Beyond Blossoms Gives Online Flower Shops a Facelift

At Beyond Blossoms, a New England based flower company featuring European style fresh flower bouquets, business is blooming. With its newly redesigned website (http://www.beyondblossoms.com) the up-and-coming company is challenging larger competitors such as Proflowers and 1-800-Flowers to give customers a better online floral experience.

Before the launch, co-founders Josh Grossman and Gina Maschek researched how to differentiate their flower company from a sea of online competitors. Says Josh, Basically, we visited the websites of our major competitors acting as regular customers to see what we liked and did not like about their sites. The two created a long list of areas to improve on, including: offering fewer products and price points, offering more flower varieties such as lisianthus and cymbidium orchids, and creating a more elegant, minimalist interface. Gina comments, If you look at one of our competitors sites for example, a search for roses will lead to 259 results displayed over 44 pages. Too much choice leads to a cluttered looking website and customer confusion. We purposely limited our entire product line to about 30 bouquets so customers can make a decision a lot quicker. The website also allows users to search by flower color, earn rewards points for free flowers, get reminder emails (so you never miss another anniversary!), and specifies exactly how many stems are in each bouquet.

Josh, originally from New York, and Gina, originally from Germany, met while obtaining their MBAs from Babson College in Wellesley, MA. The owners launched Beyond Blossoms after writing a business plan for an entrepreneurship class. We were looking for a business that would allow us to be creative and sell something that people love. Flowers are the perfect item, Josh states. In 2003, the company began servicing clients in the Boston Metro area before moving to New Hampshire in August 2004 after completing its first round of financing.

Beyond Blossoms buys its flowers straight from the grower to make sure theyre fresh. Using only 2-3 kinds of flowers in each bouquet, the company gives the arrangements a sophisticated look different from garden-style bouquets (which typically use a large mix of flowers and colors). A good example is the companys Mediterranean Stroll Bouquet. It combines orange roses, purple trachelium, and lime green bupleurum. Each bouquet is hand-tied so recipients dont need to do any arranging. Finally, the flowers are shipped by FedEx overnight in gift box so the recipient doesnt have to be home for delivery.

Before the launch, co-founders Josh Grossman and Gina Maschek researched how to differentiate their flower company from a sea of online competitors. Says Josh, Basically, we visited the websites of our major competitors acting as regular customers to see what we liked and did not like about their sites. The two created a long list of areas to improve on, including: offering fewer products and price points, offering more flower varieties such as lisianthus and cymbidium orchids, and creating a more elegant, minimalist interface. Gina comments, If you look at one of our competitors sites for example, a search for roses will lead to 259 results displayed over 44 pages. Too much choice leads to a cluttered looking website and customer confusion. We purposely limited our entire product line to about 30 bouquets so customers can make a decision a lot quicker. The website also allows users to search by flower color, earn rewards points for free flowers, get reminder emails (so you never miss another anniversary!), and specifies exactly how many stems are in each bouquet.

Josh, originally from New York, and Gina, originally from Germany, met while obtaining their MBAs from Babson College in Wellesley, MA. The owners launched Beyond Blossoms after writing a business plan for an entrepreneurship class. We were looking for a business that would allow us to be creative and sell something that people love. Flowers are the perfect item, Josh states. In 2003, the company began servicing clients in the Boston Metro area before moving to New Hampshire in August 2004 after completing its first round of financing.

Beyond Blossoms buys its flowers straight from the grower to make sure theyre fresh. Using only 2-3 kinds of flowers in each bouquet, the company gives the arrangements a sophisticated look different from garden-style bouquets (which typically use a large mix of flowers and colors). A good example is the companys Mediterranean Stroll Bouquet. It combines orange roses, purple trachelium, and lime green bupleurum. Each bouquet is hand-tied so recipients dont need to do any arranging. Finally, the flowers are shipped by FedEx overnight in gift box so the recipient doesnt have to be home for delivery.

A Corporoate Facelift with Sound Bytes

 J. Paradee

A Corporate Facelift With Sound Bytes

By R.J. Paradee, President First Impression Inc. and MediaRight Studios

If Baby Boomers can get botox and tummy tucks, then why dont companies receive facelifts to improve their image as well? The telephone is the lifeblood of any business. Use it respectfully. Dont leave your clients on-hold to listen to radio static or elevator music. With digital recording and delivery of sound files, professional production of on-hold advertising is both economical and necessary for a positive image. Thats right its imperative that the first impression a client receives of your business (even though they may never visit) is how theyre treated on the telephone. How many times have you called a business to hear Thank you for calling ABC Dental Office please hold before you can get a word in edge-wise. In many cases , what they have on-hold is your first impression of that company.

