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America’s Swimming Pool Co. Multi-Unit Franchisee Sets First-Year Sales Record in Tennessee

How HomeTeam Inspection Service’s Team-Based Model Outperforms Traditional Home Inspection Franchises

Layne’s Chicken Fingers Signs 24 Franchise Agreements, Reaches 50 Units Open in First Half of 2026

Right at Home Targets Deerfield, Wisconsin for Growth as Momentum Builds in Surrounding Markets

How Insurance Professionals are Thriving in Sales Roles at ServiceMaster Restore 

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Urban Bird Hot Chicken Plans Expansion to Lubbock

Franchise Opportunity Deep Dive: Newk’s Eatery is a fast-casual restaurant brand serving made-from-scratch sandwiches, salads, soups and pizzas rooted in Southern hospitality.

Newk’s Eatery Franchise Costs, Fees, Profit and Data for 2026

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Franchise development has a measurement problem. Brands obsess over lead volume, cost per lead, and funnel conversion rates. Dashboards look clean. Campaigns look optimized. Reports show progress.But behind those metrics is a harder truth: most franchisors are optimizing a system that doesn’t reflect how buyers actually behave.We recently analyzed a dataset of real franchisees, their discovery paths, decision timelines, fears, and what ultimately pushed them to say yes. The findings are not subtle. They challenge some of the most common assumptions in franchise marketing.In a recent episode of <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YE1fn5hlaSE">Coffee &amp; Analytics</a>, 1851 Franchise publisher <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/powills/">Nick Powills</a> shared 20 lessons every franchisor should internalize if they want to attract better operators and grow sustainably.<h2>1. Discovery Is Often Accidental</h2>Franchisees rarely follow a linear path into a brand. Many discover opportunities through travel, as customers, or through casual exposure. This means your brand is being evaluated long before a prospect ever fills out a form.Takeaway:&nbsp;Your growth strategy should extend beyond lead generation. Discovery is happening whether you design for it or not.<h2>2. The Physical Experience Still Wins</h2>A consistent pattern emerged: prospects visited locations, tried the product, and evaluated the experience in person. That moment often carried more weight than anything digital.Takeaway:&nbsp;Your units are your most important marketing asset. If they don’t convert customers into believers, nothing else will.<h2>3. Brokers Still Matter</h2>Despite the rise of digital channels, brokers remain a meaningful part of the early funnel for many buyers.Takeaway: Ignoring broker relationships is not a strategy. It is a blind spot.<h2>4. Buyers Consider a Small Set of Brands</h2>Most franchisees evaluated between five and ten concepts, not dozens.Takeaway: You are not competing in a broad market. You are competing in a tight, high-stakes consideration set.<h2>5. Websites Validate, They Don’t Convert</h2>Not one franchisee cited a website as the reason they chose a brand.Takeaway: Your site’s role is credibility, not persuasion. If you expect it to close deals, you’re asking it to do the wrong job.<h2>6. Financial Clarity Is the Biggest Gap</h2>Franchisees repeatedly asked for clearer expectations around investment, returns, and what is actually included.Takeaway: The issue is not the absence of data. It is the absence of storytelling around the data. If your Item 19 exists without context, it creates hesitation instead of confidence.<h2>7. Timelines Are Consistently Underestimated</h2>Many buyers entered the process without a clear understanding of how long it would take to open or reach profitability.Takeaway:&nbsp;Overpromising speed or underexplaining process creates friction later. Transparency upfront builds trust.<h2>8. “Support” Is Too Vague</h2>Franchisees expect strong support, but often describe it as unclear or inconsistent.Takeaway:&nbsp;If you cannot define support in concrete terms, your buyers will define it for you, and usually not in your favor.<h2>9. Lifestyle Matters as Much as ROI</h2>Freedom, flexibility, and building something personal in their community were common motivators.Takeaway:&nbsp;Buyers are not spreadsheets. They are people making identity-driven decisions.