Inside: Garden Delights, p. 22, p. 48 ‘StressLess’ Road Trip, p. 30 SEO Secrets, p. 40 CLOUD-BASED. DELIVERY MAPPING AND ROUTING. ADDRESS VERIFICATION. PHOTO CONFIRMATION. NO MEMBERSHIP FEES OR CONTRACTS. OPTIMIZED FOR TABLETS. ACCOUNTING AND MANAGEMENT REPORTS. PRODUCTION MANAGER. PERSONALIZED INVOICES. CUSTOMIZABLE STATEMENTS. GRAPHICS AND VISUALIZATION. EVENT-PLANNING MODULE. EMAIL MARKETING. DIGITAL ARCHIVE. MOBILE APPS. REAL-TIME CONFIRMATION. 24/7 SUPPORT BY PHONE, EMAIL AND ONLINE. ADDRESS AND BUSINESS SEARCH. TOUCHSCREEN CAPABILITIES. ENHANCED SECURITY.JUNE 2019 STREAMLINED SALES HUB. ORDER I VOLUME 36 I NUMB TRACKING. CARD MESSAGE SUGGESTIONS. ONLINE REVIEW MANAGEMENT. HR MANAGEMENT.ER 3 WIRE SERVICE AND WEB INTEGRATION. WEDDING PLATFORM. PURCHASE ORDER MANAGEMENT. MULTI-STORE FUNCTIONALITY. REMOTE LOG-IN. USER-FRIENDLY. AUTOMATIC UPGRADES. INVENTORY CONTROL. ECOMMERCE MODULE. SPEEDY INTERFACE. THIRD-PARTY INTEGRATION. DELIVERY MAPPING AND ROUTING. ADDRESS VERIFICATION. PHOTO CONFIRMATION. NO MEMBERSHIP FEES OR CONTRACTS. OPTIMIZED FOR TABLETS. ACCOUNTING AND MANAGEMENT REPORTS. PRODUCTION MANAGER. PERSONALIZED INVOICES. CUSTOMIZABLE STATEMENTS. GRAPHICS AND VISUALIZATION. EVENT-PLANNING MODULE. EMAIL MARKETING. DIGITAL ARCHIVE. MOBILE APPS. REAL-TIME CONFIRMATION. 24/7 SUPPORT BY PHONE, EMAIL AND ONLINE. ADDRESS AND BUSINESS SEARCH. TOUCHSCREEN CAPABILITIES. ENHANCED SECURITY. STREAMLINED SALES HUB. ORDER TRACKING. CARD MESSAGE SUGGESTIONS. ONLINE REVIEW MANAGEMENT. HR MANAGEMENT. WIRE SERVICE AND WEB INTEGRATION. WEDDING PLATFORM. PURCHASE ORDER MANAGEMENT. MULTI-STORE❤ FUNCTIONALITY. REMOTE LOG-IN. USER-FRIENDLY. AUTOMATIC UPGRADES. INVENTORY CONTROL. ECOMMERCE MODULE. SPEEDY INTERFACE. THIRD- PARTY INTEGRATION. CLOUD-BASED.I DELIVERY MAPPING AND ROUTING. ADDRESS VERIFICATION. PHOTO CONFIRMATION. NO MEMBERSHIP FEES OR CONTRACTS. OPTIMIZED FOR TABLETS. ACCOUNTING AND MANAGEMENT REPORTS. PRODUCTION MANAGER. PERSONALIZED INVOICES. CUSTOMIZABLE STATEMENTS. GRAPHICS AND VISUALIZATION. EVENT-PLANNING MODULE. EMAIL MARKETING. DIGITAL ARCHIVE. MOBILE APPS. REAL-TIME CONFIRMATION. 24/7 SUPPORT BY PHONE, EMAIL AND ONLINE. ADDRESS AND BUSINESS SEARCH. TOUCHSCREEN CAPABILITIES. ENHANCED SECURITY. STREAMLINED SALES HUB. ORDER TRACKING. CARD MESSAGE SUGGESTIONS. ONLINE REVIEW MANAGEMENT. HR MANAGEMENT. WIRE SERVICE AND WEB INTEGRATION. WEDDING PLATFORM. PURCHASE ORDER MANAGEMENT. MULTI- STORE FUNCTIONALITY. REMOTE LOG-IN. USER-FRIENDLY. AUTOMATIC UPGRADES. INVENTORY CONTROL. ECOMMERCE MODULE. SPEEDY INTERFACE. THIRD-PARTY INTEGRATION. DELIVERY MAPPING AND ROUTING. ADDRESS VERIFICATION. PHOTOMY CONFIRMATION. NO MEMBERSHIP FEES OR CONTRACTS. OPTIMIZED FOR TABLETS. ACCOUNTING AND MANAGEMENT REPORTS. PRODUCTION MANAGER. PERSONALIZED INVOICES. CUSTOMIZABLE STATEMENTS. GRAPHICS AND VISUALIZATION. EVENT-PLANNING MODULE. EMAIL MARKETING. DIGITAL ARCHIVE. MOBILE APPS. 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ONLINE w w w.ACCENTDECOR.com 770.346.0707 ATLANTA DALLAS LAS VEGAS JUNE 2019 I VOLUME 36 I NUMBER 3 24 POS SOS A buyer’s guide to picking the system that truly registers 30 MILES OF SMILES An 800-mile journey — full of smiles, hugs and tears — generates widespread awareness of flowers’ stress-busting powers. 34 THE SKINNY ON PRODUCT SALES REPORTS How understanding this key report can put your 22 business on a path to long-term profitability 2 VIEWPOINT 18 TALENT 4 WHAT INSPIRES US 20 GROWTH 24 4 MORE ONLINE 22 FRESH CHOICES 6 AD INDEX 36 INDUSTRY NEWS 8 MEMBER FORUM 38 FIELD TRIP 10 SAF IN ACTION 40 DIGITAL STRATEGY 14 SNAPSHOT 42 BUSINESS OF DESIGN 16 TIM’S CALLING 48 QUALITY Viewpoint BY STEN CRISSEY, AAF IN LIEU OF LOVE? > Interesting, isn’t it? When society and of lasting hurts the most, people turn to flowers. value, had been Our deeply felt need for flowers done in their THE FLORAL BUSINESS AUTHORITY JUNE 2019 | VOLUME 36 | NUMBER 3 to soften pain came to mind recently memory. with the unfathomable massacre of Over time, MARY