Music Selection Should be Appealing
At the very least, make certain on-hold music is a decent selection, and that you have permission to broadcast the music to on-hold callers. After all the music chosen is a direct reflection of your business. If you dont get your licensed music from an On-Hold Message provider, you may obtain permission to play certain music on-hold from ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC, the three large performing rights organizations.

Develop Content That Sells Products and Services
Customers who are on-hold are essentially a captive audience. If you want on-hold time to turn into sales, consider hiring a professional producer to mix radio style commercials with licensed music. The copy should be specifically written to cross-sell your products and services. AT&T studies show that people will stay on-hold longer if they hear messages about your company during the waiting period. Do not rely on the please hold for personal assistance to your call, or thank you for your patience while on hold type of messages. I believe these type of messages hurt you more than help you.

Answer Repetitive Questions On-Hold
As youre on-hold spots are developed, remember this marketing strategy is a customer service tool as well as an advertising tool. Take the heat from your receptionist during busy call periods and answer those repetitive questions in on-hold spots.

On-Hold Advertising is Economical
Advertising sales are based on the number of impressions. If a business had one call placed on hold every ten minutes during an eight hour day 5 days per week, there would be 11,000 opportunities each year to market their business and services.

How to Evaluate an On- Hold Company
Make certain you get both male and female voice talent, and that the professional voice is pleasing. The studio you use should employ scriptwriters and offer a selection of licensed music to choose from. You choose the music from their library, not the on-hold company. You dont want the same stale music everyone else uses. In most cases all that is needed is an inexpensive off-the-shelf CD player.

Facts About On-Hold Advertising
Eighty percent of businesses have nothing on-hold, so businesses that do set up programs are on the cutting edge. Twelve percent of businesses do have a radio or CD tuned in while their customers are on-hold. Only 8% of businesses have on-hold programs.

The number of companies who use on-hold as a time to advertise are growing. Thats because business owners are realizing theres no better way to impress a client who has never been to your office than a well designed, informative on-hold program. Remember in todays competitive market, image is everything. On-Hold advertising is one of the best facelifts a company could have.

R.J. Paradee is a host of the coast in his Virginia Beach, Virginia studio. He produces professional quality digital audio through his company, First Impression.

A Facelift in a Bottle

A Facelift in a Bottle!

A facelift in a pill! Crazy talk? You might think so but it certainly sounds like the easier option to placing your face in the hands of a surgeon and have him work miracles with a scalpel! Ok so maybe Im a coward but stupid I am not!

Where did this all start? A small village in Japan has been found, where its inhabitants average age is over 60 and hardly a wrinkle in sight! According to an ABC News report earlier this year, they have a remarkable lack of ailments which are usually associated with the elderly, and to boot, they all appear youthful too! What is their secret?

It seems to be a naturally occurring substance found in their unique staple diet of starchy carbohydrate potatoes, which contain high levels of hyauloric acid (HA). We all have HA in our bodies but as we age this decreases. It is at its highest when we are still in the womb and generally starts to decrease from the age of 40 which, co-incidentally, is when the fine lines and wrinkles start to appear and the skin starts to lose its moisture and elasticity!

HA has been used in the medical world since the 1980s to help such ailments as oestoarthritis of the knee, dry eye conditions and Interstitial Cystitis to name but a few. Its amazing ability to retain moisture and fluid in joints, sinews and dermis as well as its anti-inflammatory properties has made a difference to many with these conditions.

In recent years, the cosmetic industry have started using HA in their skin creams for its anti-ageing properties these unfortunately only work on the top layer of skin.

However, until now the HA they have used was not absorbable inside the body. When used in the medical field this has merely acted as a gel like cushion to fill a gap it stays where its put and doesnt absorb into the body.

HA is now available as a health supplement so that this amazing substance can benefit the body from the inside outwards. Two tablets a day over a 30-day trial have shown amazing results with regard to the texture and tone of the skin (goodness knows what it is also doing to the internal organs).

So do baby boomers have a choice, you bet we have! Which would you rather do? Take a couple of pills and feel great or subject yourself to a scalpel, pain, dark glasses or forced hibernation for a few weeks? I know what I'd choose!

Marie Breward is an experienced Reflexologist and runs a busy mobile practice. She also an Independent Distributor for Changes International. Her website features her therapies, health related articles and nutritional information. Free Ezine available too. http://www.bodybalance.marie.com .
Contact her at mailto:mariebodybalance@aol.com

A Facelift in a Bottle

A Facelift in a Bottle!

