Garden Valley

1300 FLOWERS has launched a new system allowing consumers to interact with the business via SMS.

Melbourne, Victoria (PRWEB) September 4, 2009 — 1300 FLOWERS has launched a new system allowing consumers to interact with the business via SMS. The new system allows customers to inquire about an order, request a quote for a bunch of flowers or apply for an advertised special.

1300 FLOWERS realise that many consumers have hectic schedules and busy lifestyles. Therefore, the team is constantly looking at ways to make it easier for consumers to order flowers and related gifts through their business. Traditionally, consumers preferred to order and transact through the telephone by talking to a consultant and having a person guide them through the flower choice and transaction process. This preference was driven partly by the belief that it was safer to provide credit card details to a consultant over the telephone rather than providing these details over the internet.

Over time, as the internet became more widespread and retail websites became more security conscious, consumers used the internet more frequently due to its convenience and relative ease of use. In fact, more 1300 FLOWERS customers are using the website to choose and order their flowers and related gifts than ever before. Looking forward, it is expected that this mode of ordering flowers will grow at a much faster pace than the telephone channel.

At present, however, access to the internet while "on the move" is still limited and somewhat "clumsy" due to the limited web browser capabilities of most hand held or palm devices which include mobile phones. This fact, compounded by the relative high cost of data downloads on mobile phones and hand held devices, is limiting the take up of consumers using the web to order flowers with 1300 FLOWERS on their mobile phones and hand held devices.

The new SMS system is a response to this scenario. Now a consumer can communicate and interact with 1300 FLOWERS by simply sending a SMS to 1300 FLOWERS (1300 356 937) at the standard cost of a normal SMS charged by their carrier. An example SMS conversion is the ability to inquire about the status of a flower order within the fulfilment process. This is an important factor as retail experience shows that one of the key consumer concerns around a flower order is the knowledge that it has been despatched and delivered to the recipient.

In addition, 1300 FLOWERS customers can also use SMS to request a quote for a bunch of flowers and even to apply for an advertised special. Such advertised specials could include free giveaways, discounts or the entry into a competition to win a substantial prize. Should the SMS be sent by the customer within the normal business hours at the 1300 FLOWERS call centre in Brisbane, the company will send a reply SMS within one hour. Of course, once the consumer has chosen the bunch of flowers or particular advertised special, he or she can then order through the telephone by calling 1300 FLOWERS (1300 356 937) or through the 1300 FLOWERS website at www.1300flowers.com.au.

So the team at 1300 FLOWERS is making it even easier for the consumers to send joy to their loved ones!

Author: Anthony Rohde

Filed under: Flower-growing on September 4th, 2009