Bloom is where florists
go to learn and earn.
Challenge
Seasonal demand
Goal
Support scalable growth
Scope
Market and user research to
explore new revenue sources
Outcome
Bloom: A career-advancement platform for established and aspiring florists
Client
Poppy
Jessica Straus Fuchs | COO
Patrice Venya | Senior Manager
Consultants
Spencer Bowen | Design Lead
Erica Ales | Project Manager
Sabrina Cismas | Research Coordinator
Background
Launched in 2019, Poppy is an online retailer for custom wedding flowers. Poppy relies on a unique network of freelance florists ranging from amateur and part-time to expert.
Poppy is a two-sided marketplace, with
built-in client management for florists and cost-effective services for wedding couples.
Paid advertising is a significant budget item for wedding businesses, as demand is seasonal.
Ideation
Based on desk research and qualitative interviews with stakeholders, the team generated a range of ideas for new revenue sources.
Proposals for new product lines, partnerships, and markets were prioritized according to current capabilities, riskiest assumptions, and client feedback.
Focusing on the florist network as a valuable asset, we came to understand Poppy florists as both contract workers and an untapped customer base.
Competitive Landscape
The team created a competitor map to assess the market for businesses serving florists. Based on this research, the team developed an interview guide in order to prioritize service opportunities.
Interview Insights
Next, the team interviewed florists to determine
jobs to be done and common pain points.
Education and job opportunities for florists, ranked with high importance and low satisfaction, were prioritized as the most significant service opportunities.
Positioning
The team designed a value proposition
to reflect the service priorities we had established:
Bloom is a career-advancement platform that provides florists with opportunities to learn floral design skills while gaining paid experience.
Brand
To test the Bloom value proposition, the team designed a look-alike brand called Fleurish.
The Fleurish brand, website, and promotional visuals were developed to preserve the client’s brand through the testing phase while maintaining a familiar aesthetic. The result is a convincing imitation that echos the modern romanticism of Poppy.
Validation
Targeted social media promotions for Fleurish marketed the website as an online platform for florists.
Poor ad performance led to an important insight. The targeted ads had failed to reach the largest potential market segment: Gig workers with no floral design experience.
Promotions for Fleurish posted to various job boards resulted in a significant increase in web traffic. The Fleurish site received 90 unique visitors and 45 form submissions in 24 hours.
This work culminated in 30-minute presentation of research and recommendations to founder and CEO, Cameron Hardesty. An official launch date for Bloom Beta has not been announced.