Floral designers Alicia and Adam Rico focus on just two ways to reach the brides who’ll love their style. They use print media as a springboard to grow their audience and a carefully curated Instagram page to nurture brides-to-be. The unintended consequence: travel opportunities.
When Alicia Rico and her husband Adam Rico first began their floral design business, Alicia had one goal – get into Martha Stewart Weddings magazine. It’s not easy. Weddings featured in Martha Stewart’s magazine have to be submitted long before they happen, and if chosen, an entire Martha Stewart design, planning and photography team help the happy couple with every facet of their big day – planning just the right look, choosing linens and lighting, even picking the perfect dress. For brides who adore Martha Stewart’s signature style of pale hues and vases overflowing with soft pink petals, it’s a dream come true.
But as Alicia’s business, Bows + Arrows Flowers was just getting off the ground, she didn’t have a bride-to-be in her back pocket. She did have photos of a recent wedding for which she’d designed floral arrangements. On a chance, she submitted them to the editors.
The editors loved them.
“It was of a wedding we did in the desert, which is a very different style than Martha Stewart magazine usually publishes. And we submitted it after it was done, and they still agreed to feature it. That was a huge moment.”
It didn’t take Alicia and Adam long to see their work from another wedding land on the cover of the magazine, checking off her next goal.
While it certainly helps to build your brand by aligning with one of the biggest wedding publications in the country, Alicia and Adam don’t rely solely on print media or even wedding blogs to get in front of their ideal audience of blossom-loving brides. Their success is a combination of understanding their ideal client really well, staying true to their brand, and building a truly impressive following on Instagram that not only lands them clients, but literally sends them around the world.
Here the Ricos share their journey from art students to Martha Stewart-approved floral designers (and occasional wedding designers), and give tips on how you can improve engagement, increase followers, and get clients on Instagram.
No Comments