Read on for live coverage of Day 1 of the Florists For Change meetings in Atlanta, GA.
08.12
And we’re rolling! FFC Atlanta is on
08.13
Dirk is at the mic introducing the steering committee:
08.13
We’re also live streaming, apparently, but I don’t have the URL right now. I’ll post it soon when I get it.
08.14
Dirk just read a letter from a small florist lamenting the state of the industry. Now, Toomie Ferris is speaking representing the view of a large florist.
08.17
Toomie says larger florists can’t just cut off the WS completely – need specific tools like large, multi-store floral-specific POS systems, high-volume order relay, etc. Toomie is taking a long term view – incl the potential loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in rebates for the long term gain.
08.19
Dirk is back – recapping Vegas, incl the need for an affordable platform-agnostic relay system, and establishing a set of industry ethics.
Harold Hoogasian is giving us a rundown of the “Four-way test”. Rotarians applaud!
08.25
Betsy is speaking now, welcoming us to her home town of Atlanta (birthplace of her favourite person in the world – Ken Hall <ahhhhh!!>), and giving us the lay of the land.
Betsy unveiled the Florists For Change business cards with contact info for all the steering committee members.
All activities will be on this floor (yay for not getting lost!) except for the breakout sessions which will be upstairs. Except for the two that aren’t. Ok, I’m lost already.
This session is already an upgrade on Vegas – we have coffee and lunch!!
08.29
Betsy is giving props to Burton + Burton for their awesome products, nice showroom (with cold drinks & cookies), and for sponsoring the name badges. Burton + Burton and Accent Decor have both opened their showrooms specifically for the FFC crowd tomorrow.
Shout outs to some local shops that are attending and showing support.
Syndicate Sales donated the vases and cubes for the lovely flower arrangements (courtesy Hall’s Flowers).
08.30
Fun’s over … we’re getting down to business … except that Keith just reminded Dirk to give us all directions to the bathroom. Seems you have to go through a maze and some unlabelled doors. Thanks, Westin Peachtree!!
08.32
Mike on the mic, trying to get some blood moving in this crowd. He’s thanking Betsy & Ken for the great flower arrangements – they remind us why we’re really here.
08.33
Vegas recap:
Florists for Change is dedicated to improving the economics of the retail florist by encouraging industry advertising, providing exceptional consumer value, and promoting equitable trading among florists.
08.35
Code of Ethics:
08.35
Live streaming is available at http://www.livestream.com/floristsforchange … but stay here for the commentary
08.37
Florists For Change is all about advocacy for B&M florists
08.37
Over the years, WS.com, wire-ins, DOGs have increased, while WS F2F, wire-outs & profit have decreased.
08.40
Questions:
08.42
The Grand Irony
08.44
Realities
08.45
(notes from an infographic)
Teleflora (estimate)
08.46
1-800-Flowers Bloomnet
08.47
FTD
08.48
Roll International (Teleflora)
2010 Billion in sales
08.48
ProFlowers
08.50
ProFlowers is owned by Liberty Media with dozens of companies and markets. They KNOW how to spot opportunities and leverage markets – and they are growing fast.
08.51
SAF stats on B&M
08.52
USBLS says number of floral designers will decline 9.7% from 2008 to 2018
08.53
Mike is now reviewing the newly updated At A Glance calculator. Compares WS transactions with F2F model, using a florist’s real numbers.
08.54
SRPs are a real problem as OGs compete on price. Sale prices don’t match the reality of the B&M florists. If SRP is 20% below reality before the WS commissions, a florist can’t be profitable or deliver satisfaction.
08.58
Reviewing real data submitted by real florists.
Shop 1 has 4.8x more incoming than outgoing. This florist will lose money on WS and F2F transactions at this ratio, with their COGS and operating costs.
Shop 2 4.9x more outgoing than incoming. Both WS and F2F models create nearly equal profits.
Shop 3 1.6x more incoming than outgoing. F2F is slightly profitable, WS model loses money.
Go online (or if you’re here visit the Fiannaca brothers) and plug in your real numbers to see your own scenarios.
09.00
Incoming orders are often very unprofitable
09.01
Outgoing orders are often very profitable
09.02
What about receiving florists?
09.03
Mike has a big graphic with lots of arrows. The main point: When consumers lose, we lose!
09.05
To fix This Mess:
09.10
Since Vegas:
09.12
FFC Structure
09.12
Organization
09.13
Communications
Dawn Baumgartner, Dirk Lorenz
09.18
F2F Direct Order Transmission
Doug Fick, Mike Fiannaca
09.20
Legislative
Cathy Rulloda, Harold Hoogasian, Keith Hill (Cathy’s name got big applause!)
09.22
Liason (cool heads, calm personalities for industry relations)
Tim Galea, Dirk Lorenz
09.23
Finance & Accounting
Betsy Hall, Mike Kusuda, Bonnie Bank
Financial reporting and oversight
09.25
Membership
Toomie Farris, Rachel Martin, Betsy Hall
09.27
Advertising & Marketing
chairs to be determined
09.30
Associate Membership
09.32
Some potential associate members will be “interviewed” by the audience at 10:15am today. They (incl me!) will outline in 10min how they will support FFC, followed by 5min Q&A from the floor.
09.37
Mike just reviewed the schedule for the rest of the day.
Tomorrow we will discuss findings, then hear from Bloomnet, FTD, Teleflora, each with a 20min segment. Mike wants to hear specifics about how they will support FFC, not fluff & rhetoric about how they are such great partners. Each WS will present, then leave the room so that they aren’t hearing each other’s messages.
[Ryan note: bet the contents of those presentations will take all of ... 2 minutes? to get spread? Isn't gossip wonderful?]
Mike is stressing that FFC is not anti-WS (perhaps some of their practices?), FFC is pro-florist. He’s also intimated that throwing produce is not acceptable.
09.39
Time for a break – we’re aiming to be back around 10am for vendor presentations.
09.55
FYI: Mark Anderson of FloristWare will be taking over Live Blog duties for the next bit, as I’m scheduled to present 2nd in the vendor segment.
10.08
[Ryan note: I'm guessing 5-10min before we get rolling again]
10.14
I’ll try not to make a mess of this – Ryan has set the bar quite high.
10.17
Betsy Hall is on stage telling everyone a little about Atlanta and Georgia. She is a charming presenter and has done a great job as host of this event.
10.20
Dirk has taken the mic and is getting ready to introduce potential associate (vendor) members. He is referencing the FFC code of ethic and going over the time limits.
10.20
Brock Atwill – the founder of FSN and one of the nicest guys in the business – is taking the stage.
10.22
Brock is saying that FSN supports FFC and wants to work with them. He is thanking the organizers for the chance to speak and for what they are doing for the industry.
10.22
Explaining a little about the history of FSN. Their focus has always been on serving real flower shops.
10.23
Their online florist directory has always encouraged consumers to call member shops directly. This evolved into websites for florists.
10.25
Brock is showing a little of the FSN florist portal and how their model makes their network unattractive to order gatherers.
10.26
Explaining that members get paid every week.
10.27
Giving some examples of how the regular weekly checks have helped keep shops going.
10.28
Explaining how FSN likes competition and sees it is the best thing for the florists. Explaining how FSN has opened their network to integrate with different POS providers. They are an open system and will integrate with any POS provider.
10.29
Introducing something new, something that has been discussed earlier today: a 90/10 split.
10.30
The new split is optional – sending shops will decide at what split they want to send.
10.31
Senders can choose from different splits.
10.32
Explaining how they might (Q&A now) be able to reduce their transaction fee to just per order by just relaying the information.
