on a deeper level.

Allow them to tell you a little something about themselves. Then, find something that you have in common during the first 5-minute introduction. Use that to connect and break the ice. Then you can get real with them because this is how you start to build trust with your client. It’s the simplest way to make them feel differently about how you will care for them throughout the entire wedding planning process.

Ask them about what they don’t want.

It's as important to know what your client doesn't like as it is to know what they do. I'd argue it's even more important. You want to know if they dislike certain flowers, colors, or styles so you can note that on their proposal. If you need to substitute a flower on the wedding day, you can check that list of least favorites and avoid choosing a flower they have an aversion to.

Clients think they know what they want when it comes to their floral designs, but it’s usually what they don’t want that more clearly defines the look of the event for you.

I use this question with all clients, but there are two kinds of clients this question benefits most. There’s the kind of client that loves everything and can’t seem to decide which style fits their vibe. Then, there’s the kind of client that dislikes most everything you suggest. Believe me, neither situation is much fun.

When you start sharing inspirational images and you get a feeling they are not digging the style. It's the perfect time to start this line of questioning.

What don’t you like about this image?

What don’t you like about this floral arrangement?

It somehow forces the client to think in a new way and use language they wouldn’t otherwise use.

It can get you to a deeper understanding of what they do like, by asking about the opposite. Focus carefully on active listening and you’ll be surprised by how much you can learn about your clients’ likes and dislikes.

One quick tip is to learn how to share your screen on zoom or facetime. You can share inspirational images easily that way and connect with your client more efficiently than trying to describe an image or find the same one as your client on a Pinterest board during the meeting.

Talk about their budget.

It’s awkward for them, but you’ve got to get a narrow range of budget to give them a quote that will result in a signed contract.

Ideally, you will have an idea about their budget before the initial meeting via your questionnaire. There's no point in pricing out an elaborate ceremony arch, elevated centerpieces, and a huge installation for the entry if the client's budget is $3,500.

You cannot sell a Ferrari for the price of a Toyota and it’s your job to make that clear to your clients.

The sooner you level with them the better. Either they will move on to another lesser expensive option or they will decide that flowers are a priority for them. Either way, you get to move forward without the hassle of pricing out elaborate pieces that they clearly can't afford.

There are two kinds of event clients. There's the kind of client who has an overall budget for their event and doesn't have a lot of wiggle room and there's the kind who has a lot of flexibility and will pay whatever it costs to make their vision come to life. It's important to find out which type each client is before you meet with them. This allows you to know if you can push the envelope a bit price-wise or if you need to reign it in.

It's important to discuss budget during virtual floral design consultations. Centerpieces and wedding decor depend on it.

Clarity about budget is essential to a good client relationship.

Use the questionnaire to get the initial feel for their budget. Then, in the meeting, as you review it with them ask for more detail.

If they've checked the $5,000 to $10,000 budget range, ask if it's closer to $5,000, $7,500 or $10,000. Is it a hard and fast number or is there some flexibility? Tie this line of questioning into their desired style by mentioning that more elaborate arrangements require a higher budget. That lays a foundation for your conversation later about budget related to specific ceremony décor and centerpieces. Keep that dialogue open and let them know if the floral designs they are asking for are in line or not in line with their ideal budget.

Summarize their comments back to them to reinforce active listening.

Make sure that you reiterate their comments every so often. This will both let them know that you are actively listening and that you want to make sure you connect with their vision. This tactic can be especially helpful if they trail off course while talking for a few minutes.

For example, if you ask them about their ceremony arch and they start discussing color and style and veer off towards discussion about reception centerpieces, you can repeat their comments about the arch and bring the conversation back to the topic at hand.

When you summarize their comments it both confirms you have the correct information and shows your attentiveness.

This attention to detail is a huge selling point in the minds of potential wedding clients. I know that I have personally booked hundreds of weddings because my clients felt that I was a better listener than the other floral designers they considered for their wedding day. It can be the factor that sets your business apart from others. Summarizing your clients’ comments also ties into my next point

Keep the conversation flowing smoothly!

Strive for a good pace. You don’t want them to dwell on one item for too long. The flow of the meeting needs to be positive and upbeat. Also, you don’t have all day for this one meeting! So, if you feel the meeting is stalling out because the groom can’t decide on his boutonniere you can tell them to sleep on it and get back to you on the details. Explain to them that not every detail needs to be decided on the spot. That comment relives a ton of their stress about decision making and assures them you’ll be there to make changes later in the process.

You can put a placeholder in for the undecided item and suggest something for them in the proposal.

Remind them that everything is easily adjustable and that everyone makes a few changes to their wedding proposal. Reassure them they are not the only ones in this situation and that you’ll be holding their hand throughout the entire planning process. Then, kindly guide them along to the next item on your list.

After your virtual floral design consultation, say thank you.

After your meeting wrap it up with a fun digital thank you gift. I’ve seen a few great ideas popping up on Etsy like printable hand sanitizer labels and wedding day timeline planners. If you’d rather just say thank you, make a fun thank you video in your shop or studio showing the people and processes that make your business unique. The important part is to stand out from the crowd. So, use your imagination and thank them for their time and the opportunity. Then, go work up that proposal fast because getting it to them quickly is another key to booking the gig!

Say thank you to your clients after a virtual floral design consultation

A fun way to thank your clients for their time is by sending them a video highlighting how much care you put into every floral design your team creates!

Finally, I want to mention a few follow up tips for after the meeting.

Experienced designers know that it's key to keep the customer feeling like their communication is top-notch. While at the same time they minizmize the actual time spent on non-essential requests. Here are 2 tips to save you money and maximize your floral design profits on weddings.

The first tip is that walk-throughs are only be for new venues or weddings that have a difficult installation. Do not sign up for a walkthrough on a wedding with only bouquets, boutonnieres, and low centerpieces. There is no need to be there. Tell them to let you know if anything pops up or they have any questions. It's ok to say no. Remind them you’ve been to the venue and feel confident you can deliver without any issues. It will save you time and money.

low arrangements and bouquets do not require a venue walk-through. Profitable Floral Design

Save venue walk-throughs for unique circumstances. Low centerpieces and bouquets do not require a special visit to the venue.

The second tip is to ask your clients to keep a running list. Instead of letting brides email you every single time a little tiny question or change pops up. Politely tell them to make a small list of issues. Then, when they get to something major or they have several items on the list, then they can reach out. It’s a time saver for both parties!

I hope these tips help you to have more enjoyable and impactful virtual floral design consultations going forward. It’s going to be an essential part of communication for the foreseeable future. So, let’s embrace it and make the most of virtual connections.

Until next time,

LuAnn

Now get out there and do what you love!