I was hired recently to write and produce a radio spot encouraging the listener wanting to send flowers to do business with a local florist in the recipient's neighborhood, rather than going through one of the 800-number services.

The client, owner of a family flower shop in Pullman, WA, feels strongly that a customer is better served by dealing directly with the florist, as opposed to relying upon a middleman to place the order.

By going directly to the local florist, the customer avoids paying a "convenience fee" to the middleman; all the money goes toward the flowers and delivery. These days, simply Googling the name of the town and "florist" will yield all the necessary information for placing the order directly with the florist, who knows exactly what they have in stock, which varieties are particular fresh, fragrant, long-lasting, or colorful. They can also fine-tune the arrangement and the delivery to suit the customer's desires.

In other words, the florist's personal involvement makes all the difference.

The radio spot is :60-seconds, formatted :50/:10, meaning there's room at the end for a local florist to tag and personalize it. Feel free to share it with your colleagues in the floral business, compliments of Mayor Mitch. Click on the link below to download it.

LOCAL FLORIST