10.33
Asked about how they could contribute to the marketing fund. Brock is explaining that they want to help – that they are big fans of what FFC is doing and want to be a supporter – but have some questions.
10.34
Brock is asking some very smart questions that are on the minds of a lot of vendors.
10.35
Betsy is explaining that she does not want FFC to own a network.
10.36
Bonnie is explaining that the existing FFC organization could not create a relay service, it would have to be a separate entity.
10.39
A shop owner just asked if a retail customer can order flowers on the FSN website. Brock is explaining that the answer is no – all orders are placed through the websites of their member shops. The customer is redirected from the FSN website to the website of the member florist so they get the full value. FSN makes no more money – completely different from the typical model of the relay provider keeping 20% as the sending commission.
10.40
Brock is explaining how they want to work with FFC to make features like this work even better for their member shops.
10.41
Brock is explaining a little bit about how member stats are calculated.
10.42
In response to a question from a florist Brock is reiterating that when a retail customer places an order on the FSN website 100% of the value goes to the florist.
10.42
Brock is finishing up by explaining that they have almost 6000 members. Lots of applause for a great service provider.
10.43
Ryan Freeman – another one of the great people in the business – of FlowerChat and Strider (websites) is taking the mic. Explaining a little bit about his background and experience and SEO credentials.
10.44
Applause for FlowerChat.
10.44
Ryan is explaining a little about FlowerChat and its goals.
10.45
Talking about some of the excellent content (social media, etc) FlowerChat provides. Now stating his support for FFC.
10.46
Explaining how FlowerChat can support FFC. For every annual Pro subscription will go to the fund. Also announcing a new “super” corporate membership that gets FC access for employees, SEO consulting and more perks to be announced later. Great value here.
10.48
Talking about the Strider Florist 2.o website platform and some of their innovations. Technical stuff here but the bottom line is that it helps their websites in search. Also features like inline editing to make their sites easy to admin.
10.49
Explaining that there are no per-order fees. The platform gives florists cost certainty.
10.50
Support for FFC:
0 for every new Strider website for FFC members
on each annual renewal
10.51
Now talking about Strider Inc. and their services – graphic and print marketing, SEO, etc. Ryan is pledging a monthly contribution from sales to FFC members.
10.52
Explaining the pricing on the Florist 2.o websites. Stressing the transparent pricing with no hidden fees or surprises.
10.54
Ryan is explaining a little about the Google Panda update and how damaging it has been to the search rankings of florist websites provided by some wire services. The Florist 2.0 platform avoided this by being focussed on content
10.56
Ryan is talking about the POS systems that the Florist 2.0 platform currently integrates with. He is stressing that they re open to integrating with any POS provider – a strong believer that an open approach that gives florists more options is good for the industry.
10.57
Ryan is talking about the feedback mechanism built into the Florist 2.0 platform and how it encourages input from clients and helps keep Strider focussed on improvements that benefit their clients.
10.57
Ryan just finished up and got a big round of applause.
11.12
Ryan here: I’m back, and happy to sit down!
Candi Smith is up representing Alex Frost and Sunflower Technologies. Candi works in customer service for Sunflower.
Sunflower provides software to wholesalers & providers as well as florists. Many of their staff have floral backgrounds as well.
They also offer POS, web sites and marketing material. The POS runs as SAAS (software as a service – cloud / web based) in the browser.
She is stressing that they are not WS owned, no push for branded products. “One System, No Limits” Claims to save florists over 0 / month vs WS tech. Cloud computing means POS isn’t tied to one PC, can run on low-cost PCs. Multi-shop accounting and GL support.
Monthly billing, no contract = they must keep you happy to keep you as a client.
Full integration means web orders are immediately in the POS and other modules. Loyalty programs are supported online and in store. Real time delivery confirmations via cell / smartphone. Remote login and dashboard summary helps you keep an eye on the shop even when you’re away.
Sunflower has no corporate culture – smaller company, better customer service.
Q&A
- seat license fees?
11.14
Art Conforti is up next to discuss his FloralApp. Art’s presentation disappeared into the ether, so he’s resending now.
11.30
Art is beginning with the FloralApp web site. Presentation to follow.
(FYI: 41 viewers on the LiveStream)
Art wants everyone to focus on being the connection to their customer, no matter where that customer is located. Be aggressive in pursuing customers.
Art sees a huge market potential in mobile / smartphone commerce. Smartphone adoption is increasing rapidly, and he predicts a spike in mobile commerce in the coming years. Stresses there is nothing that he sells that isn’t already using in his shop.
Focus on ourselves and our businesses, not so much on the wire service issue.
The presentation didn’t come through – time to ad lib some more! Good thing Art’s great at thinking on his feet.
He says “apps connect you to your customer” and you’re sewing your business card into their pocket. Even if they don’t order on the app they are reminded about your products and services. Includes reminder service, and pulls recipient info from your phone’s contacts.
No per order fees, works with MAS and Mercury POS for integration. No future upgrade costs.
Special catalogues coming for Weddings & Sympathy.
Special offer for FFC: 9 + monthly for each OS, or for both.
Q&A:
11.41
William O’Shea from FloraNext is up … next. This guy has a really cool “strut”
William’s family owned a flower shop for 40 years. He’s a programmer, used to work for Skype, but grew up in the shop. Built FloraNext out of frustration with the wire services.
Their old WS web site was a break-even experience with all the WS fees.
(You can tell the shop sale was recent, William keeps changing tense between past and present.)
Web sites and POS are web-based, no local hardware.
William says (and he’s right!) that florist web sites are extremely generic, don’t reflect the creativity of our industry, even though it’s our virtual store front.
Combined customer database between POS and web site.
No setup fees, no contract, no per order fees, no cancellation fees.
William is stressing the wisdom of buying independent tech – not just for cost savings, but also to avoid funding competitors.
Matching donation: florist donates , FloraNext will match
SEO Product: Backlink building 5%
FloraNext Basic free until 2012
Q&A
11.58
Jill from Sterling Payment Technologies is going to talk about their credit card processing services
Jill worked in a small town flower shop, then in St Petes FLA, then taught design & marketing. Then 20 years as a rep with FTD. She says about FFC: “It’s about time!”
HQ in Tampa, facilities in Atlanta as well. Credit and gift cards, loyalty programs.
They work with florists to do a line by line comparison to see how much a florist can save by switching to Sterling. Support for 100s of POS systems, gateways, etc. She remembers the days when WS POS supported alternate CC options. Happy to announce they can now support WS POS systems with their workaround (interested in learning more, how).
Customer support is handled by USA-based call centres, 24/7, English & Spanish, answered by real humans.
Latest & greatest security protocols & tech, amongst the first to be PCI certified.
Lots of reporting, online access & data, next-day deposit coming very soon (Monday evening close, in your bank Tues AM).
Will support FFC with a per-customer contribution and a monthly contribution based on volume.
She’s also pledging to use her contacts to spread the word about FFC.
Q&A
Jill & John really aren’t getting the integration issue. They don’t consider double-entry to be a problem.
Someone just realized they are WAAAYYYYY beyond their 5min Q&A time, and this is going downhill. Dirk is stepping in to move things along.
12.12
Bruce McShan and the MAS Team are on deck! Bruce is giving a quick background on MAS.
Started in mid-80′s, programmed in store for Bruce (McShan’s is a MASSIVE operation – very cool place to visit).
Bruce reminds up that MAS is not a Point of Sale system, it’s a Management System. MAS Direct is a Communication system. All the development is driven by the florists’ needs: “MAS is built from the driver up”.
Hal steps to the mic to talk about MAS Direct. They have a unique 2-way relationship between the florists and the software company. Now he’s reading directly from his slides. MAS Direct is about communication for the benefit of customer service, including real-time updates on the order status to the sending florist.
