Mothers Day 2010 is upon us and you want to send your Mom Flowers. Today we are bombarded by commercials from FTD, Teleflora, 1-800 Flowers, FiftyFlowers.com, and more. Yes, it's convenient to just click a button and order from the web. Here are a couple of questions you might ask yourself. The first question I ask is "Am I going to actually get what you see?" Probably not. "Am I going to get 100% value?" There again Probably not.
This is what happens when you place your order with one of these large corporate flower services. First take a percentage just for accepting the order and processing it. Then the order is forwarded to a florist that accepts orders from the service. (Who knows who the florist is or the quality of flowers they carry.) The florist then takes money for delivery out of the the order first. Now what is left is what you are going to get.
Take for instance you spend $50.00. First the wire service is going to take $5.00 or more just for handling the order for you. Now you have a $45.00 order going to a florist. First the florist is going to take a delivery charge out of the amount they have accepted. This could be as high as $15.00. Now they have a $30.00 arrangement to work with. Out of this $30.00 the florist has to figure in labor to make the arrangement. This could be as much as $6.00 on this order. Now you are looking at $24.00 to fill the order which includes a vase, flowers, greenery, and any accessories the arrangement comes with such as ribbon. Now was the $50.00 arrangement you ordered anything like the picture you saw on the internet? Most likely not.
I'm not trying to knock the Big Wire Services which have been around for many years and are entitled to making money as well, but what I am trying to say is if you Google a local florist with zip code of where you want to send your flowers you are going to save money and get more for your dollar (example Google search: florist 33609). Here's the catch. Due to deceptive practices of what we in the industry call Order Gathers you may not be sending flowers to your local florist by just going to their website and ordering over the internet. Even by calling them you may not be getting an actual local florist, but getting a call center in New Jersey when you wanted a Tampa Florist. As a Tampa Florist myself even when I'm personally sending flowers I search for a florist in the area I want to send flowers and believe it or not I pick up the phone and call them directly. I want to speak to a human that can tell me what they have to offer for my specific floral needs. Second I want to know I'm getting what I am paying for and get what I want. Depending on where you are sending flowers the prices can range greatly. For instance ordering Mothers Day Flowers from a Tampa Florist pricing structures are different than a New York City Florist. You will most likely have to spend more money when ordering in a major city than from a Tampa Florist.
Now that you have found a florist call them directly. Ask them if they are running any in house specials. You may be surprised what you will get for $50.00 when you call directly. For instance. We buy from local growers and suppliers in our area when we can and when flowers are in season in our area. Take Cymbidium Orchid stems that can cost as high as as $80.00 per stem. We offer for anywhere from $10.00 - 30.00 per stem, but only during the season and colors are limited to what is supplied by our local grower and not all colors are available. On the other hand we get some great unusual colors and varieties no one else has. What a savings and what a surprise to the person receiving the flowers. Depending on region prices are going to vary greatly.
I guess what I am saying is "Easy isn't always better." Take the time to pick up the phone and call your Local Florist for your Mothers Day Flowers and you will be quite surprised in what you will find. When Sending Flowers in Tampa contact us at http://www.appleblossomstampa.com. Buy Flowers Local!
