How florists should judge whether SEO is working | Lillian Purge

How florists should judge whether SEO is working

I have worked with florists across the UK for many years, from independent high street shops to studio florists and online led flower businesses, and if there is one question that comes up again and again, it is this. How do I actually know if SEO is working.

In my opinion, this is one of the hardest questions for florists to answer because SEO success in floristry rarely looks like a straight line. Flowers are seasonal, emotional, locally driven, and often bought under time pressure. That means judging SEO purely on rankings or traffic numbers almost always leads to the wrong conclusion.

From experience, florists either give SEO too little time because they think it is not working, or they think it is working because numbers go up even though enquiries and orders do not. Neither approach gives you a clear picture of whether SEO is genuinely helping your business.

This article explains how florists should judge whether SEO is working in a realistic, commercially meaningful way. Not through vanity metrics or agency jargon, but through signals that actually reflect growth, stability, and long term value for a florist business.

Everything here is grounded in how people really buy flowers in the UK and how search engines respond to that behaviour.

Why judging SEO for florists is different to other businesses

Floristry does not behave like most service industries online.

From experience, flower searches are often emotional, time sensitive, and occasion driven. Someone may search florist near me because they forgot an anniversary. Another may be researching wedding flowers months in advance. Someone else may be ordering sympathy flowers under stress.

This means SEO performance for florists fluctuates naturally.

Peaks around Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Christmas, weddings, and local events are normal. Quiet periods are normal too.

In my opinion, judging SEO without understanding this context almost always leads to false conclusions.

Why rankings alone are a poor indicator of success

Many florists judge SEO by asking a simple question. Do I rank first for florist near me.

From experience, this is understandable but flawed.

Rankings fluctuate constantly based on location, device, time of day, and competition. Two people standing a mile apart can see different results.

More importantly, ranking first does not automatically mean SEO is working commercially.

If you rank highly but enquiries do not increase, or orders are poor quality, something is wrong.

SEO should be judged on outcomes, not just positions.

Why traffic numbers can be misleading for florists

Traffic feels like progress. More visitors should mean more business, right.

From experience, this is not always true in floristry.

SEO traffic can increase because of blog content, seasonal interest, or informational searches that never convert into orders.

For example, a blog about flower meanings may attract lots of visitors but few buyers.

That does not mean the content is useless, but it does mean traffic alone is not a success metric.

In my opinion, florists should judge SEO on whether it brings the right visitors, not just more visitors.

What “working SEO” actually looks like for a florist

SEO is working for a florist when it does at least some of the following consistently.

More enquiries or orders from Google search
More local customers mentioning they found you online
More branded searches for your business name
More repeat visits to your website before purchase
More stability in quiet periods, not just peaks

From experience, these signals matter far more than keyword charts.

SEO should reduce reliance on luck, not just spike during busy days.

Why enquiry quality matters more than enquiry volume

Not all enquiries are equal.

From experience, florists who judge SEO by enquiry volume alone often feel disappointed.

SEO is working when enquiries are more aligned. Customers understand your style, pricing, and service before contacting you.

This leads to fewer price shoppers, fewer unrealistic requests, and more confident buyers.

Quality enquiries take less time and convert better.

SEO that improves enquiry quality is doing its job even if volume grows slowly.

How to spot early signs that SEO is working

SEO rarely flips a switch. It builds gradually.

From experience, early signs that SEO is working often appear before sales increase.

These include:

More time spent on your website
Visitors viewing multiple pages
People returning to your site before ordering
Customers referencing specific pages or content
More engagement with local listings

These behaviours show growing trust.

Google notices them too and often rewards them later with better visibility.

Why branded searches are one of the strongest indicators

One of the clearest signs SEO is working is an increase in branded searches.

From experience, when people start searching your florist name directly, it means awareness and trust are growing.

This often happens when SEO content educates or reassures people before they are ready to buy.

They may visit, leave, think, and come back later searching your name.

This is a powerful signal that SEO is building brand value, not just traffic.

How local SEO performance should be judged

For most florists, local SEO matters more than national rankings.

From experience, judging local SEO should focus on:

Visibility in map results
Consistency of enquiries from nearby areas
Customers mentioning they chose you because you are local
Growth in Google Business Profile interactions

If your profile views, calls, and direction requests increase over time, SEO is working locally.

Even if website traffic looks flat, local signals may be improving.

Why Google Business Profile data matters more than many realise

Many florists focus on website analytics and ignore their Google Business Profile.

From experience, this is a mistake.

For florists, a huge proportion of customers interact directly with the profile. They view photos, read reviews, check opening times, and call.

SEO is working when profile views, calls, and requests trend upwards over time.

This data often correlates more strongly with real orders than website traffic alone.

How reviews help judge SEO effectiveness indirectly

SEO and reviews are connected.

From experience, when SEO improves visibility and trust, review volume and quality often improve too.

More customers finding you organically leads to more natural reviews.

If reviews increase steadily and mention finding you online, SEO is contributing positively.

A lack of review growth despite higher traffic may indicate a disconnect between expectations and experience.

Why seasonality must be factored into judgement

Floristry is highly seasonal.

From experience, judging SEO based on one month or one event is misleading.

SEO should be judged across full seasonal cycles.

Is performance improving year on year for Valentine’s Day
Are quieter months less quiet than they used to be
Are wedding enquiries more consistent

SEO works best when it smooths out seasonality rather than relying on it.

