“We did not do this thinking we would win,” Dyer told the audience, as he accepted the award Sept. 23. “We did it because we knew it would be the best way to share it with the industry.”

Floral Management Editor in Chief Kate Penn gave the audience a brief recap of the campaign, which started in October 2008. Event work at Bouquets had continued to grow since 2002, from 13 percent of sales to more than 30 percent by August of 2008. “Like most businesses in the country, Bouquets’ everyday business took a nosedive at the end of 2008,” Penn said. “More worrisome, however, was the event side of their business.” Several nonprofit clients, for whom Bouquets had done large annual event décor for the previous five years, told Bouquets they would, for the first time, put their event work out for bid. Those clients who were renewing said their events would be significantly smaller for 2009.

“Fewer tables would mean fewer arrangements,” Penn told the audience. “Spread over several events, it would have a significant impact on Bouquets’ bottom line, so they set out to do something about it.”

Vogt and Dyer launched a social media campaign as an attempt to reverse the downward trend — but not toward its 300-plus fans on the shop’s Facebook page as many might suspect. “What they set out to do instead was teach their event clients to use Facebook and other social media to increase attendance at their events,” Penn said. Their philosophy: Keep their non-profit clients successful so that Bouquets would continue to benefit from their business.

Bouquets engaged a third party expert and long-time client, MGA Communications, to give workshops to their non-profit clients on how to use social media to attract new supporters, offer financial giving opportunities and send out invites about upcoming fundraising events. MGA offered the workshops at no charge in exchange for a $50 credit per attendee to their Bouquets account.

More than half – 24 of 45 – of the invitees attended a workshop. The Bouquets team knew immediately that it was a success, based on the positive feedback from attendees, who expressed gratitude toward Bouquets for subsidizing a workshop on a much-needed topic. But the event paid off in more than lip service, with eight event clients, many of whom had projected decreases in their events, pulling off larger events than the year before, much thanks to their newly acquired social media skills. Bouquets also picked up several new clients for 2009 events and has secured several early renewals for 2010 with the promise of even larger events.

Referring to Dyer’s hope that campaign would inspire others in the industry to do the same for their clients, Penn mentioned one already-inspired wholesale florist.  “I just heard that Tom Hofeditz of Baisch & Skinner – who had insider access to the  campaign as a judge – is teaching its customers how to use social networking at a workshop going on today at its Kansas City location,” she said, adding,  “way to use your insider access, Tom.” Hofeditz was one of six judges on the panel, which reviews and ranks each entry based on its originality, success, professionalism and use of resources. Baisch and Skinner won Floral Management’s Marketer of the Year award in 2007.

Making the official presentation of the $5,000 cash prize, award sponsor Dwight Larimer, AAF, of Design Master color tool, Inc. — renowned in the industry for his on-stage pranks — recalled his 2002 check presentation, when he tore the check in two pieces, to give Dyer and Vogt each “their half” of the winnings. This time around, Larimer told the couple, who’ve been together for 33 years, about a provision in the regulations that says a cash prize cannot be given to “members of the same household.”

Upon accepting the check, Vogt called on Asocolflores’ executive director, Augusto Solano, who had made a plea to the audience earlier in the program to support the floral industry’s national marketing efforts. Vogt said said Bouquets would be donating a portion of its winnings to the SAF Fund for Nationwide Public Relations.

Acknowledging the industry’s challenges, Vogt challenged the industry to “be creative” and vigilant in its marketing efforts.