I just looked at my CJ stats and beheld that my affiliate site that sells flowers is actually making money. I just heard a Mother's Day ad on the radio on the way to work today (btw, it's May 11th). I so impulsively wanted to buy 100 tulips. But I didn't. Still, I'm on a blog binge and this one is off-topic, except that when I first started in affiliate marketing I didn't know if it would work. You do a lot of work up-front and it takes some time before you see results. That was the toughest thing about coaching people new to Internet marketing! They actually had to believe the work would pay off and keep doing it even though they weren't seeing any ROI for a long time. But I could relate because I was the same way.
I ignored my flower site and didn't pay attention to it. Plus, I didn't have the energy. Now I'm motivated to promote it. In fact, my dream is to blog about working at a flower shop. It's my Cheers, my Steel Magnolias. Someday I'll work at a florist and attach a blog to my site which will supplement the low wages. I want it to turn into a real newspaper column and maybe even a YouTube series. Because the stories at florists are just incredible. You get people coming in for a range of reasons, but mostly for big events and significant times of their lives.
My last year in college I delivered flowers in the natural gas van at the Flower Patch. It was a temporary job that turned into a real one. They sent me flowers and asked if I'd work for them. I couldn't resist, even though I had no intention of working there until then. Plus, they put me in charge of managing the plants and I was taking a lot of botany classes so that hooked me.
Once I locked the keys in the van with the motor running and had to charm a police officer into opening it for me. I sometimes got hopelessly lost (this time I'd have a GPS). I loved the experience of seeing complete strangers at such poignant times (like the family visiting to celebrate a brand new baby). Sometimes it was like I get to tell someone they won the lottery because the beautiful flower arrangement I had in my hands was for them. It made them happy so I felt great. I liked the creativity of it too and the women I worked with. I also got to take a big risk and insist the boss give us breaks or I'd quit, and everyone loved me for that.
This post is sponsored by JustFlowers.com – where you can buy your mom fudge or flowers – you choose! I have a bad memory and it's worse the busier I get, so this is also my reminder not to forget to schedule buying a gift for my mom. My mom who grows her own sprouts, used to put tofu in our spaghetti, and who makes whole wheat bread from grains that she grinds. And you wonder why I have a little bit of hippie in me!
So here you go: Mother's Day Flowers