<h2>10. Fear Is Real and Predictable</h2>Financial risk, wiring capital, and uncertainty surfaced repeatedly.Takeaway:&nbsp;Every deal faces the same three barriers: funds, fads, and fear. The brands that win address all three directly.<h2>11. Validation Drives Confidence</h2>Conversations with existing franchisees were among the most influential parts of the process.Takeaway:&nbsp;Your operators are your most credible sales force. Invest in them accordingly.<h2>12. There Is No Standard Timeline</h2>Some buyers inquired within a week of discovery. Others took nearly a year.Takeaway:&nbsp;A rigid funnel ignores reality. You need systems that capture urgency and nurture patience.<h2>13. High-Intent Buyers Move Fast</h2>When the right buyer meets the right brand, decisions accelerate quickly.Takeaway:&nbsp;Your process should not slow down serious operators.<h2>14. Slow Buyers Need Long-Term Engagement</h2>Many prospects require months of exposure and education.Takeaway:&nbsp;Franchise development is not just acquisition. It is sustained relationship building.<h2>15. Consumer Brand Strength Matters</h2>Many buyers were already customers or fans of the concept.Takeaway:&nbsp;Strong consumer brands create built-in franchise demand. Weak ones rely entirely on marketing.<h2>16. Media Is Not a Primary Research Tool</h2>Buyers relied more on search, lists, and peer input than traditional media coverage.Takeaway:&nbsp;Awareness does not equal influence. Trust is built elsewhere.<h2>17. Buyers Want Honesty, Not Perfection</h2>Franchisees consistently indicated a desire for clearer, more realistic expectations.Takeaway:&nbsp;The brands that stand out are the ones willing to say what is hard, not just what is attractive.<h2>18. Not All Buyers Are the Same</h2>Experienced operators evaluate differently than first-time franchisees.Takeaway:&nbsp;One message cannot serve both audiences. Your strategy must segment accordingly.<h2>19. Decisions Are Personal</h2>Life stage, career transitions, and personal goals often triggered action.Takeaway:&nbsp;The final decision is rarely made on logic alone. It is made when the opportunity aligns with a moment.<h2>20. Marketing Channels Rarely Get Credit</h2>Not a single franchisee pointed to ads or campaigns as the reason they chose a brand.Takeaway:&nbsp;This does not mean marketing is irrelevant. It means its role is misunderstood.<h2>The Bigger Problem</h2>Franchise systems are built to optimize measurable inputs. Leads, clicks, conversions.Buyers operate on something entirely different: experience, trust, validation, and timing.When those two systems are misaligned, performance suffers. Not because the marketing is ineffective, but because it is aimed at the wrong target.<h2>What Needs to Change</h2>Franchisors who want to grow should rethink their approach in four ways:<ul><li>Design discovery, not just capture it</li><li>Turn locations into conversion engines</li><li>Build structured validation into the process</li><li>Communicate financial reality with clarity and confidence &nbsp;</li></ul>Growth is not about increasing activity. It is about aligning strategy with behavior.The brands that win the next decade of franchise development will not be the ones with the most leads. They will be the ones that understand how decisions are actually made and build systems around that truth.Because if your strategy does not match reality, it does not matter how well you execute it.The truth is, all of the above can be overwhelming. In fact, when assessing brands, we deliver a playbook that reaches 100 pages. Franchisors look at it with blank stares and say, “Now what?” Millions of dollars takes millions of hours (or a lot of work). But, over the course of two years, if diligent and organized, a brand can leverage the above learnings to turn up the momentum.Watch the full episode <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YE1fn5hlaSE">here</a>.&nbsp;Growing and selling franchises is difficult. Want to learn more about how 1851 helps franchisors grow their franchises with confidence? Visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.1851growthclub.com">www.1851growthclub.com</a> and see what we can do for you.

