A look into the online florist industry

As with most products ordered online, customers want their floral purchases delivered on time. More than half of all complaints and negative narratives on online florists allege late delivery or non-existent delivery. So what do positive customer reviews say about online florists?

In regards to money, the positive reviews don't say much. One reason for this may be because customers expect to pay for that convenience. 

According to reviews, customers buying and sending flowers want to make an impression, express an emotion, celebrate a relationship, and surprise or delight a friend or family.

BBB researchers found that communication, informativeness, and responsiveness are also lesser concerns with online flower purchases. 

Through analysis of the reviews BBB received, we were able to conclude that  customers generally pick out what they want from the online catalog, place the order, and then expect it to arrive looking like it did in the picture. When things go right, the positive emotions flow.

"Just wanted to thank you for the lovely flowers that showed up at my parents’ house for their 61st wedding anniversary. Mom was very excited and sent me a photo of the item. Her actual flowers looked even nicer than the ones on the website."

"The recipient texted me a photo of the arrangement, saying that everyone who has seen them just gushed about how beautiful they were."

"I got my items yesterday and they look more than alright, they were stunning. I love my tangerine rose the most, the color just pops."

Here are some reviews that note the quality of the products in aspects such as arrangement, wrapping, and health/preservation.

"Ordered a simple daisy arrangement for my mother. It was lovely and fresh, received it on March 27th and still have the flowers looking nice on April 13"

"My items were wrapped with such care, they were unscathed when they came to me, I appreciate that."

"My roses were freshly preserved I can tell, quality is so good, so beautiful overall."

Here are reviews supporting the notion that customers of these products are generally less price-sensitive:

"The extra fees I paid for the same-day delivery were worth it."

"Thank you for tending to my requests online. I know it was difficult to attend to the customization that I want. I just got my package today and it's perfect, the extra charges were worth it, thanks!

"Thank you so much for your one day delivery, the extra fees are so worth the roses!"

As we see in the chart above, online florists generate most of their complaints and negative customer reviews around two days of the year: Valentine’s Day and Mother’s Day. Using computer algorithms to identify words inside the negative BBB reviews on online florists, we found that 32% mentioned "Mother's Day" and 48% mentioned either "Mother's Day" or "Valentine's Day". (Note that these percentages exclude the half of narratives that didn't clearly specify a particular event involved.)

The table below shows more detail on the specific events mentioned.

This also mirrors what we read about the floral industry in the press. Fortune magazine calls Mother's Day the "Super Bowl for florists". A website named Second Measure reports that 40% of all flower sales in the U.S. take place in the 2 weeks before Valentine's Day and Mother's Day.

This reporting suggests these peak times of the year are slightly more likely to generate BBB complaints and negative narratives.

In analyzing the top days in recent years for submitting complaints and negative reviews to BBB about online florists, we found that 49 of the top 50 days were Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, or the days surrounding those holidays. The number one day in 2020 was the day after Mother's Day, and the days preceding or succeeding Mother's Day accounted for 28 of the top 50 days. The days preceding or succeeding Valentine's Day accounted for 21 of the top 50 days.

The table below shows the top 10 days:

Note: Mother's Day in 2020 occurred during the height of the COVID-19 lockdowns, when online shopping was at its peak. Valentine's Day 2020 and prior holidays all occurred before the pandemic.