February IC, 1922 



The Florists^ Review 



27 



THE RETAIL STORE 



A PAGE OF HINTS AND HELPS 

 FOR THE RETAIL FLORIST 



DIGGING UP OLD CUSTOMERS. 



Every florist has on his books a con- 

 siderable number of names representing 

 good customers of aforetime who have 

 dropped away. What is the cause for 

 the disappearance of these persons from 

 the active list, the florist seldom knows. 

 It varies in nearly every case. But 

 the florist who realizes what it costs, in 

 the way of advertising and other sales 

 effort, to get a new customer into the 

 store, wishes to keep the old ones if he 

 can. How can he do it? How resusci- 

 tate a dead account? 



On this page is reproduced a copy of 

 a novel form of Clody's billheads that 

 was used to stir up old customers. 

 Clody's Flower Shop, at 3912 North 

 Clark street, is in a district of Chicago 

 that is primarily residential. Most of 

 Mr. Clody's customers are families who 

 have lived in the same neighborhood for 

 years, old established home-owners. So 

 their dropping from the active list is 

 not a sign of their having gone forever. 

 Maybe curtailed dividends accounts for 

 it; maybe the high cost of living. Now 

 that the latter is dropping and the for- 

 mer show signs of picking up, the time 

 is good to stir up old customers. This 

 illustration shows how Clody did it. 



LOVE'S THERMOMETER, 



For St. Valentine's day a really novel 

 piece of advertising was used byBerter- 

 mann Bros. Co., Indianapolis, Ind. A 

 thermometer was represented with 

 "Bertermann's" across the top. Ee- 

 spect registered 2') degrees'; admiration, 

 50; affection, 75, and love, 100 degrees. 

 At the top was the slogan, "Flowers, 

 100 degrees," while at the bottom was 

 the description, "Flower Thermometer 

 February 14." The usual valentine 

 adornments, simply wrought, made the 

 message emphatic as well as novel. 



FOR HOTEL GUESTS. 



It is increasingly the custom for flo- 

 rists to locate in a new and large hotel, 

 in cities of moderate size as well as in 

 the country's metropolises. Hotel 

 e";38ts are notably buyers of flowers. 

 When the flowers are displavcd to them 

 either m the hotel lobbv o'r in a store 

 window near the entrance, thev are the 

 more apt to buy. 



But the effo'rt to get business from 

 hotel guests can go further. Under the 

 glass which covers the top of the dresser 

 in each room of the hotels under the 

 Bond management at Hartford, Conn., 

 IS a small white card which advertises 

 the Hotel Bond Flower Shop, operated 

 by Kenneth T. Mackay. It reads: 

 iresh, fragrant flowers, distinctive 

 taste, prompt deliveries. Floral decora- 

 tions tor banquets and luncheons. Flow- 



tll IT -V'/L^y telegraph anywhere in 

 the United States and Canada " 



Here is a suggestion for other florists 



be confined, either, to those establish- 



ments. In return for a few flowers in 

 the lobby each day, the managements of 

 hotels which have no flower shops in 

 them would probably permit florists in 

 their vicinity to place such cards in their 

 guests' rooms. 



FOR BETTER SALESMANSHIP. 



Nowhere does the attitude of the 

 salesman to the customer count so much 

 as in a flower store. A patron is not 

 compelled by the need of life's necessi- 

 ties to buy flowers, as he or she is com- 

 pelled to buy food, clothing and some 

 other articles. Nor does one flower store 

 give value so superior to that of an- 

 other that a customer feels his best in- 

 terest lies in buying there regardless of 

 the treatment he receives. No, a great 

 many persons get along without pur- 

 chasing flowers at all and many of those 

 who do buy would as soon buy of one as 

 of another, so far as value is concerned. 

 An incompetent or ill-mannered sales- 

 person, therefore, drives away buyers 

 from a store and sometimes drives them 

 away from buying flowers at all. 



TCLCPHONC LAKCVIiMV 11^ I 



On the other hand, a courteous, 

 thoughtful and experienced salesman 

 will make a regular patron out of a 

 chance buyer, make a $10 order out of a 

 $5 intention and so benefit himself, his 

 employer and the entire trade. Many 

 ways could be cited in which the aver- 

 age salesperson in a flower shop might 

 improve. Here, however, is a concise 

 statement, of one experienced in selling, 

 as to the cardinal points to be observed. 

 If you learn them thoroughly and ob- 

 serve them invariably, you will be at 

 least a good salesman, no matter what 

 your present shortcomings: 



(1) Cultivate an agreeable, modest, 

 I)usinesslike personality. 



(2) Know your goods so well that 

 you can introduce them favorably to a 

 stranger, or correct misunderstandings 

 concerning them in the minds of old 

 patrons. 



(3) Know what you have at all times 

 and when you can promise deliveries. 



(4) Be so thoroughly acquainted with 

 the different types of individuals who 

 form your public, that you will make no 



DrL'vcn* A)sociAT<OM 



aoWER ^*^°^ 



FLOWERS 

 FOR ALL 



OCCASIONS 



3912 N CLARK STREET 



lUPrOWN CHICAGO) 



CMtCAGO 



1*2 



Ux8. John SBitb, 



1000 Joii«« St., 



Chicago, 111*. 



Go^iWouY -(^ccoNinV mWi ^^ A^J^ 7 C'^^f^ 



TiionWi \s 



Why? 



Are we at 



fault? 



If so, tell us, we 

 appreciate criti- 

 cism as it is a 

 means to better 

 service for you, 

 our customer. 



000 



00 



How a Chicago Retailer Re-establishes Connections with Former Castomers. 