MAS Direct facilitates customized order commissions between florists & CC payment.
MAS Auto Messaging can automatically send ASK messages on orders that fall below price points, come from certain shop codes, etc.
MAS & FloristWare are working on a system for inter-platform communication.
50% of MAS Direct transmission fees go to FFC. <BIG applause> Includes WS orders via MAS Direct.
New features coming will also contribute to FFC.
Q&A
12.15
And we’re done!
Betsy is coming to the front to review what the rest of the day has lined up. Before she does, Dirk wants everyone with a smartphone to post their feedback on the FFC Facebook page.
Time for lunch! We’re back here for the next session at 1:30pm
13.41
Betsy is getting us rolling again, giving away some Tim Huckabee DVDs.
We’re going to break out into different committees in a few minutes.
13.44
Vendors will be meeting together independent of the committees. I believe they are keeping committee chair positions limited to B&M florists – no vendors in chair positions.
13.47
Committee breakout time is 1:30pm-ish until around 3pm. (ya, cuz florists don’t like to chat at all …)
3:15pm to 5pm we’ll be reviewing presentations from the committees recapping their breakout time.
How awesome is this – dinner is fully booked! Those without a reservation are encouraged to find someone else without a reservation – no florist eats alone!
See you folks later
15.33
Committee meetings are over, and I’m back in my seat with a fresh cup of coffee and a new dose of meds.
It’s almost time to rock the afternoon sessions!
15.36
Wow … the hotel wifi has become epically slow.
Like CC Sabathia on a treadmill slow.
15.45
Keith is reporting for the legislative committee. He’s a co-chair, and has been participating in the Oregon legislative process.
Def’n of Deceptive Order Gather: Advertising that implies by statement or omission something that is untrue.
They already have assistance from legal counsel in drafting legislative bills, and want to deal with this state by state, not at a national level. They also want to get local associations involved.
To be clear: Getting orders is good! Getting orders by lying to the consumer is bad for the industry.
A person from the floor is asking that the laws be written to not only include restrictions, but also to have enforcement language (some states don’t have this).
The bills will target advertising (incl web sites) that would lead a customer to assume the advertiser is present in the filling region when that’s not true.
16.06
Tim Galea is set to present for the Liaison Committee
The goal of this committee is to determine the best means to communicate with various aspects of the industry.
The committee feels that the best approach at the moment is to interact with an existing partner or vendor as a starting point. The general feeling is that wire services are condescending to their members, but they do have networks in place. WS have invested millions over the past few years to develop systems that florists have a lot of confidence in. WS are currently providing the best solution … if we can craft a new model that is more mutually beneficial.
<pause while someone picks the live blogger up off the floor>
Some points:
16.21
Bonnie Bank is presenting for the Organization committee. They are SO organized that they have Powerpoint slides!
Def’n of 501(c)(6) organization: A business league – a group of businesses who get together to improve the situation for their businesses. No employees, no compensation, strictly volunteer.
FFC will have a mission statement, board of directors, committees, AGM & Reporting, and memership. The BoD currently includes the 4 people on the steering committee, but should be expanded to include committee chairs. Try to balance for geographic areas, shop size (by employees), min 9 members, 2 yr term. Elections to happen soon. The initial year will be as committee elect, second year voting term. No term limit.
Initial election in January, with AGM in the summer.
BoD Authority:
Committees:
16.40
Queue Rachel Martin and Toomie Farris for the Membership Committee report (they had too much fun to make a powerpoint preso)
One member, one vote is a by-law issue.
Soliciting membership will be a communications committee issue as well. Clearly working with other committees will be key!
They had a lot of talk and debate over proposed membership costs. As a start-up agency the first year will be 0 annually for membership. Over time the fees may change as we learn about costs. Membership paid now will be good through end of 2012. Mid-year purchases will be pro-rated through end of 2012.
Corporate membership is suggested as 0 per year plus the revenue share proposed to vendors earlier. [Ryan note: ummm... ok]
Benefits & responsibilities: Get the word out. Toomie went over his “you tell ten people, they tell five people” plan. We need numbers to give credibility. He’s really stressing the need for a consistent message and using the material posted on the FFC site. We need to have a united voice.
“A non-profit family of florists”
Common goals of serving consumers, being passionate about flowers … and something else (my cold is kicking into high gear! The meds are failing miserably.)
They are recalling the good ole days of YOM and local association meetings.
Non-branded local florist marketing, AAG calculator, better rev distribution, database of reliable florists, 100% guarantee, vendor partners, ethical standards – all reasons to join FFC.
Annual and periodic regional meetings of FFC – incl the next FFC meeting in Grand Rapids in conjunction with the Michigan Floral Association (Sunday & Monday, right after MFA). [Ryan note: Come on the Friday for the all-day Online Marketing Spring Training session with ... me
!! ]
Improve the FFC web site, perhaps with the assistance of one or more associate members.
Personal commitments: Go to pool meetings, design shows, make some calls, find / host local meetings, use the online tools. Avoid misunderstandings by staying with the party line.
16.43
The big goal is to elevate and promote the consumption of flowers!
Sign up today, we need members and revenue to get rolling.
Comment from the floor: 0 is the minimum, no prohibition against giving more
16.44
Toomie has thrown down the ,000 challenge again for larger shops!
17.00
Communications Committee is up next with Dawn Baumgarten & Dirk Lorenz
(Betsy just did a quick poll to find out how people heard about FFC. Facebook, FlowerChat, email, phone calls, etc – quite varied)
Dawn is pleased to have her committee with her, because she thought talk of Hashtags (#) was about selling drugs. <lolz>
Dawn prefers email for communicating regular updates, because more people check email for valuable content and messaging.
Need to create collateral for email blasts, sign up and sell sheets. Wants to have a pwd protected area for members. Docs should be reviewed by legal and (other?) people to keep messaging consistent and original.
Use the Facebook page will be used for general information, but a private group for dues-paying members.
Consistent use of official hashtags for events. Social integration with email broadcasts. Share, share, share!
Direct mail piece (postcard?), available in print quality PDF as well for florists to use on their own.
Use outgoing orders spread the word about FFC.
Work with local wholesalers to spread the message and alert more florists about FFC. Harold set up a table at the San Fran flower market. Wholesalers and route drivers took stacks of info to florists across the country.
17.02
Important to continue to use the web site as the official clearing house for all FFC info.
17.13
Time for Mike Fiannaca and Doug Fick
Mike has asked the committee members to come to the front. I’m curious how William O’Shea got on that committee … but now I know why he wasn’t at the vendor meeting.
FFC sees the need for a new system, but isn’t in the business of developing software and networks. Mike sees options like MAS Direct as a solution for now, but needs something to fit all shops. [I think Mike needs a better understanding of what MAS Direct is!]
How can we use an F2F network to give the consumers a better experience?
What issues need to be addressed to allow florists to sell what the fillers offer? Do we need a new catalogue of non-WS images?
Mike wants a comparison chart of services available from the selected vendors.
Build and plan for the future, not just box ourselves in through poor choices now.
Need to build and maintain database of members and data.
Can we access WS APIs? Are they allowed to restrict access to their APIs? [Ya, they do ... it's their API.]
Doug is speaking – sees the need for a searchable directory as soon as possible.
17.17
Mark Anderson is about to tell us what the vendors talked about.
But first, Betsy is happy to announce the first official membership cheque to FFC!
Mark has the mic.
He just cracked a joke that was way too awesome to try and right down.
The vendors are really impressed and ready to pay our dues, and hope to be selected as Associate Members.