WESTBROOK EDITOR IN CHIEF Muslims in Christ Church, New Zealand, however, another [email protected] and Christians on Easter in Sri Lanka. reality has devel- SHEILA S. SANTIAGO DIRECTOR OF PUBLISHING [email protected] Immediately and spontaneously, flow- oped. With the KATIE HENDRICK VINCENT SENIOR CONTRIBUTING EDITOR ers appeared at the sites where the commonplace “in [email protected] tragedies occurred. The common mo- lieu of flowers” directive, people have DESIGN AND PRODUCTION tivation among people was the simple realized they can make very modest gifts CONTENT WORX PUBLISHING ADVISERS desire to say, “I hurt. This is wrong. This to charities named by families. Their KATE F. PENN, SAF CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER must stop.” gifts will be acknowledged by the char- DREW GRUENBURG, SAF CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER In fact, with virtually all tragic events, ity, the family will be informed of the gift EDITORIAL OFFICES SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS the same script plays out. Think of 9/11, — though not the dollar amount — and 1001 NORTH FAIRFAX, SUITE 201, ALEXANDRIA, VA 22314-3406 the shootings at Virginia Tech, Sandy their obligation to the deceased has been (800) 336-4743; (703) 836-8700; FAX (703) 836-8705 WWW.SAFNOW.ORG Hook Elementary, Las Vegas, Parkland, satisfied. ADVERTISING SALES the Pittsburgh Synagogue … and the list Often sacrificed in this modern rit- HEATHER MACALUSO of mass tragedies goes on. In all these ual, unfortunately, is a visible token of [email protected] (717) 430-2224 cases, flowers served as salve to soothe love. The perfunctory pattern of sending LAURA GAENZLE the collective souls of a grieving public. small checks to charities has evolved [email protected] And it is not just tragedies on this into a rote exercise with little thought or (717) 430.2351 scale, either. When dignitaries’ lives end, meaning for either the deceased or their FLORAL MANAGEMENT (ISSN 1067-4772) (USPS-936-400) IS tragically or not, impromptu floral me- family. How sad! PUBLISHED MONTHLY BY THE SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS (SAF), morials appear as if from the ether. John But what if we could change this THE ASSOCIATION THAT PROVIDES MARKETING, BUSINESS AND GOVERNMENT SERVICES FOR THE ENTIRE FLORICULTURE INDUSTRY. Lennon, Princess Diana, Prince, John pattern? What if we could draw on peo- STATEMENTS OF FACT OR OPINION IN FLORAL MANAGEMENT ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE OFFICIAL McCain, and more recently, community ple’s impulsive desire to turn to flowers POLICY OF THE SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS. PERIODICALS POSTAGE IS PAID AT ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA 22314-3406 AND activist and rapper Nipsey Hussle com- in times of mourning and use this same ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES. ALL MATERIAL IN THIS MAGAZINE prise a partial list illustrating the point. need to express their love with flowers IS COPYRIGHTED 2011 BY SOCIETY OF AMERICAN FLORISTS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. $25 OF SAF MEMBERSHIP DUES REPRESENTS A Even in our local communities, un- when the death of a loved one occurs? MEMBER’S SUBSCRIPTION TO THIS PUBLICATION. SUBSCRIPTIONS FOR NON-MEMBERS ARE AVAILABLE FOR $49 PER YEAR. SINGLE COPIES: expected deaths inspire floral tributes. Suppose, for example, a new tra- $4. MATERIALS MAY NOT BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT WRITTEN Bouquets dot our highways, where ac- dition called for mourners to arrive at PERMISSION. POSTMASTER cidents claimed lives of motorists, bicy- funeral services with a single flower, or a SEND CHANGE OF ADDRESS TO FLORAL MANAGEMENT, clists and pedestrians. small cluster of flowers? 1001 NORTH FAIRFAX, SUITE 201, ALEXANDRIA, VA 22314-3406. PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT #40589029. CANADIAN RETURN So why is it that with the deaths of No, it