The Floral Hustle

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Hello, flower friends. This is Jen, and today we are going to be talking about the art of a consultation, and one thing I love about coaching one on one with people is that I see, like, I have been doing this for so long, and I love seeing where different people like are really wanting to understand because especially business minded or people who really see the big picture that this critical step in your sales process could basically make or break your business because if you do not have effective, impactful consultations, And there are lots of opinions about this.

There are opinions that you should not be having consultations. You should be sending a form, and they should be filling out the form, and they should magically be fucking giving you all of this money without doing a consultation. And I do not buy things that way. And I, I mean, maybe in the world some people do.

Maybe you've built such a brand. That you are such a badass that you do not need a consultation, and if that is you bravo. I am, that is amazing. But to me, I, for one, at this point in my career, I want to work with people that I actually like. I want to work with people who their wedding inspires me.

I want to work with people who Literally, like, are good humans, and I am not, in two months, going to be literally dreading if their name comes in my inbox. I want to work with people who I kind of know what I'm getting into before we have crossed the finish line and they are booking me. So my consultation process is mean.

Not only them getting to interview me and me really understanding understanding who I am, the human I am, like, the, the, things that I have in my inventory, what I look like, my mannerisms, how I communicate everything, which I know people are like, that doesn't matter. I don't communicate well with people who in business especially, that don't have good communication skills as a fundamental principle.

People who suck at communication, which Or people who are just buried in their own self or buried in their phone or whatever. I can tell that that person, like, doesn't care. I want to work with somebody who wants to work with me. Who is interested in me as a business. Not, are you going to be the cheapest?

Not, are you going to be, like, the solution to this problem that I have that is going to be, like, the cheapest, easiest, fastest. Like, I want a relationship with somebody I do a wedding with, and you need to build rapport in a relationship. You need to build I call it I want to reiterate the, their decision and that I'm a good choice.

I want that at the end of our consultation to be like stuck in their mind, I'm a good choice. This is the right choice. This person is an expert. This person knows what they're doing. This person's familiar with some aspect of my wedding and that makes me feel comfortable. Because if you do an effective job at convincing them truly that you are an expert, that you are the right choice, that you are familiar and you have some aspect of you that really builds this level of comfort.

If you build that, that is going to make it so much easier, if your bet is more, to be the one who wins that wedding. I want you to win that wedding even if you are more expensive. So, I am going to actually break down what my consultation process completely is. I'm going to almost do a mini consultation with you.

So, I do all my consultations I would, well, I would say 95 percent of them. I do them on Zoom. I have Kellan Lee. Which is a scheduling tool and it allows you if you don't want to pay. I have lots of different meeting types. One meeting type is free. I go in and google also if you have a google calendar also has a similar program that it will parse in your google calendar things that you have already marked out, but.

Here's the thing, like, I have the Floral Hustle Google Calendar. I have my personal with all the kids and all of that stuff. I have the Floral Business calendar. So I have all of these calendars, and like, I have just, I'm like, I don't want to have a meltdown trying to get all these things to communicate with each other.

And so I have just chosen to use Calendly as that medium because you can also build flows of communication in there. They can reschedule easily out of there and like I said it, it's free and I make it part of my Sunday night prep to go in and double check my availability for the week still aligns with what I had in there.

So first thing, I do not meet with everybody. Some people have on their inquiry form, please book a consultation and that is not me. I want, for one, I feel like relationships should be like playing tennis. a serve and volley back and forth. If I serve a response over to them and they do not volley back and I have to start chasing that ball, I have a general sense that this person is not very interested in what I have to offer.

They're probably searching for the easiest, best price, Cheapest don't care option and that is not me. That is not who I align with anymore I want to work with somebody who has a decent budget No things cost what they cost or what they're getting and like love the work I do love me. I want them to fall in love with me and what I can do for them and what I cost So, during my consultation, I have already previously not sent them a huge questionnaire with a million questions on it because my consultation is my opportunity for one to hear their response, to ask questions, ask follow up questions, and really to just build rapport this whole time.