(It’s a pity that two of the vendors who presented today opted to skip the vendor meeting … a bit disappointing.)
17.18
And that’s a wrap … until after dinner. Back in a few hours!
20.26
Back from dinner … two cheesecakes may not have been such a great idea. But the company was excellent!
Dirk is reading some comments from the Facebook page.
Fun question: If we had unlimited funds, who would be the celeb of choice?
“Finally Found Cash!!” (huge applause)
20.29
Mike has restored order, and we’re going to discuss the events of the day. We’re looking for ways to add value back to the florist and at the same time fund marketing (hence the vendor presentations).
Brock from FSN is at the front to announce the first successful 90/10 order through the FSN network.
20.31
Rick Rivers jumped on the 90/10 bandwagon, and called for other florists to do the same. Several signed up on the spot.
Brock is reminding everyone that they pay within 7 days – you save 17% vs a WS, and get your money in 7 days vs 45 with the big 3.
20.33
Mike has some questions for me…
20.34
Ok, no questions … but thanks to Mike for plugging our presentation and plan for helping FFC.
20.36
Keith wants Candy to tell Alex from Sunflower to give a concrete proposal for supporting FFC – they didn’t present anything beyond a quick overview of the company.
Someone from the audience is expressing concern over the quality of the directory – many, many garbage entries, she says.
20.42
Mike’s recapping Art’s offer on the FloralApp for iOS and Android.
Good questions for Art about app details and improved wording on the directory site.
20.43
William O’Shea and the folks from Sterling aren’t here, so no questions for them.
20.45
Team MAS at the front taking questions about MAS Direct vs MAS – explain the difference.
MAS is the complete shop management system.
MAS Direct is the send / receive standalone system that can replace a Mercury Direct & Dove & FSI computer(s).
20.54
Lots of confusion about MAS Direct, MAS, POS systems and send / receive terminals.
I blame all the POS systems for their stupid naming rules. Mercury, Mercury POS, Dove, Dove Plus, Dove POS, MAS, MAS Direct within MAS, MAS Direct Network, MAS Direct Send & Receive … not the conversation to have after dinner & such.
20.55
It’s branding gone wild …
20.56
Mike wants to know if the florists like this concept of interviewing vendors and boosting the marketing fund through revenue sharing. He’s asking for people to write in with other revenue suggestions.
20.58
FFC will not be selecting exclusive vendors for each product / service. Options are good for florists! Change is easier for florists when they are comfortable knowing viable options exist.
21.01
Future sessions will have minimal supplier review – this won’t be a huge component of future meetings.
21.02
Committee(s) will review potential future vendors and make recommendations to the board. If members have concerns about vendors they will be able to direct those to the committees.
21.10
Someone is debating the need to charge for membership. Florists here just need to get on with selling the FFC concept!
[0 is not a pain point for a business owner - it's a concept. The shop that won't spend 0 won't spend either. We need to help them feel the benefits of belonging to something special.]
No one is supporting his opinion – everyone is onboard with the 0.
21.13
Besty is wrapping up by thanking everyone for attending, and the crews back home for manning the shops while we gather.
21.16
Back tomorrow morning at 8am, and after some business chat the WSs will have a chance to address the group – if they choose to do so.
And we’re done for today … catch tomorrow’s coverage at http://www.flowerchat.com/real-florists-blog/2011/10/florists-change-atlanta-day-2/
Continue reading...
08.12
And we’re rolling! FFC Atlanta is on
08.13
Dirk is at the mic introducing the steering committee:
- Mike Fiannaca, Sparks Florist
- Betsy Hall, Halls Flower Shop
- Keith Hill, Beaverton Florists
- Dirk Lorenz, Fremont Flowers
08.13
We’re also live streaming, apparently, but I don’t have the URL right now. I’ll post it soon when I get it.
08.14
Dirk just read a letter from a small florist lamenting the state of the industry. Now, Toomie Ferris is speaking representing the view of a large florist.
08.17
Toomie says larger florists can’t just cut off the WS completely – need specific tools like large, multi-store floral-specific POS systems, high-volume order relay, etc. Toomie is taking a long term view – incl the potential loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars in rebates for the long term gain.
08.19
Dirk is back – recapping Vegas, incl the need for an affordable platform-agnostic relay system, and establishing a set of industry ethics.
Harold Hoogasian is giving us a rundown of the “Four-way test”. Rotarians applaud!
08.25
Betsy is speaking now, welcoming us to her home town of Atlanta (birthplace of her favourite person in the world – Ken Hall <ahhhhh!!>), and giving us the lay of the land.
Betsy unveiled the Florists For Change business cards with contact info for all the steering committee members.
All activities will be on this floor (yay for not getting lost!) except for the breakout sessions which will be upstairs. Except for the two that aren’t. Ok, I’m lost already.
This session is already an upgrade on Vegas – we have coffee and lunch!!
08.29
Betsy is giving props to Burton + Burton for their awesome products, nice showroom (with cold drinks & cookies), and for sponsoring the name badges. Burton + Burton and Accent Decor have both opened their showrooms specifically for the FFC crowd tomorrow.
Shout outs to some local shops that are attending and showing support.
Syndicate Sales donated the vases and cubes for the lovely flower arrangements (courtesy Hall’s Flowers).
08.30
Fun’s over … we’re getting down to business … except that Keith just reminded Dirk to give us all directions to the bathroom. Seems you have to go through a maze and some unlabelled doors. Thanks, Westin Peachtree!!
08.32
Mike on the mic, trying to get some blood moving in this crowd. He’s thanking Betsy & Ken for the great flower arrangements – they remind us why we’re really here.
08.33
Vegas recap:
Florists for Change is dedicated to improving the economics of the retail florist by encouraging industry advertising, providing exceptional consumer value, and promoting equitable trading among florists.
08.35
Code of Ethics:
- Practice the Golden Rule with consumers and other florists
- 100% satisfaction guarantee for consumers
- Must not participate in deceptive order gathering
08.35
Live streaming is available at http://www.livestream.com/floristsforchange … but stay here for the commentary
08.37
Florists For Change is all about advocacy for B&M florists
- F2F Direct orders as alternative to WSs
- “Buy local flowers” advertising
- Improving profitability of wire-ins
- Removing the DOGs (deceptive order gatherers)
08.37
Over the years, WS.com, wire-ins, DOGs have increased, while WS F2F, wire-outs & profit have decreased.
08.40
Questions:
- Are rebates and the 80/20 split good?
- Do high fees & low SRPs kill wire-in profits?
- How much market share have we lost to WSs & DOGs?
- To what extent do we need traditional WSs?
- Can florists and WSs restructure their relationship?
- Can B&Ms remain relevant in the dot-com era?
08.42
The Grand Irony
- We finance WS growth through fees used to advertise their dot-coms
- We fill their orders, they absorb our market
- We allow this to persist!
08.44
Realities
- Incomings mainly ARE unprofitable
- Consumers likely ARE receiving inadequate value
- “Buy Flowers” advertising does NOT exist
- DOGs and Send-Only florists are parasitic
- These dynamics encourage negative results for the consumers, the industry, and florists
- Fix now or face the new reality forever
08.45
(notes from an infographic)
Teleflora (estimate)
- 14,700 B&M
- 200 grocery
- 14,900 total shops
- 9,000 B&M
- 1,400 grocery
- 10,400 total shops
08.46
1-800-Flowers Bloomnet
- 2009
- Revenue: 4.4 MM
- Orderss 8.6 MM
- 2010 … missed it
08.47
FTD
- 2009
- Revenue: 5.8 MM
- Orders: 6,071,000
- 2010
- Revenue: 4.5 MM
- Orders: 6,361,000
08.48
Roll International (Teleflora)
2010 Billion in sales
08.48
ProFlowers
- 2006: FedEx delivered 200k PF packages
- 2008: 1MM delivered – 0 MM sales
- 50% PF’s business is at Mother’s Day & Valentine’s
08.50
ProFlowers is owned by Liberty Media with dozens of companies and markets. They KNOW how to spot opportunities and leverage markets – and they are growing fast.