A facelift in a pill! Crazy talk? You might think so but it certainly sounds like the easier option to placing your face in the hands of a surgeon and have him work miracles with a scalpel! Ok so maybe Im a coward but stupid I am not!

Where did this all start? A small village in Japan has been found, where its inhabitants average age is over 60 and hardly a wrinkle in sight! According to an ABC News report earlier this year, they have a remarkable lack of ailments which are usually associated with the elderly, and to boot, they all appear youthful too! What is their secret?

It seems to be a naturally occurring substance found in their unique staple diet of starchy carbohydrate potatoes, which contain high levels of hyauloric acid (HA). We all have HA in our bodies but as we age this decreases. It is at its highest when we are still in the womb and generally starts to decrease from the age of 40 which, co-incidentally, is when the fine lines and wrinkles start to appear and the skin starts to lose its moisture and elasticity!

HA has been used in the medical world since the 1980s to help such ailments as oestoarthritis of the knee, dry eye conditions and Interstitial Cystitis to name but a few. Its amazing ability to retain moisture and fluid in joints, sinews and dermis as well as its anti-inflammatory properties has made a difference to many with these conditions.

In recent years, the cosmetic industry have started using HA in their skin creams for its anti-ageing properties these unfortunately only work on the top layer of skin.

However, until now the HA they have used was not absorbable inside the body. When used in the medical field this has merely acted as a gel like cushion to fill a gap it stays where its put and doesnt absorb into the body.

HA is now available as a health supplement so that this amazing substance can benefit the body from the inside outwards. Two tablets a day over a 30-day trial have shown amazing results with regard to the texture and tone of the skin (goodness knows what it is also doing to the internal organs).

So do baby boomers have a choice, you bet we have! Which would you rather do? Take a couple of pills and feel great or subject yourself to a scalpel, pain, dark glasses or forced hibernation for a few weeks? I know what I'd choose!

Marie Breward is an experienced Reflexologist and runs a busy mobile practice. She also an Independent Distributor for Changes International. Her website features her therapies, health related articles and nutritional information. Free Ezine available too. http://www.bodybalance.marie.com .
Contact her at mailto:mariebodybalance@aol.com

Is It Time For A Copy Facelift?

by Karon Thackston 2003
http://www.copywritingcourse.com

I just had to laugh! During a recent conversation about how often you should change your copy, I had one person tell me Well, if there were any *good* copywriters out there, theyd be able to write it once, and it would work forever! Oh really? Actually, nothing could be further from the truth.

It is extremely rare for advertising copy to last for extended periods of time. Changing your copy is a given, the reason being that people and events change. Since we, as copywriters, are reaching our customers on an emotional level, we have to stay in tune with whats going on in their lives and their worlds. Lets look at an example.

Say you rent mailing lists. Your primary benefit might be that you have the largest lists available offering a minimum of 100,000 names per category. Things are going great, and youre renting lists like wildfire. But then right in the middle of your success the postal service increases rates substantially.

All of a sudden, your rentals begin to drop dramatically. Here you are screaming about the largest lists available anywhere, and your customer is thinking about how much his postage expense is going to skyrocket.

The businesses you rent lists to are now very concerned. What *used* to be your biggest benefit is now your biggest deterrent. Your customers no longer want to rent lists that have a minimum of 100,000 names. Instead, theyd love to be able to rent much smaller lists in the 5,000 to 10,000 quantity range. Yep! You guessed it. Its time to change your copy, USP and all!

Any number of aspects can cause a change in focus for your target customer, and therefore a need to rewrite your copy. Here are some of the more common ones for businesses:

New tax laws
New mandatory expenses (such as a postage increase)
Starting a new business
Closing a business
Stock price increase
Stock price decrease

Business to consumer sales can be affected, too. Personal circumstances that change every day include:

Buying a new home
Retiring
Getting married
Getting divorced
Having a baby
Receiving a tax refund
Receiving an inheritance

What do I recommend? Twice a year, take a good, long look at your copy. What has changed in your marketplace? What laws, regulations, or events have been implemented or have taken place? Will these things have an impact on your customers? How will you respond to them?

Take that information and compare it to what your current copy says. Is your message clear? Are there benefits you need to update or change? Is your copy still making the most positive impact on your potential customers that it can?

If not, dont hesitate to make changes. After all, your copy is your key to new customers and repeat customers. And, as I said in the beginning, hardly any copy will last forever. Eventually, everybody is due for a copy facelift.

Most buying decisions are emotional. Your ad copy should be, too! Let Karon write targeted copy and ezine articles for you. Visit her site at http://www.ktamarketing.com, or learn to write your own copy at http://www.copywritingcourse.com.

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