So, in my initial inquiry, I am doing my initial Serve over to them. They have sent me an inquiry. The majority of my inquiries come through my Contact Us form on my website. I do not ask a million questions in this Contact Us form. I ask six. Name, email address venue, wedding date, budget, and I have a comments that they can put in.

Oh, referred by, so seven. Referred by. Where did you find us? So seven. Then, I go in and I ask them questions relevant to that. So first thing when I'm replying to them, I am solidifying, like, some good decision that they made about their wedding, like it's beautiful to get married in October. Their venue is beautiful.

Then, if I can position myself as an expert in this process, I am doing so. I am an expert at dark and moody. I am an expert at color. I am an expert at a lot of different venues here because I've been there so many times. I want to start solidifying and dropping these little cues that I'm a good choice.

So during this whole process, I'm layering in little nuggets of I'm a good choice. I'm a good choice. Because, in the end, you want them to unequivocally say, That person is my best choice. Even if they were more expensive. So then, my next step in that process is going, Okay, I'm going to go and ask them questions, and I'm going to see, for one, are they engaged in their response?

Two, do I like what they even have to say? If they didn't designate budget, and all of a sudden they're telling me that they have a 2, 000 budget, that's not at my minimum. Then I can funnel them down the correct path of a la carte. Not going into having a consultation. So that's one reason why I don't send my Calendly out to everybody in the world.

So then I'm asking them like how many bridesmaids do you have? If it's at a venue that I know is with room flips, like I'm asking about that. I'm asking about their wedding color I'm asking them if they did not share a target floral budget I'm asking that again, and I know that some people say don't ask that I do not want to pitch someone 11, 000 of flowers with a 3, 000 budget because it's not going to go well for either of us.

So I want to just be upfront. I want to know what I'm dealing with in our state. And I know if you've listened to the podcast a while, I've referenced cars and shopping because That is a big purchase. Wedding flowers are a big purchase. In Minnesota, we're the biggest best price state. So we have the most car dealers that just give you their best price up front.

I give you my best price up front. I'm not gonna go back and forth and negotiate on flowers. Cause for one, that sounds horrible. So I know that the demographic in Minnesota also just wants me to give them the best out there. information up front and not, like, peel them off the ceiling when all of a sudden they've been told what they want is 12, 000.

I also, this is where I interject my brochure, my pricing guidance. And this is critical in this spot, because if they cannot afford you, this is their education time to learn that. Before you invest a whole bunch of time and resources, like time, because time is a resource, time is money, time is a currency to many people, That you cannot get back.

So if I'm going to invest that time, I want to make sure that they have an idea of my pricing. So I send them my brochure, I, I, you know, say, hey, I have a ton of experience at your venue, I've been to your venue, whatever it is, I'm layering in I'm a good choice phrases. Then they. Bali back. Depending on that is whether I go to a consultation or not.

If their budget is too low, I'm sending them down the a la carte path. If their budget is in alignment, then I'm like, Hey, um, I would love to, I just absolutely love, because I've also asked at this point for their Pinterest link or three images that capture their floral vision. And then I go, I would love to connect with you and be able to develop a full estimate based on your specific needs.

Here's my scheduling link before below. I'd love to set up a time and chat. I look forward to hearing from you. So then we go to our consultation. So I, at this point, hopefully have the questions answered that I have asked, which I've asked bridesmaids, if they need reception flowers. I, if, based on the venue, I understand probably if there's a room flip.

I understand about their estimated guest count, I understand probably like by pictures what their vibe is, and I know their wedding color. And from there, and I hopefully know their target floral budget, and if they don't know, I ask them, um, I just kind of explain that the average wedding budget for a million years now Four flowers has been 10 to 15 percent of your overall budget.

But that was before Instagram, Pinterest, all these things started hanging flowers from the ceilings and making tables into a growing tablescape. So with that in mind, does that bring up a target floral budget for you? Then, we get to our consultation, the beginning of it. I am building rapport. I'm asking them what they loved about their venue.

I'm asking them specific details or about, um, something in their picture or something that I was just really super intrigued with. Uh, like my consultation today, they had snakes in their invitation suite. Like these dark and moody snakes, and like, that's super fascinating to me because honestly, in 1700 Weddings, it's a first, folks.

