Marketing Beyond the Opening

By Greg Avdoian

One of the biggest issues facing franchisors is how to ensure franchise owners establish the right marketing plans and adopt the best community-connection practices to continue the momentum generated from opening the business well past their opening date.

We connected with marketing and communications leaders in the franchise industry to find out how to get franchise owners “to break out of their comfort zone” to ensure they are put on a road for marketing, customers satisfaction and ultimately sales success. Below are the Top 5 best practices for franchisees to promote their business and market the “person behind the business” after their opening: 1.)    Market to the People You Know First – Reach out to friends, family, people at your church, in your neighborhood, etc. Give a special offer for them – use them as “guinea pigs” at the beginning, and ask them to give constructive feedback on the experience. Then, ask them to leave you reviews online! This is a great way to do a “soft” opening. --Heather McLeod, Marketing Manager at Rainbow International 2.)    Boots Were Made for Walking…So Walk Already – Nothing replaces face-to-face connections. Franchisees need to step out in their community and focus on daily feet-on-the-street efforts. This novel yet commonly disregarded approach puts them in front of the customer, effectively connecting a face to a name to the brand, which helps establish and build relationships. While many franchise owners may find this approach uncomfortable, breaking out of comfort zones and adopting this practice is non-negotiable. --Chrissy Ronje, Marketing Communication Specialist for The Grounds Guys 3.)    Create Referral Alliances – Franchisees need to visit every business within 5 miles multiple times each month to create connections and strategic partnerships. Businesses like bridal shops, fitness clubs and restaurants want to do cross promotions with local business contacts and are all great sources of referrals for your business. --Sharon Slotkin, HSM Advertising, Hand & Stone Franchise Corp 4.)    Follow The 80/20 Rule – Focus as much time and energy as possible on the most loyal 20 percent of customers. The more they come in, the more money they'll spend and the more people they'll tell. --Alexis Barnett, Director of Marketing for MOOYAH Burgers, Fries, & Shakes 5.)    Embrace Social Media without Kicking and Screaming –Social media is here and it’s not going away. Deal with it. At this point, if you don’t have your own personal social media accounts or don’t regularly post and engage on your company’s franchise social pages, you are wasting branding opportunities and chances to add new customers and communicate with existing customers. You have to continually “navigate the social waters” on a daily basis to seize new opportunities, study competition and learn from your franchise network. --Nick Powills, Chief Brand Strategist for No Limit Media Consulting