image of Coffee and Analytics Live Webinar on franchise marketing

1851 Franchise publisher Nick Powills presents 20 lessons every franchisor should know to attract better operators, pulled from a dataset of real franchisees and what ultimately made them say yes.

20 Lessons on Franchisee Behavior that will Change Your Marketing Strategy

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Franchise Legal Player:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslie-curran-28b877b/">Leslie Curran</a> Firm:&nbsp;<a href="https://plavekoch.com/">Plave Koch PLC</a><a href="https://plavekoch.com/attorney/curran-leslie-d/">Leslie Curran</a> has built a reputation as a trusted advisor to franchise brands navigating growth, compliance, and long-term risk. With experience advising emerging and growing franchisors across a wide range of consumer-facing and service-based brands, Curran brings a practical, business-minded approach to franchise law. Her work focuses on helping brands scale responsibly while protecting both the franchisor and franchisee experience.1851 Franchise connected with Curran to discuss what franchisors often overlook, where legal risk hides during expansion, and the lessons that continue to shape their advisory philosophy.1851: What originally drew you to franchise law, and what has kept you engaged in the space over time?Curran: I found my way into the franchise practice by accident. At a large D.C. law firm, my office was with the lawyers in that practice group, but I didn’t start out working with them. I got to know the lawyers who sat near me, and they were great people, as well as talented lawyers. The practice was very interesting. They were working with brands I knew, and they were helping those brands grow and expand into new markets.And 25-plus years later, I am still working with franchisors and other brand owners to achieve those same goals of growth and expansion, alongside building great legal and business systems to support that growth. I have stayed engaged because of the people who have crossed my path along the way — the people I work with at Plave Koch, the clients who have trusted me to be part of their teams, suppliers I have built relationships with and, yes, even many franchisor-attorney competitors and franchisee attorneys I have had the pleasure of collaborating with over the years in a variety of contexts. For me, this practice and what we do is about building great relationships all around and helping build up an industry that knows no limits in terms of growth with integrity.1851: As franchising continues to evolve, what legal issue do you see brands most often underestimating today?Curran:&nbsp;Franchise sales have gotten tighter and tighter from an absolute numbers perspective. Each year, we see more brands enter the market that want to sell franchises. However, there does not seem to be a corresponding increase in the number of prospective franchisees who want to buy franchised businesses. In a competitive franchise sales environment, in addition to traditional in-house franchise sales teams, we see a variety of outside franchise sales organizations and other third parties pushing to help franchisors close deals.&nbsp;The legal challenges presented by this intersection include ensuring disclosure documents are not only legally compliant but, where possible, also provide information that can assist with the franchise sales process. It also includes ensuring all franchise sales groups are following legal requirements, including possible upcoming broker regulation, and indemnifying the franchisor for any issues arising from sellers’ actions. It also means ensuring the brand is actually ready, from a legal and business standpoint, to onboard prospects. Brands should be aware of the legal and business issues that surround the various players in the franchise sales process and carefully review the agreements with all third-party sellers.1851: In your experience, where do emerging franchisors tend to get tripped up from a compliance or documentation standpoint?Curran: They fail to do due diligence on the legal, financial, business, franchise sales and other advisors they bring on board to help them get started. Each aspect of the startup is important, and mistakes can be very costly for an emerging franchisor. The franchisor team should take time to vet and interview each service provider and get comfortable with the people you will be working with. It’s an expensive endeavor and it’s not quick, so you’d better like those folks. Also, reach out to other franchisors and service providers for advice and recommendations.For the legal documents, franchise agreements often have a term of 5 to 10 years, so documentation that is poorly drafted is going to stick with the brand for a bit.1851: How should franchisors be thinking about risk management as they scale into new markets or add new unit growth strategies?Curran: First, ensure that the brand is able to enter the market from a franchise sales and disclosure law standpoint, either by use of registration or exemption or exclusion. From the business side, some considerations are: Does the franchisor have the operational systems in place to support the new markets or growth strategy? Has the franchisor assessed the financial viability of the new market or the growth strategy? Does the franchisor know what possible brand changes may be necessary for the franchisee to succeed in the new market? Have systems standards, including supply chain issues, been reviewed and updated as necessary?The risk of failure in a new market, especially for an emerging brand, is very significant. Failure in one growth market beyond a brand’s core current market can make it very difficult to expand further in later efforts. In addition, a lack of planning can lead to increased complaints from franchisees who sign up and assert that the franchisor’s foresight and support may be less than anticipated. Those failures and complaints can divert resources and are likely to make additional growth plans take a back seat.1851: What distinguishes your approach or philosophy when working with franchise clients?&nbsp;Curran: Hospitality is important to me. By that, I mean focusing on what is important to each client. I strive to meet clients where they are in terms of knowledge and expertise. No two clients are equal in that sense. While every client is different, at the simplest level, every client wants to be heard and helped when they need you.It sounds simple, but we must listen first to what the client is trying to achieve and only then formulate a reply with all of the options, along with the risks. Never assume you know better than your clients or dismiss their concerns. The advice needs to be relevant, practical and actionable.1851: Looking back, what lesson from your legal career has had the greatest impact on how you advise clients today?&nbsp;Curran: It’s a lesson that sounds simple: Smart lawyers keep clients by being useful. Figure out how to be useful. That will impress your clients and more will follow.Every great franchisee had help buying a franchise. Want to learn more about how 1851 helps franchisees find the right franchise opportunity? Visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.1851growthclub.com/">www.1851growthclub.com</a> and start your journey.

2026 Top Franchise Lawyers You Should Know: Leslie Curran — Plave Koch PLC

1851 Franchise’s annual roundup of the Top Franchise Lawyers You Should Know is back for 2026, spotlighting the legal minds helping shape the future of franchising. 