So, like, I want to hear about these snakes. I want to hear about the dark and moody and what, like, inspires that. I want to hear why she loves her venue. I want to hear, like, something that she loves about her fiancé or how long they've been together. If he's on there I'm trying to engage both of them in conversation.

Then I start going through I always start at bouquets. I'm like, okay, so I'm guessing you need a bouquet, and then I'm going to my bridesmaids. How many bridesmaids do you have? If it is a unique situation where there is someone who is a bridesman, a groomsman, and I recently, last year, had somebody who was just non binary.

Like I was like, well, I don't know what you'd like for me to make for them, so what would you like me to put down? And I'm just, I mean, not knowing is not knowing, that's okay. And so I just said, you know, what would you like me to make for them? I'm happy to make whatever. So one of them wanted a boutonniere, one of them wanted a corsage, but they were flip flop for the sides.

And I was like, okay how would you like me to label that? And they were like, just their name. And so I just put their names. Then I go down the row, personal flowers, and I start with, okay, I'm guessing you want a grooms, groom boutonniere, and then you know, groomsmen. Do you have a matching number of groomsmen?

Yes, I do. Okay, great. And then do you have ushers? I don't know about that. Well, normally, You know, I would say there's usually two ish ushers, but if you want, I can just put a placeholder of two, and if you guys don't do that, I can always take it out. Or if you want, we can just always add it down the row.

Which do you prefer? Okay, great. Now, moms. Do you think moms want flowers? And they're like, Oh, I don't know. Well, what do they normally do? Well, it's about 50 50. Some moms like a pin on if they're older or more traditional. Some like wrists. So it's really up to them, but you can choose and I'm happy to make whatever.

Then from there, I go to dad, then I go are their grandparents, then I transition to are their children, and then I give suggestions. And I usually tell them, anybody that's in the bridal party, I'm usually matching the personal flowers to match the bouquets and the overall aesthetic of the flowers. But for moms, grandparents, um, any additional boutonnieres and corsages, I'm usually making it a neutral tone, so that we're not worried that Aunt Betty's orange outfit is not going to match with the purple flowers.

And they're usually like, oh yeah, that's a good idea. Okay, great. And then I'm making suggestions for the flower girl, telling them that I make a mini boot for the ring bearer, whatever it is. Then I go into the ceremony and I just say, what did you have in mind for your ceremony? And looking at your Pinterest board, it looks like you're looking for an arch.

Oh, yep, I'm looking for some type of arch. Okay, do you have an arch? Does the venue have an arch? Are you looking for an arch from me? I have a bunch of arches and this makes it so easy for me to rent the whole package and just design something that I know that the structure is going to support. So I have a double copper pipe.

So I always try to do double of anything unless it's like thick like a board because then I'm not worried about something like the cages turning forward. And so I'll be like, well, I have a couple different options. Did you have something in mind? It looks like you really just want that traditional kind of like upside down U with asymmetrical flowers on it because I've seen that a few times.

And the great thing about being on Zoom is you can have their Pinterest board up and you can just share it. Is this your favorite? They're like, oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, and then from there I'm going into, all right, are you guys wanting anything for your aisle? Um, no, we're thinking we're going to skip that.

Okay. Is there anywhere else in the ceremony that you would need flowers? Nope, I think we're good. Okay, so then when we go over to the reception, what is your vision for the reception? Well, I really don't know. Okay how many guests are you having? We expect about 135 people. Okay, and then with that 135, is that including the bridal party or excluding?

And they're like, okay that's including. Okay, so, at your, this venue, do you know if they have 60 tables? Cause 62, 60 inch tables fit 8 people. Comfortably, 72 inch fit 10 comfortably, 60 inch fits 10 super snugly, and 12 on a 72 inch super snugly. So, I can actually figure out myself how many tables they're going to have if they don't have that information.

And then based on that table number, I make suggestions. You know, with this With 135, 18 in the bridal party, because there are significant others are sitting up there, I would say that you're going to have 14 tables. So with 14 tables, I usually suggest doing two types of centerpieces just to create some dimension and movement in the room.

