One of the reasons that franchise marketing can be such a challenge is because it requires a somewhat different approach from marketing other organizations. While this type of marketing can present challenges, that doesn’t mean it has to be an uphill battle. As long as you know what works best and have a clear plan to follow, you can make your marketing efforts successful.
Since knowing where to focus and how to stay on the right track with marketing are some of the biggest challenges for franchises, we want to dive right into a handful of proven tips:
5 Ways to Improve Franchise Marketing
Make Time for the Big Picture
A common scenario for franchise marketing teams is they get so backlogged with tasks that they’re always trying to get caught up. Of all the problems that this approach presents, not having time to focus on the big picture is the most significant. If you want your team to find success with franchise marketing, having available time on a regular basis to look at the big picture is crucial.
Marketing Must Be Integrated Into Other Areas of the Franchise
While your marketing team needs to be able to make decisions on their own, that doesn’t mean they should operate as an island. In order to get the most out of marketing, other areas of the franchise need to feel that they’re working in conjunction with this department. Creating that type of synergy is the only way to ensure ongoing results and progress.
Campaigns Have to Be Managed and Tracked
On the subject of potential strategies like franchise social media, plenty of businesses have one or more doubts. In most cases, those doubts are rooted in the fact that the proper systems aren’t in place to track results. Although there was a time when tracking results via social media and other online marketing channels was difficult, that’s no longer the case. Since this type of activity can be tracked, all franchises need to do is take the time to properly set up their systems.
Keep the Five Ps in Mind
Whether you’re forming your initial marketing strategy or are going back to the drawing board to optimize your existing strategy, product, place, price, people and promotion are the five Ps that your strategy should be built around.
Ensure Consistency
When it comes to making the most of marketing and other activities like franchise lead generation, consistency goes a very long way. While there’s no doubt that it can take some time to nail down consistency across the board, it is definitely worth the effort.
If you’re ready for your company to be on social media but aren’t sure how to get started, an experienced social media consultant can help you create and implement a very effective strategy.
Michelle Hummel is CEO of Web Strategy Plus a full-service digital marketing agency focused on Franchise Marketing. She was recently nominated for the Woman-Owned Business of the Year! She’s a passionate Social Media Trainer with 15+ years of successful online business development, sales, and marketing experience. She also holds a valuable Internet Marketing Degree however with the ever-changing world of web marketing she strives to learn something new every day.
She travels Nationwide visiting her 22 Social Media Enthusiasts Chapters she developed Nationwide delivering in-depth social media training. She also provides Social Media Certifications through founding Web Media University. A current contributing editor to The Franchise Dictionary Magazine and she has written 3 books in her series called, “The Social Media Magnet: Everything You Need to Know to Attract Customers with Social Media”, where she shares her best-kept secrets to success. She also specializes in helping Franchisors and Franchisees develop an integrated web marketing program to drive leads. She’s available for interviews via email, telephone, Skype video, news segments on location and more. Just let her know how she can help!