Making money comes down to one thing - selling the goods - if you can't flog your hard work you simply won't be in business.

Because of that, sales and marketing is an immensely powerful tool. In most large corporations the marketing budget is the largest after staff costs, proving how important it is, and there's no reason why your business can't be just the same, although there are plenty of initiatives that needn't break the bank.

With so many topics covered, from PR, sales techniques, brand building, customer loyalty and advertising to the use of the latest technology and many more besides, there are plenty of methods you can use to gain a competitive edge.

So, to help you sell the goods, we bring you a mix of features, ideas, handy hints and examples of initiatives tried and tested by other florists that, if put into practice, will definitely help you make money.

Over the coming months in this section you can find out:

• About the different marketing techniques commonly used
• How to implement and make the most of those various techniques
• What the different elements of the marketing mix are and how each element can be of benefit to you
• How to build customer loyalty and encourage repeat purchasing
• How to make more from each sale both in-shop and over the phone