08.51
SAF stats on B&M
- Avg sales: 0k in 2007 & 2008
- Weddings: 10% of sales
08.52
USBLS says number of floral designers will decline 9.7% from 2008 to 2018
08.53
Mike is now reviewing the newly updated At A Glance calculator. Compares WS transactions with F2F model, using a florist’s real numbers.
08.54
SRPs are a real problem as OGs compete on price. Sale prices don’t match the reality of the B&M florists. If SRP is 20% below reality before the WS commissions, a florist can’t be profitable or deliver satisfaction.
08.58
Reviewing real data submitted by real florists.
Shop 1 has 4.8x more incoming than outgoing. This florist will lose money on WS and F2F transactions at this ratio, with their COGS and operating costs.
Shop 2 4.9x more outgoing than incoming. Both WS and F2F models create nearly equal profits.
Shop 3 1.6x more incoming than outgoing. F2F is slightly profitable, WS model loses money.
Go online (or if you’re here visit the Fiannaca brothers) and plug in your real numbers to see your own scenarios.
09.00
Incoming orders are often very unprofitable
- SRPs
- discounts and commissions
09.01
Outgoing orders are often very profitable
- 20% commission
Sales labour + customer support generally 5% of sale
[Ryan note: he ignored marketing costs, though!] - Rebates
- More orders sent = better WS deal
- Supports existence of Send-Only & DOGs
09.02
What about receiving florists?
- Tend to be smaller shops
- Filling florists are squeezed financially
- Can’t survive, going under
- Leaving fewer fillers
- Consumers frustrated, switch to FTD/ProFlowers drop ship
09.03
Mike has a big graphic with lots of arrows. The main point: When consumers lose, we lose!
09.05
To fix This Mess:
- Focus on the consumer
- Build value, convenience, loyalty
- Unconditional 100% satisfaction guarantee
- Legislate DOGs out
- Create a Buy Local campaign
- Got Milk, Happy Cows, Where’s The Beef, Pork on Your Fork … now I’m hungry
- Build a non-profit, F2F direct order mechanism
- I sell your products at your prices and delivery fee
- You pay me a commission based on my cost + profit
09.10
Since Vegas:
- Created Florists for Change, Inc – non-profit (Bonnie from Atlanta is also a lawyer & CPA, finalizing now)
- Established and now filling action committees
- Initiated system to build marketing fund
- Seeking preferred vendors
- Educating florists on WS financials
- Getting the word out
09.12
FFC Structure
- florist-controlled organization – only florists vote
- Board of Directors
- Committees
- Organization: NFP corp 501(c)(6)
- Communications:
- lots more! fast slides again
09.12
Organization
- Bonnie Bank, Mike Fiannaca
- Legal entity, legal activities
09.13
Communications
Dawn Baumgartner, Dirk Lorenz
- official source for authorized docs & announcements
- establish phone call tree & procedures
- public relations, media interviews and write-ups
- web site and social media maintenance
- newsletters, etc
09.18
F2F Direct Order Transmission
Doug Fick, Mike Fiannaca
- set standards, requirements, features
- communicate existing F2F tech products to members
- define ideal comprehensive future F2F system
- Compare existing platforms to the ideal
- Define incremental development schedule for long-term
- Evaluate tech companies as potential associate members
- credit card clearings
- web sites, POS, accounting
09.20
Legislative
Cathy Rulloda, Harold Hoogasian, Keith Hill (Cathy’s name got big applause!)
- Define “deceptive order gathering” – are they lying to the consumer?
- Identify reliable info on “deceptive order gatherers”
- Secure assistance of industry experts
- Establish alliances with organizations active in this process
- Analyze existing consumer protection laws & legislation
- Work the state legislatures
- Create “Do Not fill” list for DOGs in North America (feasible? legal? restriction or purely informative?)
09.22
Liason (cool heads, calm personalities for industry relations)
Tim Galea, Dirk Lorenz
- Interact with industry organizations incl WSs to express policies of FFC
- Conduct negotiations with WSs & others
- Act in ombudsman capacity
- Represent FFC with international groups
09.23
Finance & Accounting
Betsy Hall, Mike Kusuda, Bonnie Bank
Financial reporting and oversight
09.25
Membership
Toomie Farris, Rachel Martin, Betsy Hall
- Create forms, agreements, rules of conduct & dispute resolution
- recommend membership costs
- Define member benefits & responsibilities
- Define member service policies, systems, procedures
- Plan annual & periodic meetings of FFC
- Promote & build membership
- Create member / non-member database, maintain records
09.27
Advertising & Marketing
chairs to be determined
- Develop funding mechanisms
- Florists, associate members, industry
- FFC web ads
- F2F order fees
- Establish objectives for the Buy Local campaign
- Develop integrated campaign concepts
- Flowers speak …
- Buy Local – Who do you trust?
- Anti-box
- In lieu of
- Identify channels to compete with DOGs (web, YP, etc)
- Mechanism(s) to distribute ad materials to florists
09.30
Associate Membership
- AMs must publicly pledge support FFC’s:
- Mission
- Improving economics of TRF by advertising, exceptional consumer value, equitable trading among florists
- Ethics
- Golden Rule, 100% satisfaction, No DOGs
- Mission
- Screened, recommended by the membership committee
- Approved by the board
- Become “Preferred Vendors” for FFC member florists
09.32
Some potential associate members will be “interviewed” by the audience at 10:15am today. They (incl me!) will outline in 10min how they will support FFC, followed by 5min Q&A from the floor.
09.37
Mike just reviewed the schedule for the rest of the day.
Tomorrow we will discuss findings, then hear from Bloomnet, FTD, Teleflora, each with a 20min segment. Mike wants to hear specifics about how they will support FFC, not fluff & rhetoric about how they are such great partners. Each WS will present, then leave the room so that they aren’t hearing each other’s messages.
[Ryan note: bet the contents of those presentations will take all of ... 2 minutes? to get spread? Isn't gossip wonderful?]
Mike is stressing that FFC is not anti-WS (perhaps some of their practices?), FFC is pro-florist. He’s also intimated that throwing produce is not acceptable.
09.39
Time for a break – we’re aiming to be back around 10am for vendor presentations.
09.55
FYI: Mark Anderson of FloristWare will be taking over Live Blog duties for the next bit, as I’m scheduled to present 2nd in the vendor segment.
10.08
[Ryan note: I'm guessing 5-10min before we get rolling again]
10.14
I’ll try not to make a mess of this – Ryan has set the bar quite high.
10.17
Betsy Hall is on stage telling everyone a little about Atlanta and Georgia. She is a charming presenter and has done a great job as host of this event.
10.20
Dirk has taken the mic and is getting ready to introduce potential associate (vendor) members. He is referencing the FFC code of ethic and going over the time limits.
10.20
Brock Atwill – the founder of FSN and one of the nicest guys in the business – is taking the stage.
10.22
Brock is saying that FSN supports FFC and wants to work with them. He is thanking the organizers for the chance to speak and for what they are doing for the industry.
10.22
Explaining a little about the history of FSN. Their focus has always been on serving real flower shops.
10.23
Their online florist directory has always encouraged consumers to call member shops directly. This evolved into websites for florists.
