Florists: like all businesses, it’s time we must all ready ourselves for a future when shoppers increasingly use sustainability to decide which brands they will or won’t buy.
Already, 42% of millennials say they buy from brands only when they believe it has a positive impact on society or the environment, according to a big recent survey from Deloitte. And millennials aren’t the only ones: in the US, 68% of consumers expect brands to be clear about their values and take a stand on them, with sustainability at the top of the list.
Leading on from the FloomX Workshop on brand partnerships, we know that brands that clearly demonstrate to customers how they are sustainable can really stand out from the crowd. And there are a few quick tricks e-commerce websites like your own can employ.
For starters, advertising products as ‘bestsellers’ or ‘popular’ can help nudge consumers who have seen your product into making a sale (this is called ‘social proofing’). In short, people who are unsure of making a purchase tend to look at others to decide what to do, particularly when buying a product as a gift for someone else. By labelling products as bestsellers, or indicating its popularity, it advertises the fact that other people believe a product has value. Advertising that a product is ‘sustainable’ is another powerful way of social proofing.
How do you get started?
Whilst it can be hard to promote total sustainability within the flower industry, it’s useful to highlight the steps your business is taking including:
- Material or packaging substitution
- Working towards a circular economy
- Encouraging staff to recycle, reduce and reuse
- Localised sourcing
There are many awards presented to businesses that acknowledge steps taken to improve their sustainability. These awards are judged annually and florists can apply to be shortlisted for different awards. In the UK, it is worth looking at the awards given out by Modern Retail, Packaging Europe, Lotus, and British Small Business Awards among others; and in the US, there are important awards from Square Space, Independent We Stand and Green America.
What you can do:
Environmental considerations with sourcing flowers include transportation; pesticides used on your flowers; water usage in the growing process, storage and handling; land usage for the growing of botanicals; electricity usage rates for running cool rooms, and where that electricity is generated
Packaging: can you cotton wrap rather than use plastic aqua packs? Can you use compostable or recyclable paper in your bouquet wraps? Floom courier boxes, for example, are made of recycled paper. We’re also in the process of redesigning our boxes made with 100% recyclable cardboard.
Delivery options: can you use electric or walking couriers? At Floom, one of our courier partners is Ur-bit, who pick up orders in-store and hand-deliver to customers, only travelling on public transport or on foot, therefore adding absolutely no congestion or pollution. (If you're based in London reach out to our Community team to activate your account!)
Also have a think about your internal operations. How many pieces of paper do you have lying around? Do you use the ‘Recipes’ function on FloomX? Do you use the notes sections on the dashboard vs writing out post-its? Can you send a ‘digital’ receipt to customers instead of printing them out?
Shout out!
There are lots of amazing sustainable florists on FloomX – including Laboos Flowers, based in London, where Frances prides herself on using British flowers and using eco-packaging. Laboos is a completely plastic and foam free florist that uses recycled paper, recycled silk ribbons and aqua packs bouquets in a sustainable wood pulp film.
‘Making LABOOS an eco-conscious studio was really important to me,’ Frances tells us. ‘My parents had really strong views when it came to sustainability and I also worked closely with Vivienne for several years at her eponymous label Vivienne Westwood. She really taught me how to be more green, not only in my personal life but also in business too so it was very much a natural decision to run the studio as eco-friendly as possible.’
‘British grown flowers are my first true love and my ultimate goal is to make Laboos fully sustainable. Until then, I hope the small changes that I have made will help to lessen the impact that floristry has on the environment.’
How to advertise to increase conversions
1. Creating a dedicated page
Everyone loves a story. Is your sustainability an important part of why you started your business? Make sure it's added to your 'About Us' page on your website. This helps create a strong narrative around your brand which can help consumers remember you more. The Wild Tree do a great job of this, as does Wearth. Highlighting your brand values - can you incorporate your sustainability into your brand values?
2. Adding copy to product pages
Create a section on your product page that advertises your sustainability, using icons can help make this stand out. This can also be re-enforced within the product description.
3. Advertising throughout your site
Creating a banner to display on your homepage is another great way to help further social proofing and encourage consumers to continue browsing on your site.
4. Advertising through your product
If a product of yours displays a particular trait considered to be sustainable, advertise it within the product image. Whilst not possible on Floom, you can add icons to your product on your own sites to help nudge users through social proofing. Wearth London do a great job of this.
What's next?
We know sustainability is a hard topic within the industry however the rewards it can bring your business could be exponential so it is definitely worth it. Taking small steps with your business and actioning just a couple of the points in this article will help push your business forwards in the world of sustainability. Don't forget - celebrate the small wins... like no more paper receipts, or using our online recipe feature to reduce paper in your workshop and share these with your customers. It will help you track your progress and show you that you're making a difference.