GREAT 108 IDEA: Set Up a Strong Referral Network
Successful entrepreneurs know “what goes around comes around.” While many referrals are made informally by word-of-mouth, smart entrepreneurs take it a step further.
Dana Adkinson, owner of Keepsake Floral Inc. in Orlando, Florida, runs a successful floral preservation service. She relies on referrals from florists and wedding consultants to keep her 12 employees busy. Every year, Keepsake preserves between 1,000 and 1,500 bouquets. Adkinson said she started the business in 1994 at her mother's suggestion.
“While we were on our honeymoon, my mother took my bouquet and one from my maid of honor and went looking for some way to preserve them,” said Adkinson. “She couldn't find anyone to do it. So, when we came home, she said, ‘This is the business you need to start.’”
“We have two different referral programs,” Adkinson explained. “If you are a florist or a wedding consultant and refer a client, we send you a $30 check.”
For florists and wedding professionals who want to be a bit more aggressive, she offers a “preservation partner” program. “They pay us about $100 for an actual sample of a preserved bouquet,” she said. “They have all our promotional materials to help explain the process. When they take the deposit from the bride, they keep a $50 referral fee.”
Adkinson offers referral programs to extend her marketing reach and bring in new business. About 40 percent of her business comes from florists and preservation partners. About 20 percent comes in over the Internet. She also does some telemarketing.
Although Adkinson says she hopes brides decide to preserve their bouquet before the wedding, most orders come in afterward, “when they have fallen in love with their bouquet.”
The actual preservation costs between $200 and $600, depending on the keepsake display they choose and the size of the bouquet. Brides are asked to send the bouquets in within two weeks of their wedding. When the bouquet arrives in Orlando, it is photographed. Then, Keepsake Floral employees carefully take apart the bouquet so each flower can be individually preserved by freeze-drying or with a chemical drying agent.
Word of mouth is the most powerful marketing tool, but incentives can help.
- Establish a “best customer” program. Reward referrals with cash, free shipping, two-for-one and early-bird specials, or extra discounts on products they buy frequently.
- Ask customers to refer new business to you.
- Publicize referrals on your web site or newsletter. People love to be recognized for helping you succeed.
- Offer incentives to your employees who refer new business. A half-day off with pay is a great way to say thank you for landing a new client or customer.
- Thank customers for referrals by sending flowers, a fruit basket, a gift certificate for a restaurant, or movie tickets.
Depending on what the customer wants, bouquets are reassembled and arranged inside an airtight shadow box or picture frame. The flowers are expected to last for decades.
Business has been steady, despite the economic downturn. “You do have to work harder for the same dollars,” said Adkinson, who often gets new business from the wedding planners at Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings. Check out her company at http://www.keepsakefloral.com.