The Ultimate Guide to Promoting the Holidays on Pinterest

 By Cindy Hanauer, AFE TrusteeCEO of Grand Central Floral, LLCThe leaves are beginning to change, and you know what that means? It’s time to prepare your Pinterest boards for holiday selling!  Say what?  Yes!  You’ll be glad you started early and are prepared to use the latest in social media to market your business.Remember, Pinterest is one of the largest search engines and has the perfect audience for small businesses to stand out and promote their unique products.  So how do you show up in your customers’ feeds, encourage them to pin your pins, follow your boards and buy from you when ready?  It’s simple!  Just use these tricks of the trade:Pin as a BusinessIf you haven’t already, you’ll want…

New Floral Purchasing Study Reveals Data on Flower-Buying Consumers

AFE and SAF announce the release of the Floral Purchase Tracking Study.Formally called the Consumer Tracking Study, the last study of this kind was conducted in 2005, the last of an annual study that started in 1992.AFE and SAF partnered together to provide a study that is packed full of substantial data regarding the purchases of flower-buying consumers. The study reveals details such as types of flowers purchased, amount spent, for whom and what occasions, satisfaction levels, and more.Funded by the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF) and conducted by IPSOS, the study provides valuable information to florists that can greatly impact how they plan their marketing strategies, inventory purchases and structure their pricing. The information shared in this study has…

New Website Launched for the Floral Marketing Research Fund

AFE launched an updated, newly-designed website for the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF) at www.fmrf.org.The website has been visually improved and features easier navigation for users to access the free research reports and other FMRF news and updates. The upgraded website also provides a simpler process to submit applications (for cut flower consumer-based research) and make contributions online.Some of the free reports include:Marketing to Millennials (2017)– innovative marketing strategies and tactics to better target Generation Y consumers.Generations of Flowers Study (2016) – barriers and motivations of different generations and how they perceive, buy and use flowers and floral outlets.Funeral Directors and Flowers Report (2015) – funeral directors’ perspectives and consumer preferences on sympathy flowers, and the relationship between floral retailers…

Overcoming Millennials’ Barriers for Purchasing Flowers

In the first of a series of articles detailing the results of a new study from AFE and the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF), called “Marketing Tactics to Increase Millennial Floral Purchases,” major purchasing barriers for millennials and specific ways to overcome those barriers are featured.Understanding millennials’ purchasing behaviors can help you develop strategies to minimize barriers and increase profits.What are the Purchasing Barriers?Millennial consumers have several main reasons that reduce their likelihood of purchasing floral products. Most millennials surveyed do not purchase floral products due to perceptions of them being expensive, as well as their perceived short life span.Another purchasing barrier is that many millennial consumers believe floral products do not survive well in their homes due to air…

Consumer Study, Videos Featured in AFE Bulletin January 2017

New Study Provides Strategies to Win Over Millennials

The Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF) has released results from a new study that provides a detailed analysis about the floral consumption behaviors of Generation Y (or Millennial) consumers.The FMRF study, called “Marketing Tactics to Increase Millennial Floral Purchases,” was conducted by Dr. Chengyan Yue of the University of Minnesota and sponsored by Asocolflores.The study explored innovative marketing strategies and tactics to better target Millennials, who are key to the future of the floral industry.Results of the study reveal ways to effectively attract Millennials to floral products, as well as data on their attitudes, preferences and barriers to purchasing flowers.Top key findings and a detailed checklist of marketing recommendations are featured in the report and are invaluable to the industry. Some of…

Gabriel Becerra Appointed to President of FMRF

The Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF) has announced the appointment of Gabriel Becerra of Golden Flowers in Miami, Fla. as the new President of the FMRF Board, effective Sept. 1, 2016.Becerra precedes Paul Bachman of Bachman’s Inc., who completed his two-year FMRF presidency.“I am very happy to lead the efforts of the FMRF to provide the industry with much-needed support in consumer marketing research, which will continue to help the different segments increase consumption of flowers and floral products,” Becerra said.“FMRF has funded extremely valuable projects, and now we want floriculture industry members to utilize them.”Becerra recently completed a two-year term as AFE Chairman, and remains on the AFE Board as past Chairman for two years.The FMRF was established in 2008 by AFE to fund floral…

2016 Generations of Flowers Study

Download the 2016 Generations of Flowers Study Final Report. AFE, in partnership with the Society of American Florists (SAF), conducted the 2016 Generations of Flowers Study. This study is an update to the 2009 SAF study exploring consumer perceptions of flowers and plants and purchasing/gift-giving behavior among three key generations: Generation Y, Generation X and Baby Boomers.Funding for the project was provided by the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF).Download the Executive Summary.Download the Final Report.Read the article in the May issue of Floral Management magazine for further analysis of the study results.The results show how different groups perceive, buy and use flowers and floral outlets. The research assessed patterns, motivations and barriers to purchasing and the practical and emotional value…

AFE Partners With National Funeral Directors Association on New Study

AFE, through the Floral Marketing Research Fund (FMRF), is conducting a study with the National Funeral Directors Association to provide insight about how to improve the working relationship between florists and funeral directors and promote the many benefits of flowers and plants.This study aims to: Provide insight as to how retail florists and funeral directors can better work together Determine how funeral directors feel about flowers/plants in the bereavement process Improve or establish a mutually beneficial working relationship between funeral directors and florists Promote the benefits that flowers and plants bring, not only to grieving families but also to the givers who send flowers to memorialize the deceased “AFE and the FMRF are very happy to fund this project that…

New Research Helps Meet Consumer Floral Desires

Report 453: Identifying Consumer Preferences for Essential Elements of a Flower ProductAFE and researchers from the University of Florida (UF) present compelling evidence about just how enticing and alluring flower fragrance is to consumers, among other scintillating findings, in three new consumer preference studies:Identifying Consumer Preferences for Essential Elements of a Flower Product, Report #453Consumer Analysis of Mixed Containers for Indoor Use, Report #455Identifying Consumer Preferences for Cut Rose Fragrances, Report #456In report #453, researchers aim for a better understanding of what flower buyers really want – color, shape, size, fragrance, etc.— to better meet consumer demands and increase sales, and the results show consumers overwhelmingly desire fragrance.“This study allows the industry to gain a better understanding of what consumers value…