How ChatGPT Could Impact the Franchising Industry

ChatGPT is changing the world as we know it.The artificial intelligence (AI) tool interacts with users in  a conversational way and answers questions. The tool is currently free as it's still in its operational stage and can be used to write articles, tweets and emails. 

With this new advanced technology, people are taking this new tool and pushing it to the limits of what it can do. With this new introduction of AI, industry landscapes are changing rapidly. ChatGPT will change the way franchises function but hopefully for the better.

James Walker, CEO of Frisch’s Big Boy and franchise veteran, has sampled AI tools in the franchising industry. He’s used AI technology to manage guest feedback on a macro level and manage sentiment analysis. 

Walker predicts that AI tools and ChatGPT will change the franchising industry for the better. 

“As an executive of the restaurant industry, I look at automation and robotics coming into restaurants as a way to make my employees' lives better, to make them more efficient to potentially make the restaurant more profitable,” Walker remarked. “They may change your employees' lives. They may create new opportunities.

ChatGPT and other AI tools will likely be used to help with automation in the franchise industry. Instead of having to craft automatic reply emails that will respond to customer service problems, AI may be able to answer some questions before a person gets involved. 

CEO of Modulus Richard Gardener agrees with Walker on the usefulness of AI for franchisees.

“AI can be a powerful tool for franchisees, and not just in its usefulness in the realm of customer service and other forms of automation,” said Gardener. “There are a number of uses in relation to sales, particularly given the ability to personalize interactions utilizing predictive analytics. The retail and hospitality industries will undergo major shifts, thanks to the rise of predictive analytics and its ability to personalize customer experiences in a way that promotes greater sales volume.” 

Several websites are already using this type of technology with robot chat assistants that try to guide you before passing you along to a customer service agent. 

There are endless possibilities for what ChatGPT can do for your business. It could potentially  create standard operating procedures (SOP) and training programs, automate support for franchisees and provide marketing concepts.  

The easy-to-use tool could potentially be a more efficient way for users to learn about a potential franchise to invest in and even compare investment costs and potential ROIs. Because the technology is so new, you can really push the boundaries of what it can accomplish. Using ChatGPT for this kind of research can save potential franchisees time and potentially make entry into the franchising industry easier as they won’t have to read several Franchise Disclosure Documents. 

Walker predicts that these types of tools will be used anywhere there’s a lot of data to look at and collate. 

“Artificial intelligence is pretty good at finding a way to add metrics to measure things like sentiment that might be public out on Facebook or Twitter,” said Walker. “These types of tools allow a very rapid aggregation of all this data and a concise presentation.” 

It's important to note that ChatGPT does create original content. However, the content it creates could be very similar to other content on the internet. 

“I think AI tools are most powerful when paired with insightful human intelligence,” commented Walker.