Email marketing isn't dead (and I swear it's not annoying)

I've worked with thousands of retail florists, and I've met very few who really get how much money email marketing can make a flower shop.

I have over 100,000 email contacts and I use email marketing every single week. (Hello, that's literally why you're here reading this blog post.) So trust me on this one. Email marketing isn't outdated. It can still make you thousands and thousands of dollars every month.

And I know, you don't want to be that florist who's always in people's inboxes.

But email is only annoying to people who don't need what you're selling. And those people were never going to buy from you anyway.

For people who want flowers, it's actually really helpful. Say someone needs flowers for their mom's birthday, and your email shows up introducing them to an amazing local florist, or reminding them you exist. You just solved their problem. That's not annoying. That's helpful.

What it actually costs you

You'll see stats like "you get $36 back for every $1 you spend." Those never made sense to me. What dollar? Spent on what?

Here's what you're actually paying for: an email platform. And there's a good chance your website already comes with one.

So for most of you, we're talking $0 to $10 a month.

So think about it like this. If one email gets one person to order one $85 arrangement, your email platform is paid for. Every order after that is extra money in your pocket. That's all that $36 stat is trying to say, just in a really confusing way.

"Submit your email address, I'll give you a discount on your first flower order!"

The easiest way to grow your list is a one-time coupon in exchange for someone's email address. I know a lot of you get nervous about discounts, so let's talk about it.

Think about the first time someone buys from you. They have zero reason to trust you yet. If they pay full price on that first order, they're actually doing you the favor, not the other way around.

So it's okay to sacrifice some profit on that first arrangement. That order is your chance to show off your skill, your customer service, and how smooth and enjoyable it is to order from you. If they order flowers from you once, they'll keep ordering flowers from you.

"But won't I just attract coupon people?" Nope. Your base prices decide what kind of client you get, not a one-time discount. Flowers are a luxury. Someone getting 20% or even 25% off a $200 order is not a cheap customer. That's a really valuable customer, and they're still going to need flowers for birthdays, anniversaries, sympathy, and every holiday on the calendar.

The goal of that first order isn't profit. The goal is a lifelong customer who orders from you at full price next time.

Just remember, their email address is only worth something if you have emails ready to go that sell flowers to them.

How often should you email?

At least once a week. I know that sounds like a lot, but remember, you're being helpful, not annoying.

And you don't have to sit down and write a new email every week. You set up email sequences once, and they send on their own. That's how you make money while you sleep.

These are the three that matter most:

1. The coupon signup sequence. The moment someone grabs your discount code, they get an email every week for the next 3 to 4 months.
2. The post-purchase sequence. After someone places an order, they get an email every week for the next 4 months.
3. The holiday sequence. Before Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, and the holidays, you start emailing to warm people up first, then you sell to them when the holiday hits.

Set those three up and your shop is selling flowers while you're asleep, at the market, or finally taking a day off.

Want them done for you?

That's a whole lot of emails to write. So I already wrote them for you.

The Flower Shop Email Marketing Bundle has the coupon signup, post-purchase, and holiday sequence ready to copy, paste, and make your own.

Get the Flower Shop Email Marketing Bundle right here!