When somebody walks in, you just don't have flat centerpieces. Oh yeah, that sounds like a great idea. And then I'm going through and just Hey, do they like tall centerpieces? Do they like low? Do they like candles? And making that decision about those centerpieces based on their feedback. Then from there, I'm going into, okay, what do you want for your head table?

And then we're going through and talking about their head table. And, okay, normally I am figuring out how long their head table is before they've had any discussion with their are you wanting a harvest table? or a long skinny head table. Oh no, we want like the big harvest table. Okay, so harvest tables usually fit, they're eight feet long traditionally, and they fit four people on one eight foot section.

So with 18 people to be seated, we would need, and then I'll take my hands up, and I'm usually on Zoom, I would need, we'd need 4, 8, 12, 16, so that would be 16 feet long, 2 8 feet tall, 8 foot length, 2 wide, so we have a nice big center to put some candles. And then you two would be sitting at the edge and at the head of the table.

And they're like, yeah, that sounds great. And plus I'm super familiar. So then I said, Hey, just to let you know, like most of the weddings that I do at this venue are there. And, like, I'm telling them, like, this is my experience. This is normally what's happening. And they're like, that's great, because I am solidifying myself as the good choice, the expert at doing floral at this venue, especially this venue.

I am. I've hands down done the most floral out of any. florist in my market. And so like nobody's done it more. So then we go into they want a hanging installation. I again have done tons of them at this venue. I know all the hooks. I know all the things we go through. Okay. With a 16 foot long table, I think eight feet centered in the middle would be an appropriate length for that.

And Your head table can be located in two areas. And then I just pulled up their Instagram, the venue's Instagram. I said, here's a head table I did because I'm all over their Instagram. This is again, solidifying I'm a good choice. I'm an expert at their venue. Then, I'm showing it in the middle of the room, I'm showing it in the back of the room.

And really, my favorite is in the middle, because I think it creates this showstopper kind of look and feel, and I think it just looks so inviting when somebody walks in the room. And they're like, yeah, that's a great idea. I'm like, okay, perfect. Then I start talking through the head, the installation and what this head table hanging installation would look like and based on their Pinterest.

Then I'm going through and going, okay, is there any other needs? I saw a cake you know, beautiful picture of a cake in there. Are you looking for like a cake install at all? What was funny right on their Instagram, here's a cake install that I did at one of my workshops that was absolutely stunning. I was like, I did this and it's fun because we built in the little nooks of this and they're like, you know, we're still figuring out the cake.

Okay, just to let you know, like I can make something really cool with that and then we kind of go through any other needs they might need like a bar, a welcome sign. We've already talked through their ceremony. We've already talked through the reception. so much for sharing. And then I usually at the end start talking about colors and more bloom types.

So I said, okay, I have a really good idea. Of what you're looking for. And if you want to start this at the beginning, I save it to the end because I want to go through the details and I don't want somebody to get hung up during our whole process of those exact details and in the floral because I know that if I get somebody hung up on all of those colors, all of those flower choices, everything, then they start bringing all of those back to that specific Item in my experience.

So if it's a tall centerpiece, they're going to be like, well, what's going to be in it? Because you've already given them like some colors and options. So I at the beginning say all of these we're just going to talk about in concept that are going to be pulling in

So I'm nailing down their Pinterest board or their images into more specifics near the end, because again, I don't want to focus on all of these tiny details. I want to get all of the details kind of on paper. And I actually, um, Forgot to, um, include at the beginning of the call, I open a Word document and I tell them I'm opening a Word document to take notes.

I do not take notes on paper anymore because I lost that shit. Whole bunches of times. I started just taking photos of it, but then I was like, why am I not doing this digitally? Because I swear, like, I would have somebody say, hey, at the consultation, and then I couldn't find the piece of paper or the picture.

And so now I just have. Their name in a Word document because all of my proposals are done in Canva so I can always go and reference back You know what? I didn't have any notes about that from our consultation. So I'm sorry if I missed that So I'm just telling them so they don't think that I'm on Instagram scrolling or on Amazon buying toilet paper or whatever I'm just telling them, Hey, I'm opening this.

