Confused by all the florist website templates? You're not alone.

In today's world of DIY website solutions like Shopify, WIX and Squarespace it's easy to get overwhelmed.

Particularly when you're just starting out and trying to do it all yourself.

No doubt, you've even asked yourself, is it worth it? Kathleen, do I really need a website? Is it that important?

YES!!!!!!

Your website is your single most important marketing and sales tool. In today's online shopping world, your website is more important than having a shop front or studio space.

But yes, sorting through all the options and trying to figure out florist website templates has a steep learning curve.

And I'll be the first to admit my journey to building a profitable flower business hasn't been easy. I didn't come out of the whom knowing all the things and I definitely didn't understand the world of websites.

I am a totally self-taught web person. I've learned everything I know from trial and error (and lots of random strangers who are great at teaching stuff on YouTube).

Florist Website Templates – Avoid These 5 Mistakes

Mistake #1: Picking a Portfolio or Photography Template

It's so tempting to pick one of those pretty, high impact websites, isn't it? This is exactly what I did on my first website. But then I got partway through the set-up and realised I was missing out on so much additional functionality.

What template should you look for? A restaurant template. The flower business + food business share so many similarities and using a restaurant, cafe or bakery template gives you access to so many shortcuts to make setting up your website heaps faster.

Mistake #2: Getting Sucked in By the Pretty Default Photos and Colours

The beauty of using a website template is that it shows you what the end product could look like. Except most of the images, content and colours supplied in the default templates still need to be updated by you.

I know exactly what it's like to feel uber frustrated when you find a pretty template and then try to go through the process of updating it with your own images...after what feels like hours of searching and editing you feel totally heartbroken and frustrated, hating all the images you have.

My favourite shortcut? Use stock photos to get you started. Then once you've got the first iteration up and running, invest in a brand photoshoot to really take your images to the next level.

When it comes to free stock photos, check out unsplash.com and pexel.com. But it's also worth checking out the paid version of canva.com. Alternatively, my go-to place for premium stock photos is creativemarket.com

Mistake #3: Overthinking the Words

At the end of the day, most of the words on your website are going to be dictated by the whole world of SEO.

This is particularly true for key headlines. So, instead of having 'Romantic, Hand-Crafted Flowers' as your H1 heading. You'll want to use something super functional like, 'Chicago Florist' – and then use your graphics, typefaces, and images to communicate the 'romantic, handcrafted' vibe.

Mistake #4: Too Many Image Galleries

I wish I had known this one from the beginning, but the whole project of creating big image galleries is a thing of the past.

Yes, your images can be a great way to get found on search but I found those big image galleries were a bit of a waste of time. It took me forever to format, upload, label and write in the descriptions. And my design aesthetic kept evolving so I find I always need to go back and remove old photos. All in all, it was all just too much fuss for me.

What did I do instead? I found linking in my Instagram feed was a better and easier solution. Set it up so your homepage, main service pages and your about page all have a snapshot of your latest 5-6 images from your Instagram feed. That way you can have a super simple page layout, but because the page brings in your IG content, it's constantly kept up to date and the images feel fresh. Yes, yes and more yes!

Mistake #5: Set It and Forget It

After you've searched through all the florist website templates, there is a big push at the beginning to get the first iteration of your website done and yeah, we all go through big overhauls any time we update our brand and level up our mindset.

But I also make it a regular habit to go in and make updates. And I do this almost every single week.

I'm constantly making tweaks and changes to my website. I truly believe there is no 'done' when it comes to our website and content.

For example, if you're offering daily deliveries and know you need to update your prices. Do it today. Right now. Don't delay!

Want more good stuff? Check out this blog post: How to Conquer the Google Game

Want more tips to help you sort through your website?

Getting your website is an epic task. There are 8,000 details to think through and the learning curve with the tech can feel like a lot. It's OK, we're here to help.

In my experience, getting your website sorted is an even bigger undertaking than fitting out a flower shop. But I promise the reward is 100% worth it!!! Your website can be your single most important sales and marketing resource and, for us, it's been one of the best investments we've made in our business.

Be sure to check out this podcast episode: How to Attract Bigger Budget Clients in Your Flower Business

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