How to tell if SEO is attracting the wrong audience

Sometimes SEO brings the wrong people.

From experience, signs of this include:

High traffic but low conversion
Lots of enquiries outside your delivery area
Customers shocked by your pricing
High bounce rates on service pages

This usually means keyword targeting or messaging is misaligned.

SEO may be working technically but not strategically.

That still requires adjustment.

Why content engagement matters more than content volume

Many florists are told to publish lots of content.

From experience, fewer well read pages outperform dozens of ignored ones.

SEO is working when people actually read your content, scroll, and click through.

Engagement shows relevance.

Search engines reward content that satisfies users, not content that exists purely for optimisation.

How to judge SEO through customer conversations

One of the most reliable ways to judge SEO is simply to ask customers.

From experience, asking how did you find us often reveals patterns.

When more people say Google, search, or found you online, SEO is contributing.

This qualitative data is incredibly valuable and often more honest than dashboards.

Why conversion rate matters more than traffic growth

SEO is working when conversion rates improve.

From experience, even small increases in conversion rate can outperform large traffic growth.

If SEO content helps customers understand what you offer, conversion rates rise naturally.

Judging SEO without looking at conversion behaviour gives an incomplete picture.

How to spot SEO that looks good but is not working

Some SEO campaigns look impressive on paper but fail commercially.

From experience, warning signs include:

Rankings improving but enquiries flat
Traffic rising but revenue unchanged
High impressions but low clicks
More visitors but lower order value

This often means SEO is chasing visibility rather than intent.

Florists need intent driven SEO, not just exposure.

Why patience is essential when judging SEO

SEO takes time.

From experience, meaningful SEO results for florists often take three to six months to show early movement and six to twelve months to stabilise.

Judging SEO too early almost always leads to incorrect decisions.

Florists who stop SEO just as trust is building often miss the real benefits.

How SEO supports repeat business over time

SEO is not just about first orders.

From experience, SEO content builds familiarity.

Customers who find you through search are more likely to return later for birthdays, anniversaries, or events.

Repeat orders are a strong sign that SEO is building long term value.

This is harder to track but incredibly important.

Why enquiry timing matters when judging SEO

Florists often receive bursts of enquiries at odd times.

From experience, SEO often drives enquiries outside normal peak periods.

Late night searches, early morning orders, or last minute purchases are common.

If you notice enquiries coming in at times you previously did not see, SEO may be expanding your reach.

How to separate SEO impact from other marketing

SEO rarely works in isolation.

From experience, social media, word of mouth, and offline marketing all interact with SEO.

Someone may see your Instagram, then search your name on Google. SEO still played a role.

Judging SEO requires looking at the whole journey, not just last click attribution.

Why florist SEO should be judged long term not weekly

Weekly reporting often causes unnecessary panic.

From experience, SEO should be judged monthly at minimum and quarterly ideally.

Daily or weekly fluctuations are normal and rarely meaningful.

Long term trends tell the real story.

Florists who focus on long term patterns make better decisions.

How to judge whether SEO content is building trust

Trust is invisible but measurable through behaviour.

From experience, trust building SEO leads to:

More page depth per session
Longer time on site
Return visitors
Fewer basic questions in enquiries
More confident buyers

These are strong indicators that SEO is doing more than driving clicks.

Why fewer better orders can mean SEO is working

SEO success does not always mean more orders.

From experience, SEO can improve order quality.

Larger orders, better aligned requests, and more appropriate expectations are signs of effective SEO.

Profitability often improves before volume does.

Florists should judge SEO on margin as well as quantity.

How SEO helps reduce reliance on paid ads

Another sign SEO is working is reduced dependence on paid ads.

From experience, florists with strong SEO feel less pressure to constantly boost posts or run ads.

Organic enquiries create breathing space.

This stability is one of the biggest long term benefits of SEO.

Why reporting should be simple for florists

SEO reporting often overcomplicates things.

From experience, florists should focus on a few core questions.

Are more people finding us through search
Are those people becoming customers
Is our brand becoming more visible locally

If the answer trends towards yes, SEO is working.

Everything else is supporting detail.

How to know when SEO needs adjusting not abandoning

SEO that is not delivering does not always need to be scrapped.

From experience, it often needs refining.

Adjusting keywords, improving service pages, clarifying messaging, or focusing more on local signals can unlock results.

Judging SEO as all or nothing misses this nuance.

Why SEO should feel boring when it is working

This may sound strange, but from experience, SEO often feels boring when it is working well.

Enquiries arrive steadily. Visibility feels normal. There are fewer dramatic spikes.

This stability is a sign of success.

SEO that constantly feels exciting is often unstable.

The mindset florists need when judging SEO

The biggest shift is mindset.

SEO is not a campaign. It is a foundation.

From experience, florists who judge SEO based on long term business health rather than short term metrics get the best results.

SEO should support confidence, not anxiety.

Bringing it all together

Florists should judge whether SEO is working by looking beyond rankings and traffic and focusing on trust, enquiries, and stability.

From experience, SEO is working when more of the right customers find you, understand you, and choose you without hesitation.

It is working when your business feels less reliant on chance and more predictable.

It is working when customers say they found you online and felt confident ordering.

SEO success in floristry is quiet, gradual, and deeply valuable.

When judged correctly, it becomes one of the most reliable marketing channels a florist can build.