18 January 2007
Local Florist and Flower Shop Custom Search
Thanks to the engineering wizards at Google Co-op, users can now provide customized search by filtering results, adding priority to trusted resources and omitting less relevant sites. So I've taken the leap and created a 'Local Florist and Flower Shop' custom search and placed a link to it on AvanteGardens.com in hopes it will help some of our site visitors find a real local florist to call if they need flowers in a distant location.
Some of my fellow florists think this is crazy - and they may be right - but allow me to explain my thinking.
We get visitors from around the world and many see the signature designs we've created and want those exact arrangements delivered to distant cities. Descriptions tell visitors that the designs are available 'as pictured' in our local market and we will do our best when sending out of the area, but substitution is the rule, not the exception. It's pretty much the same way with every online site or local flower shop, only we'll actually tell you that.
We're thankful discriminating flower buyers like our website, but when they really want to know what will be delivered in Berkeley, CA, they'd be better off calling a top flower shop like Orchid Florist direct. Only their design team truly knows what they have in peak condition for quick delivery. Same with Denver, where the outstanding team at Bouquets can give precise descriptions of their selections.
Last week, an out-of-state buyer placed an online order for one of our signature tropical arrangements and wanted it delivered the same day in the Bay Area. I phoned several shops and no one had the types of tropicals we stock - but they did have other cool flowers. Calling the customer, I told her we were unable to find a florist to make anything close to the design she requested. Rather than authorize a substitution so far afield from her original request, I gave her the phone number of a shop and suggested she call them direct since she really wanted to know what her gift would look like.
I asked her why she chose to order from us when she knew we were more than 300 miles from the recipient and wouldn't deliver it ourselves. She said she didn't like the cookie cutter designs she saw elsewhere. I explained that many local florist are like local favorite restaurants. They have signature dishes that no one would expect to be duplicated in distant cities - and that's what makes them unique. Ah-ha! (It's funny how food analogies work great when discussing flowers.) If your taste isn't for McFlowers (and McFlowers substitutes, too) then ordering that way makes little sense.
We have helped many customers place orders to distant cities throughout the years - and are happy to do so today - but if you really want to know exactly what will be delivered, the best way to order is with the local delivering florist.
The custom search engine isn't perfect but I believe the combined results between the regular listings and Google Local will give users a good variety of real florists. I'll continue tweaking, adding and omitting. (Sites get omitted if their landing pages primarily feature wire service affiliate resellers, if they link only to order gatherers or if they consist of mirrored content already in the results.) A few other florists may even jump in and help. :)
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