10.25
Brock is showing a little of the FSN florist portal and how their model makes their network unattractive to order gatherers.
10.26
Explaining that members get paid every week.
10.27
Giving some examples of how the regular weekly checks have helped keep shops going.
10.28
Explaining how FSN likes competition and sees it is the best thing for the florists. Explaining how FSN has opened their network to integrate with different POS providers. They are an open system and will integrate with any POS provider.
10.29
Introducing something new, something that has been discussed earlier today: a 90/10 split.
10.30
The new split is optional – sending shops will decide at what split they want to send.
10.31
Senders can choose from different splits.
10.32
Explaining how they might (Q&A now) be able to reduce their transaction fee to just per order by just relaying the information.
10.33
Asked about how they could contribute to the marketing fund. Brock is explaining that they want to help – that they are big fans of what FFC is doing and want to be a supporter – but have some questions.
10.34
Brock is asking some very smart questions that are on the minds of a lot of vendors.
10.35
Betsy is explaining that she does not want FFC to own a network.
10.36
Bonnie is explaining that the existing FFC organization could not create a relay service, it would have to be a separate entity.
10.39
A shop owner just asked if a retail customer can order flowers on the FSN website. Brock is explaining that the answer is no – all orders are placed through the websites of their member shops. The customer is redirected from the FSN website to the website of the member florist so they get the full value. FSN makes no more money – completely different from the typical model of the relay provider keeping 20% as the sending commission.
10.40
Brock is explaining how they want to work with FFC to make features like this work even better for their member shops.
10.41
Brock is explaining a little bit about how member stats are calculated.
10.42
In response to a question from a florist Brock is reiterating that when a retail customer places an order on the FSN website 100% of the value goes to the florist.
10.42
Brock is finishing up by explaining that they have almost 6000 members. Lots of applause for a great service provider.
10.43
Ryan Freeman – another one of the great people in the business – of FlowerChat and Strider (websites) is taking the mic. Explaining a little bit about his background and experience and SEO credentials.
10.44
Applause for FlowerChat.
10.44
Ryan is explaining a little about FlowerChat and its goals.
10.45
Talking about some of the excellent content (social media, etc) FlowerChat provides. Now stating his support for FFC.
10.46
Explaining how FlowerChat can support FFC. For every annual Pro subscription will go to the fund. Also announcing a new “super” corporate membership that gets FC access for employees, SEO consulting and more perks to be announced later. Great value here.
10.48
Talking about the Strider Florist 2.o website platform and some of their innovations. Technical stuff here but the bottom line is that it helps their websites in search. Also features like inline editing to make their sites easy to admin.
10.49
Explaining that there are no per-order fees. The platform gives florists cost certainty.
10.50
Support for FFC:
0 for every new Strider website for FFC members
on each annual renewal
10.51
Now talking about Strider Inc. and their services – graphic and print marketing, SEO, etc. Ryan is pledging a monthly contribution from sales to FFC members.
10.52
Explaining the pricing on the Florist 2.o websites. Stressing the transparent pricing with no hidden fees or surprises.
10.54
Ryan is explaining a little about the Google Panda update and how damaging it has been to the search rankings of florist websites provided by some wire services. The Florist 2.0 platform avoided this by being focussed on content
10.56
Ryan is talking about the POS systems that the Florist 2.0 platform currently integrates with. He is stressing that they re open to integrating with any POS provider – a strong believer that an open approach that gives florists more options is good for the industry.
10.57
Ryan is talking about the feedback mechanism built into the Florist 2.0 platform and how it encourages input from clients and helps keep Strider focussed on improvements that benefit their clients.
10.57
Ryan just finished up and got a big round of applause.
11.12
Ryan here: I’m back, and happy to sit down!
Candi Smith is up representing Alex Frost and Sunflower Technologies. Candi works in customer service for Sunflower.
Sunflower provides software to wholesalers & providers as well as florists. Many of their staff have floral backgrounds as well.
They also offer POS, web sites and marketing material. The POS runs as SAAS (software as a service – cloud / web based) in the browser.
She is stressing that they are not WS owned, no push for branded products. “One System, No Limits” Claims to save florists over 0 / month vs WS tech. Cloud computing means POS isn’t tied to one PC, can run on low-cost PCs. Multi-shop accounting and GL support.
Monthly billing, no contract = they must keep you happy to keep you as a client.
Full integration means web orders are immediately in the POS and other modules. Loyalty programs are supported online and in store. Real time delivery confirmations via cell / smartphone. Remote login and dashboard summary helps you keep an eye on the shop even when you’re away.
Sunflower has no corporate culture – smaller company, better customer service.
Q&A
- How will Sunflower support FFC: No idea, Alex would have to answer.
- What’s the relation with ETFA: Almost migrated everyone to Sunflower.
- What if the internet access goes down: Consider backup ‘net connections. They have monitoring and mirrored servers on their end.
- What about local servers in store: Ask Alex.
- seat license fees?
11.14
Art Conforti is up next to discuss his FloralApp. Art’s presentation disappeared into the ether, so he’s resending now.
11.30
Art is beginning with the FloralApp web site. Presentation to follow.
(FYI: 41 viewers on the LiveStream)
Art wants everyone to focus on being the connection to their customer, no matter where that customer is located. Be aggressive in pursuing customers.
Art sees a huge market potential in mobile / smartphone commerce. Smartphone adoption is increasing rapidly, and he predicts a spike in mobile commerce in the coming years. Stresses there is nothing that he sells that isn’t already using in his shop.
Focus on ourselves and our businesses, not so much on the wire service issue.
The presentation didn’t come through – time to ad lib some more! Good thing Art’s great at thinking on his feet.
He says “apps connect you to your customer” and you’re sewing your business card into their pocket. Even if they don’t order on the app they are reminded about your products and services. Includes reminder service, and pulls recipient info from your phone’s contacts.
No per order fees, works with MAS and Mercury POS for integration. No future upgrade costs.
Special catalogues coming for Weddings & Sympathy.
Special offer for FFC: 9 + monthly for each OS, or for both.
Q&A:
- Is the app free for the customer: Yes
- Is that a year: No, a month
- Does the app rename for each shop: No, shared code database. Always called FloralApp. Mentioned that entering a zip pulls up the local florist’s products … need to clarify how that works.
- If local customer puts a remote zip does the shop local to the delivery does the florist who offered the app get the order or the local filling shop: The florist who provided the app gets the order.
- Harold Hoogasian recommends lots of QR codes
11.41
William O’Shea from FloraNext is up … next. This guy has a really cool “strut”
William’s family owned a flower shop for 40 years. He’s a programmer, used to work for Skype, but grew up in the shop. Built FloraNext out of frustration with the wire services.
Their old WS web site was a break-even experience with all the WS fees.
(You can tell the shop sale was recent, William keeps changing tense between past and present.)
Web sites and POS are web-based, no local hardware.
William says (and he’s right!) that florist web sites are extremely generic, don’t reflect the creativity of our industry, even though it’s our virtual store front.
Combined customer database between POS and web site.
No setup fees, no contract, no per order fees, no cancellation fees.
William is stressing the wisdom of buying independent tech – not just for cost savings, but also to avoid funding competitors.
Matching donation: florist donates , FloraNext will match
SEO Product: Backlink building 5%
FloraNext Basic free until 2012
Q&A
- How do the web order caps work: After hitting the cap you get bumped up to the next price point.
11.58
Jill from Sterling Payment Technologies is going to talk about their credit card processing services
Jill worked in a small town flower shop, then in St Petes FLA, then taught design & marketing. Then 20 years as a rep with FTD. She says about FFC: “It’s about time!”