So just to let you know, I'm not like off surfing the web or anything. I'm just making sure that I have detailed notes to put your estimate together. Right. Then from there, I'm going in and I'm saying, okay, from there, I just want to make sure that I have all of the different choices for the colors that you're wanting.

And so if I can share their Pinterest board, I bring that up. And share the screen and zoom and I'm like, okay, I just want to make sure that I'm nailing down in looking at this a lot of normally it looks like they're bipolar because like some of these pictures are so different. So my example today, they had moody jewel tone that are more like freedom, red roses thistle.

dark plum binoculars, kind of standard issue. But then they had one that had dusty mauve in it, had a king protea in it with that dusty mauve, the mauvey pink one. They had one with golden mustard in it, like all over the board. And so I'm like, Scrolling, I was like, some of these are very different. And I said one thing that I really pride myself on.

So again, I'm solidifying myself as an expert who really cares. I care that I really nail your colors. Color is so important to me. And I've never delivered a wedding that somebody was unhappy with the color choices of the flowers. And I do not promise specific blooms. I leave this as generic as possible because I do not want to be Under any stress to deliver a specific flower, I want to find unicorn flowers whenever possible.

And if I, if I feel that resistance, when I share this with him, I explain examples of why, like I had a bride that really wanted these amnesia roses. There were no subs for this amnesia rose. And there was a hurricane and shut the ports down in Miami. Roses did not get in the country for four days. I got their roses on Friday for their Saturday wedding.

Like it was. So stressful for not only for me, but for the bride who is hell bent on these flowers. So I will find you flowers in these shades, tones, and textures that I think are really going to match the vibe that you're overall wanting to pull off. And because I position myself as an expert, the majority of this time, like I don't get much pushback.

And if I do, I know this person is probably not for me. Because people who are for me are people who trust me and I, again, I said, I can totally understand your resistance and not wanting to know exactly what's in here. Here's the thing. I know that I am better served in having the autonomy to find you those special flowers, to find you things that might not have been in the cooler.

And honestly, with the changing climate, like things are not on target for when I think that they're going to be available like they used to, like spring is earlier. Fall is later, like all of these are happening, and I just want possibilities for you. I do my best work when we are Like, unlimited possibilities as long as we stay within these guidelines.

So, then from there, I'm like, okay, which on your Pinterest board, because these are so different, like, really speaks to you. If they have 10 bouquets, what is your favorite? Or your favorite top two. Really nail down so you understand their aesthetic. And if they're their favorite, those are the pictures that are going in their proposal because they're already in love with it.

You're just delivering like this inspiration that they already love. Again, solidifying you're the right choice. Then, from there, I am going to go and say, okay, is there anything you don't like in here? Well, I don't like this and this. Okay, I just want to take notes so I'll, I won't use those things, but I'm really glad.

And then I go through and I say Hey, I, I'm super excited to put your proposal together. Did you guys by chance have a minute to look at the about us section on my website? And somebody will say, yeah, I glanced at it or no. Well, just in case. I've been a florist, and this is like my positioning myself as an expert statement.

I've been a florist for over 25 years. I've done over 1, 700 weddings, and I know if you're listening as a florist, you're like, holy shit, like there, I can't, I don't have anything remotely cool to say about that. But. In this situation, this consultation, you know what? I have done so many weddings at Essence that I feel completely comfortable in whatever we do.

Like I, it's like my second home and so I feel really confident in pulling off a wedding at this venue. I do personally, I do a ton of moody jewel tone weddings. Like I am a magnet for moody jewel tone and I can tell them. with confidence. I've done a ton of moody jewel tone weddings, and I really feel like I have a strong grasp of color.

Again, solidifying myself as an expert here. I'm saying color. No problem, folks. I'm your girl. I'm your girl. Like I am your girl. If you want color. in the Minneapolis market. I am your girl if you're getting married at Essence Event Center because it's like my second home. I am your girl if you want like locally grown blooms.

I, like, I can pick up on those things. If I can tell somebody is really into the environment or somebody's really into local or whatever, I Like I tell them my processes and solidify myself as, hey, also just to let you know, I have an urban flower farm. I actually grow some of my own flowers. And on top of that, I try to do sustainable business practices whenever possible.

