The Society of American Florists is urging floral retailers to take proactive steps to protect their brands and maintain visibility and customer relationships during one of the industry's busiest holidays.
Deceptive order-gathering practices are becoming more aggressive, particularly impersonation calls and caller ID spoofing, while longstanding tactics like misleading online ads continue to siphon orders, erode margins and damage customer trust. While order gathering itself is a legitimate part of the floral marketplace, problems arise when order gatherers misrepresent who they are, where they're located and how orders are fulfilled, often misleading consumers into thinking they are buying from a known local florist when they are not.
© Society of American Florists
"These tactics aren't new, but they are becoming more sophisticated, and more frequent," SAF CEO Kate Penn said. "Florists need to be vigilant, both online and over the phone, especially during peak holidays like Mother's Day."
What's happening
According to SAF members, deceptive order gatherers are engaging in several troubling behaviors. Some are spoofing caller ID by disguising phone numbers to appear as local businesses or trusted institutions, while others are impersonating customers or florists in order to place fraudulent calls. Online, some are posing as local florists in search results entirely. Search engines allow advertisers to bid on competitors' names, a practice upheld by courts, but prohibit ads or landing pages that falsely imply affiliation or mislead consumers about identity, location or pricing.
Proactive measures
Florists can take several steps to safeguard their operations and revenue. Training staff to spot impersonators is a critical first line of defense, employees should know how to identify inconsistent caller information or urgency paired with payment issues, and should apply a verification step such as calling back a known number when something seems off. Running Google Ads using your business name is also advisable; if you are running pay-per-click ads, ask your provider about a branded search campaign to help ensure your business appears prominently when customers search for you, reducing the risk of losing orders to misleading ads. Using clear, local messaging in ad copy and on your website, being explicit that your business is a real, local florist, can further help differentiate your brand. Finally, florists should monitor search results regularly, though they should avoid searching for their own business directly on search engines, even in incognito mode, as this can lower click-through rates and negatively impact ad relevance. The Google Ads Preview tool is a better alternative, offering a more accurate view of what customers are actually seeing.
Take action when you see violations
Florists who encounter deceptive practices have several avenues for recourse. Suspicious spoofed calls, where a caller alters the number or name displayed — may violate federal law when used with intent to defraud, and can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The FTC form takes just a few minutes and does not require proof of fraud; submitting details such as the phone number shown, the date and time of the call, and what the caller claimed is sufficient. If money was lost or a pattern of targeting is suspected, florists should also consider filing a complaint with their state attorney general's consumer protection office, most of which offer simple online forms. Misleading ads can be reported directly to Google by clicking the three-dot icon or "About this ad" link next to a sponsored result and citing misrepresentation of business identity. If a trademark is involved, a formal complaint can be submitted through Google's Ads Trademark form, with supporting documentation such as screenshots, ad URLs, or search terms that trigger the ad. Documenting patterns by saving screenshots of ads and landing pages is also worthwhile, as repeated violations are more likely to trigger enforcement. Finally, florists are encouraged to report incidents to SAF directly, which has enforcement processes in place to help track and address ongoing issues across the industry.
Industry policy
SAF formalized its stance on deceptive practices in 2019, emphasizing that businesses representing themselves as local should have a physical presence in that community. The policy also defines deceptive practices as collecting undisclosed service fees or sending orders for below stated retail prices and standard delivery fees.
For more information:
SAF
[email protected]
safnow.org