HQ in Tampa, facilities in Atlanta as well. Credit and gift cards, loyalty programs.
They work with florists to do a line by line comparison to see how much a florist can save by switching to Sterling. Support for 100s of POS systems, gateways, etc. She remembers the days when WS POS supported alternate CC options. Happy to announce they can now support WS POS systems with their workaround (interested in learning more, how).
Customer support is handled by USA-based call centres, 24/7, English & Spanish, answered by real humans.
Latest & greatest security protocols & tech, amongst the first to be PCI certified.
Lots of reporting, online access & data, next-day deposit coming very soon (Monday evening close, in your bank Tues AM).
Will support FFC with a per-customer contribution and a monthly contribution based on volume.
She’s also pledging to use her contacts to spread the word about FFC.
Q&A
- How can you maintain PCI while integrating with 3rd party software: Using their gateway, they bear the responsibility.
- All major brands: Yes, even JCB – though no one here has ever seen a JCB card
- Existing hardware: Yes, they can support a lot of existing equipment
- What about card not present fees: They use passthrough + pricing, determined by volume. Too complex to get into now, but if they can’t beat your current pricing they’ll tell you to stay put.
- POS: They have to bypass POS – duplicate entry
- Contract length: 36 month contract
- How fast to get funds: Next day coming soon, additional monthly fee
- Currently integrated with any floral POS: No
- How many marketing reps in US: 120 independent sales offices, 60 staff, dozens of banks & credit unions
- Set up in Canada: No (Interesting, he keeps saying “I have, I have” – sounds more like a small biz than national company)
- Different rates for debit: “Of course!” They just pass on clearing rates + markup. Expecting to see debit costs fall since rates have been capped.
Jill & John really aren’t getting the integration issue. They don’t consider double-entry to be a problem.
Someone just realized they are WAAAYYYYY beyond their 5min Q&A time, and this is going downhill. Dirk is stepping in to move things along.
12.12
Bruce McShan and the MAS Team are on deck! Bruce is giving a quick background on MAS.
Started in mid-80′s, programmed in store for Bruce (McShan’s is a MASSIVE operation – very cool place to visit).
Bruce reminds up that MAS is not a Point of Sale system, it’s a Management System. MAS Direct is a Communication system. All the development is driven by the florists’ needs: “MAS is built from the driver up”.
Hal steps to the mic to talk about MAS Direct. They have a unique 2-way relationship between the florists and the software company. Now he’s reading directly from his slides. MAS Direct is about communication for the benefit of customer service, including real-time updates on the order status to the sending florist.
MAS Direct facilitates customized order commissions between florists & CC payment.
MAS Auto Messaging can automatically send ASK messages on orders that fall below price points, come from certain shop codes, etc.
MAS & FloristWare are working on a system for inter-platform communication.
50% of MAS Direct transmission fees go to FFC. <BIG applause> Includes WS orders via MAS Direct.
New features coming will also contribute to FFC.
Q&A
- What about ability to sell based on filler’s inventory: Preset price points for preferred florists, phase 2 will incl inventory / price points.
- What’s the fee structure: to send, to receive – min monthly
- How many end points: 2,200 seats (not sure if I got all of that)
- Hardware or SAAS: Either / or – you can have a server if you want, most are switching to SAAS
- Fees: MAS Management System , Send / Receive module is availale w/o POS for month, acts as an end-point for Dove, Mercury
12.15
And we’re done!
Betsy is coming to the front to review what the rest of the day has lined up. Before she does, Dirk wants everyone with a smartphone to post their feedback on the FFC Facebook page.
Time for lunch! We’re back here for the next session at 1:30pm
13.41
Betsy is getting us rolling again, giving away some Tim Huckabee DVDs.
We’re going to break out into different committees in a few minutes.
13.44
Vendors will be meeting together independent of the committees. I believe they are keeping committee chair positions limited to B&M florists – no vendors in chair positions.
13.47
Committee breakout time is 1:30pm-ish until around 3pm. (ya, cuz florists don’t like to chat at all …)
3:15pm to 5pm we’ll be reviewing presentations from the committees recapping their breakout time.
How awesome is this – dinner is fully booked! Those without a reservation are encouraged to find someone else without a reservation – no florist eats alone!
See you folks later
15.33
Committee meetings are over, and I’m back in my seat with a fresh cup of coffee and a new dose of meds.
It’s almost time to rock the afternoon sessions!
15.36
Wow … the hotel wifi has become epically slow.
Like CC Sabathia on a treadmill slow.
15.45
Keith is reporting for the legislative committee. He’s a co-chair, and has been participating in the Oregon legislative process.
Def’n of Deceptive Order Gather: Advertising that implies by statement or omission something that is untrue.
They already have assistance from legal counsel in drafting legislative bills, and want to deal with this state by state, not at a national level. They also want to get local associations involved.
To be clear: Getting orders is good! Getting orders by lying to the consumer is bad for the industry.
A person from the floor is asking that the laws be written to not only include restrictions, but also to have enforcement language (some states don’t have this).
The bills will target advertising (incl web sites) that would lead a customer to assume the advertiser is present in the filling region when that’s not true.
16.06
Tim Galea is set to present for the Liaison Committee
The goal of this committee is to determine the best means to communicate with various aspects of the industry.
The committee feels that the best approach at the moment is to interact with an existing partner or vendor as a starting point. The general feeling is that wire services are condescending to their members, but they do have networks in place. WS have invested millions over the past few years to develop systems that florists have a lot of confidence in. WS are currently providing the best solution … if we can craft a new model that is more mutually beneficial.
<pause while someone picks the live blogger up off the floor>
Some points:
- huge disparity between different florists here – needs and problems aren’t the same across the board
- a single solution won’t fit anybody, so we need some kind of tiered options
- some potential solutions:
- 90/10 system
- if we change the fee structure, the OGs will go away
- Tim wants to split the 7% clearing 50/50 to 3.5% each
- Get rid of QA, reciprocity, etc. (Or, actually have some QA transparency)
- this committee has no problem with rebates, as they act as a leverage tool against the WS
- possible reallocation of rebate money -> incentivize filling orders?
- [Ryan note: How about directing rebates to FFC marketing fund? They do come out of the WS's marketing budget line item anyway]
- transparency and clarity in the WS statements
- address “special deals” on WS fees
16.21
Bonnie Bank is presenting for the Organization committee. They are SO organized that they have Powerpoint slides!
Def’n of 501(c)(6) organization: A business league – a group of businesses who get together to improve the situation for their businesses. No employees, no compensation, strictly volunteer.
FFC will have a mission statement, board of directors, committees, AGM & Reporting, and memership. The BoD currently includes the 4 people on the steering committee, but should be expanded to include committee chairs. Try to balance for geographic areas, shop size (by employees), min 9 members, 2 yr term. Elections to happen soon. The initial year will be as committee elect, second year voting term. No term limit.
Initial election in January, with AGM in the summer.
BoD Authority:
- Size and composition of committees’ membership
- Election of officers within the board
- Approves actions of the organization (no actions w/o BoD approval)
- Vote by majority, 75% quorum
Committees:
- Authority only to recommend action to the BoD
- Duties to solicit ideas, research alternatives, present findings to board min 4x yearly
- Should votes be by store location, legal entity? (audience says one owner, one vote – bigger will probably be more active and present anyway) Open question that needs to be determined. Do we want to give out votes for revenue?
- Qualification
16.40
Queue Rachel Martin and Toomie Farris for the Membership Committee report (they had too much fun to make a powerpoint preso)
One member, one vote is a by-law issue.
Soliciting membership will be a communications committee issue as well. Clearly working with other committees will be key!