So like all of our greens are composted whenever possible. And if foam free is important to you, I also have a lot of alternatives to produce your wedding foam free. If they care, they're going to say something. And I actually had somebody choose, somebody else, that that exact same statement I could have said, but they said it first.

And that, that sounded sexy to them. So you need to listen to those cues, position yourself as an expert, then I go into next steps. I go, okay, from here, I'm going to put together your proposal. And yes, everybody, I put together a proposal because I do not want. to ask someone for 7, 000, 10, 000 without giving them an example of what they're paying for.

And I know some educators are like, you shouldn't be giving proposals out because it takes time. I am not going to take somebody's 10, without showing them what they get. I would not go buy a car Without seeing pictures and understanding what I was getting and I know some educators are like you should just be such a badass in your market and have such a brand that you don't need it.

And maybe that is true for some people, but I also want to make sure that this person completely understands the value that I am delivering. Then I'm saying I'm going to send that proposal over. I give them a timeline. If I'm super busy, it might be 4 ish days. If I think I can have this done pretty soon, I tell them it should be within the next couple days, and then I tell them next steps from there.

So next steps from there, I'm going to send over the proposal. If everything looks good and you would like to move forward, I will then send you my contract and you can return that with the deposit. Then, from there, we touch base along the way whenever you've solidified more details. And then about a month out, you and I can either do some emails or we can meet in Zoom and just do a finalization meeting with all the details and specifics relevant to the day.

Then we get you married and the fun part is all done. From there, I've explained, like, here's the next steps. So then, I go in and I put together my I do not like to send my, some people just send the contract with it. I had someone return a contract three months after I sent it. They had not responded.

I don't know, they fell off the face of the earth. This was probably like, Five, six years ago, and I booked a 20, 000 wedding for that weekend. And then all of a sudden I hear I have a contract for a wedding that if they would have emailed me and I would have, I just would have not sent my contract. So I no longer send a contract until somebody says they're booking me.

When I send the contract, I say, great, here's the contract. I am putting your name on the date until I receive it in the mail. So then I'm again saying, Hey. I am putting your name on the date and saving it depending on the person. If the person I feel is like shopping around or just like something just vibey wise didn't feel good.

I will tell them that their proposal when I send it over is good for seven days and I've placed their name. On the date for the next seven days because it's heavy inquiry season. And if they're not interested in moving forward, I just wanna make sure that I have that date available. So easy way to also have a call to action for follow up.

I three days afterwards, Hey, I just wanted make sure that you received the proposal and check and see if you had any questions. Then on day six, I can say, I'm I actually had an inquiry on your date and day seven is tomorrow, which I put your name on the date till day seven. I'm just wondering if you have any questions or if you'd like me to send the contract over, like going for the close and like just saying, hey, shit or get off the pot because that's what I want to know.

Do they want to move forward if they choose to not go forward? I have been a constant. I've done a consultation. I have done a proposal, so I have time invested. But the more time I invest chasing this person, the deeper the sunken cost bias is, which is like when you spend more time, you feel like you need to chase it more.

And I just don't chase, I attract. And so, so should you, because that's feels really good in your business. All right, so that is my consultation process. I hope that was helpful. This is something in, in one on one coaching with me in the Floral CEO Mastermind in my Florist Foundations course, which is now going to be included.

Um, starting February with the Floral CEO Mastermind, you're getting my full course, which is a 800 value for being in the mastermind, so you have all of those resources. And these are things that I walk through, like my step by step process, because without knowing what you're supposed to do, how do you, how do you know?

How do you know if what you're doing is right? And that's what the power of a mentor is, and a power of a mentor that I have had thousands of consultations. I have done Seven. I mean, I'm, I think I'm almost to 2000 weddings, but I've been doing this a very long time and some years, like, I literally did a hundred and it was like 135 weddings was my biggest year.

Uh, I did 60 weddings this past year. I think it was 59 or something like that. But I. feel like my process works well and that's why I'm sharing it with you guys and I hope it helps you. Thank you so much for listening flower friend 📍 and you have an amazing flower filled day.