Why It’s Important for Franchisors to Focus on Lead Generation in January

New Year, new me. We’ve all heard and said it a million times, but how realistic is that, really? While self-reinvention may seem too daunting a task, turning the calendar to January does bring about the opportunity to rededicate our focus and set goals for ourselves in our personal and professional lives. For a lot of people, professional aspirations lead to the pursuit of business ownership opportunities, making January a crucial time for franchisors to take advantage of the influx of leads the new year brings.

“There’s typically a lift in interest in January because of resolutions stemming from people’s acknowledgment they’ve been putting off leaving a job, going into business for themselves or evaluating franchise opportunities,” said Chris Cheek, Chief Development Officer for Newk’s Eatery.

Erik Hartung, Dog Haus’ Director of Development, agreed. “My hunch is that around the holidays, the conversations among family and friends trigger reflective thoughts and thoughts of ambition,” he said. “It’s a logical jumping off point if you’re working for someone else or seeking a different kind of work and want to be out on your own.”

Franchisors place emphasis on lead generation at all times of year because it’s the first point of contact in the franchise sales process. “Sales can be broken down into four steps: awareness, education, persuasion and close,” Cheek said. “Lead generation is awareness, the beginning of a process that is usually months-long with multiple stages,” he continued. Understanding where leads come from allows franchisors to direct more resources to that source, in turn making it easier to refine this process.

“We approach lead generation holistically on an annual basis, beginning with a budget in mind that we need to operate within,” Cheek said, explaining that Newk’s Eatery enters January with a plan for how to allocate that budget across different mediums like print ads, direct email campaigns, referral programs, trade shows and more. “Measuring where leads are coming from allows us to invest in the source with the best returns. If we see some tools are less effective, we have flexibility in our annual budget to shift attention and focus to what is working as the year goes on,” he said.

Hartung noted that while most of Dog Haus’ development leads have occurred organically since the brand began franchising in 2013, the brand has benefitted from enough national press to grow without the same kind of outreach Cheek described. Still, Dog Haus experienced the familiar ebb in interest during the holiday season before the flow of leads January brings.

“November and December are slow because people are distracted by family and friends and aren’t so much thinking about developing their business portfolio,” Hartung said. “But once January rolls around, the distractions subside, pent-up interest is released and they approach the prospect with vigor,” he added. Cheek concurred. “At the beginning of the year, people are available because the holidays are behind them and things pick back up because life is out of the way,” he said.

This indicates January can lead to more effective franchise development efforts because if brands can capitalize on the uptick in interest and begin the year adding a solid number of leads to those they’ve carried through the pipeline, momentum is created for the year ahead.

“Carrying leads through the end of the year into January flows naturally because as the entire process slows down, the new year is a good opportunity to reach back out,” Hartung pointed out. “But the driving force in franchise sales is that it’s all about relationships. Establishing a rapport beginning with that initial call makes a huge difference when picking things back up,” he noted.

“Lead generation requires investment, and the most important part of making the investment is understanding who you are trying to recruit,” Cheek said. “You have to find your target audience and build campaigns around those people, aligning your efforts toward where you can influence them.” Beginning this process in January starts a cycle of inquiry that puts franchisors in a strong position for development over the course of the year, creating a strong model on which to innovate for each year to come.