A panel of 10 franchise industry experts judged more than 175 franchise development websites to determine the best of the best.

For the latest iteration of its Franchise Development Website Awards, 1851 Franchise did a deep dive into more than 175 websites to determine the brands that stood out from the crowd.

1851’s panel of judges evaluated each franchise development site according to three criteria: quality of site, quality of content and quality of form. Sites were scored on a five-point scale in accordance with these three criteria for a maximum score of 15 total points; the overall website rankings are based on a composite average of these scores.

Over the course of the month of May, each of the top 20 franchise development sites as determined by the judges will be broken down, one by one, to highlight their strengths and what stood out to the judges.

The third franchise brand tied for the No. 3 spot in the 2019 Top 20 is Big Blue Swim School. The swim school franchise received a composite score of 11.9 out of 15, scoring a 4.1 in quality of site; a 4.0 in quality of content; and a 3.8 in quality of form.

Recounting the website-building process, Big Blue Swim School Chief Development Officer Scott Thompson said, “We went through detailed strategic mapping, first starting with wireframes and flow, then the design and ultimately, the final key messaging and images. We looked at other sites that had a well-defined online process to lead the candidate through and combined what we liked from each into our site.”

When evaluating Big Blue Swim School’s franchise development site, judging panel member and Franchise Business Review president and COO Michelle Rowan noted its easy navigation and excellent use of visuals as its clear strong suits. “Great photos showing people enjoying what they do, as well as strong testimonials and use of video,” she commented.

For FranConnect president Keith Gerson, Big Blue Swim School’s site made a strong first impression. “I’m pleased to see the stationary ‘Let’s Get Started’ call to action that remains regardless of where the prospect scrolls,” he noted, calling out the brand’s clearly stated point of differentiation on the Opportunity page as clear indication the brand is “a cut-above.”

“There’s also a very compelling overview of the industry in relation to the ‘Amazon Effect,’” Gerson continued. “The virtual tour utilizing the popular Google interior view is fantastic and the video testimonials are not only very well done, they really help SEO rankings.”

This website was built by No Limit Agency,  a sister company to 1851 Franchise.