They had a lot of talk and debate over proposed membership costs. As a start-up agency the first year will be 0 annually for membership. Over time the fees may change as we learn about costs. Membership paid now will be good through end of 2012. Mid-year purchases will be pro-rated through end of 2012.
Corporate membership is suggested as 0 per year plus the revenue share proposed to vendors earlier. [Ryan note: ummm... ok]
Benefits & responsibilities: Get the word out. Toomie went over his “you tell ten people, they tell five people” plan. We need numbers to give credibility. He’s really stressing the need for a consistent message and using the material posted on the FFC site. We need to have a united voice.
“A non-profit family of florists”
Common goals of serving consumers, being passionate about flowers … and something else (my cold is kicking into high gear! The meds are failing miserably.)
They are recalling the good ole days of YOM and local association meetings.
Non-branded local florist marketing, AAG calculator, better rev distribution, database of reliable florists, 100% guarantee, vendor partners, ethical standards – all reasons to join FFC.
Annual and periodic regional meetings of FFC – incl the next FFC meeting in Grand Rapids in conjunction with the Michigan Floral Association (Sunday & Monday, right after MFA). [Ryan note: Come on the Friday for the all-day Online Marketing Spring Training session with ... me
Improve the FFC web site, perhaps with the assistance of one or more associate members.
Personal commitments: Go to pool meetings, design shows, make some calls, find / host local meetings, use the online tools. Avoid misunderstandings by staying with the party line.
16.43
The big goal is to elevate and promote the consumption of flowers!
Sign up today, we need members and revenue to get rolling.
Comment from the floor: 0 is the minimum, no prohibition against giving more
16.44
Toomie has thrown down the ,000 challenge again for larger shops!
17.00
Communications Committee is up next with Dawn Baumgarten & Dirk Lorenz
(Betsy just did a quick poll to find out how people heard about FFC. Facebook, FlowerChat, email, phone calls, etc – quite varied)
Dawn is pleased to have her committee with her, because she thought talk of Hashtags (#) was about selling drugs. <lolz>
Dawn prefers email for communicating regular updates, because more people check email for valuable content and messaging.
Need to create collateral for email blasts, sign up and sell sheets. Wants to have a pwd protected area for members. Docs should be reviewed by legal and (other?) people to keep messaging consistent and original.
Use the Facebook page will be used for general information, but a private group for dues-paying members.
Consistent use of official hashtags for events. Social integration with email broadcasts. Share, share, share!
Direct mail piece (postcard?), available in print quality PDF as well for florists to use on their own.
Use outgoing orders spread the word about FFC.
Work with local wholesalers to spread the message and alert more florists about FFC. Harold set up a table at the San Fran flower market. Wholesalers and route drivers took stacks of info to florists across the country.
17.02
Important to continue to use the web site as the official clearing house for all FFC info.
17.13
Time for Mike Fiannaca and Doug Fick
Mike has asked the committee members to come to the front. I’m curious how William O’Shea got on that committee … but now I know why he wasn’t at the vendor meeting.
FFC sees the need for a new system, but isn’t in the business of developing software and networks. Mike sees options like MAS Direct as a solution for now, but needs something to fit all shops. [I think Mike needs a better understanding of what MAS Direct is!]
How can we use an F2F network to give the consumers a better experience?
What issues need to be addressed to allow florists to sell what the fillers offer? Do we need a new catalogue of non-WS images?
Mike wants a comparison chart of services available from the selected vendors.
Build and plan for the future, not just box ourselves in through poor choices now.
Need to build and maintain database of members and data.
Can we access WS APIs? Are they allowed to restrict access to their APIs? [Ya, they do ... it's their API.]
Doug is speaking – sees the need for a searchable directory as soon as possible.
17.17
Mark Anderson is about to tell us what the vendors talked about.
But first, Betsy is happy to announce the first official membership cheque to FFC!
Mark has the mic.
He just cracked a joke that was way too awesome to try and right down.
The vendors are really impressed and ready to pay our dues, and hope to be selected as Associate Members.
(It’s a pity that two of the vendors who presented today opted to skip the vendor meeting … a bit disappointing.)
17.18
And that’s a wrap … until after dinner. Back in a few hours!
20.26
Back from dinner … two cheesecakes may not have been such a great idea. But the company was excellent!
Dirk is reading some comments from the Facebook page.
Fun question: If we had unlimited funds, who would be the celeb of choice?
- Betty White
- Conan Obrien <groans>
- Ashley Judd
- Madonna <boos>
- Ron Plagoyavic (sp?) [Never heard of this guy - sorry, folks, Canadian blogger]
- Tiger Woods (for an I’m sorry campaign)
- Mike Ditka
- Howie Long
- Albert Pujols
“Finally Found Cash!!” (huge applause)
20.29
Mike has restored order, and we’re going to discuss the events of the day. We’re looking for ways to add value back to the florist and at the same time fund marketing (hence the vendor presentations).
Brock from FSN is at the front to announce the first successful 90/10 order through the FSN network.
20.31
Rick Rivers jumped on the 90/10 bandwagon, and called for other florists to do the same. Several signed up on the spot.
Brock is reminding everyone that they pay within 7 days – you save 17% vs a WS, and get your money in 7 days vs 45 with the big 3.
20.33
Mike has some questions for me…
20.34
Ok, no questions … but thanks to Mike for plugging our presentation and plan for helping FFC.
20.36
Keith wants Candy to tell Alex from Sunflower to give a concrete proposal for supporting FFC – they didn’t present anything beyond a quick overview of the company.
Someone from the audience is expressing concern over the quality of the directory – many, many garbage entries, she says.
20.42
Mike’s recapping Art’s offer on the FloralApp for iOS and Android.
Good questions for Art about app details and improved wording on the directory site.
20.43
William O’Shea and the folks from Sterling aren’t here, so no questions for them.
20.45
Team MAS at the front taking questions about MAS Direct vs MAS – explain the difference.
MAS is the complete shop management system.
MAS Direct is the send / receive standalone system that can replace a Mercury Direct & Dove & FSI computer(s).
20.54
Lots of confusion about MAS Direct, MAS, POS systems and send / receive terminals.
I blame all the POS systems for their stupid naming rules. Mercury, Mercury POS, Dove, Dove Plus, Dove POS, MAS, MAS Direct within MAS, MAS Direct Network, MAS Direct Send & Receive … not the conversation to have after dinner & such.
20.55
It’s branding gone wild …
20.56
Mike wants to know if the florists like this concept of interviewing vendors and boosting the marketing fund through revenue sharing. He’s asking for people to write in with other revenue suggestions.
20.58
FFC will not be selecting exclusive vendors for each product / service. Options are good for florists! Change is easier for florists when they are comfortable knowing viable options exist.
21.01
Future sessions will have minimal supplier review – this won’t be a huge component of future meetings.
21.02
Committee(s) will review potential future vendors and make recommendations to the board. If members have concerns about vendors they will be able to direct those to the committees.
21.10
Someone is debating the need to charge for membership. Florists here just need to get on with selling the FFC concept!
[0 is not a pain point for a business owner - it's a concept. The shop that won't spend 0 won't spend either. We need to help them feel the benefits of belonging to something special.]
No one is supporting his opinion – everyone is onboard with the 0.
21.13
Besty is wrapping up by thanking everyone for attending, and the crews back home for manning the shops while we gather.
21.16
Back tomorrow morning at 8am, and after some business chat the WSs will have a chance to address the group – if they choose to do so.
And we’re done for today … catch tomorrow’s coverage at http://www.flowerchat.com/real-florists-blog/2011/10/florists-change-atlanta-day-2/
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