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Franchise Legal Player:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-robinson-2646422b/?originalSubdomain=ca">Frank Robinson</a> Firm:&nbsp;<a href="https://cassels.com/">Cassels Brock &amp; Blackwell LLP</a><a href="https://chambers.com/lawyer/frank-robinson-canada-20:1546303">Frank Robinson</a> has built a reputation as a trusted advisor to franchise brands navigating growth, compliance and long-term risk. With experience advising emerging, scaling and mature franchisors across restaurants, hotels, consumer products, automotive, home care, fitness, home services and other consumer-facing industries, Robinson brings a practical, business-minded approach to franchise law. Their work focuses on helping brands scale responsibly while protecting both the franchisor and franchisee experience.1851 Franchise connected with Robinson to discuss what franchisors often overlook, where legal risk hides during expansion, and the lessons that continue to shape his advisory philosophy.1851 Franchise: What originally drew you to franchise law, and what has kept you engaged in the space over time?Frank Robinson:&nbsp;The practice of franchise law is dynamic, the clients we serve are talented, creative and diverse, and the franchising sector continues to evolve and create new opportunities for all stakeholders. As a franchise lawyer, our clients require advice and support in a broad range of areas, including franchise compliance, intellectual property, M&amp;A, real estate, litigation and so on. This keeps the practice varied, interesting and never dull. Our clients span an immense spectrum of industries, from restaurants and hotels to consumer products, automotive, home care, fitness, home services and more. We benefit from being able to participate in so many different businesses. More recently, increased interest in the franchise model from private equity, public markets and other capital partners has fostered areas of growth and opportunity that pull our clients — and us with them — into new and exciting places. It has never been a better time to be a franchise lawyer.1851: As franchising continues to evolve, what legal issue do you see brands most often underestimating today?Robinson:&nbsp;Whether it has to do with the evolution of franchising, or not, an often-overlooked area — that can create downstream legal risks — is the tolerance of deviations from quality standards, often small to start, that erode the integrity of the system and relationship dynamics over time. Many new franchisors regret or resist having to “police” their franchisees, but a failure to enforce a healthy degree of respect for franchise protocols and contractual compliance can transform pesky nuisances into a widespread undermining of the system. Oversight, communication, mutual respect — and the occasional hard conversation — go a very long way.1851: In your experience, where do emerging franchisors tend to get tripped up from a compliance or documentation standpoint?Robinson: Do it once. Do it right. This is what should guide any emerging and responsible franchisor when considering documentary compliance. As a franchisor, your primary assets are the revenue-generating franchises that follow the model and receive value for their adherence to standards. While much of this is sustained by the quality of the business and relationship, it is rooted in the franchise documents, especially the franchise agreement. Mistakes in the documents are multiplied by the number of franchises in the system and can compound over time. Reversing course once agreements are signed is challenging. Franchise systems should invest in quality documents from the start, and know how to use them.1851: What distinguishes your approach or philosophy when working with franchise clients?Robinson:&nbsp;Never losing sight of the client’s goals, whatever they are, however they evolve. Most clients desire growth and sustainability of the franchise system and the franchisees who make it up. Our philosophy is to fully align with clients on that path. In many ways, we see ourselves as a part of their franchise development teams, facilitating the sale and support of their networks. In all cases, our approach is founded on a deep and intimate knowledge of the business of franchising, understanding the needs and goals of our clients, offering practical, responsive and actionable advice, and sharing in and taking responsibility for the outcomes of our clients, whether celebratory or disappointing.1851: Looking back, what lesson from your legal career has had the greatest impact on how you advise clients today?Robinson:&nbsp;Working in a law firm, most problems are answered with a legal response. But, our clients operate in a dynamic and integrated environment in which the legal implications to any problem are one of a multitude to be considered when choosing a way forward. The effectiveness of a lawyer is increased dramatically when he or she can develop the sense and confidence to understand the place and limitations of the law in the context of a complex business problem — and then offer solutions that work in real time.Every great franchisee had help buying a franchise. Want to learn more about how 1851 helps franchisees find the right franchise opportunity? Visit&nbsp;<a href="http://www.1851growthclub.com/">www.1851growthclub.com</a> and start your journey.

Frank Robinson — Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP

2026 Top Franchise Lawyers You Should Know: Frank Robinson — Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP

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A franchise marketing calendar does more than schedule promotions and social posts. It helps franchise systems stay organized, align messaging across locations and give franchisees a roadmap for local execution throughout the year. For franchisors trying to answer the question, “What should I include in a franchise marketing calendar?” the challenge is finding the balance between national consistency and local flexibility.According to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-titus/">Andrew Titus</a>, president of&nbsp;<a href="https://unitedfranchisegroup.com/">United Franchise Group</a>, the best marketing calendars are built around collaboration, long-term planning and clear communication between the corporate office and franchisees.<h2>A Franchise Marketing Calendar Should Align Every Marketing Channel</h2>Titus said one of the biggest mistakes franchisors make is treating the marketing calendar as a simple list of promotions rather than a systemwide strategy tool.“The marketing calendar needs to align with every aspect of how the company is running and marketing the business,” he said. “Whether it’s PR, promotions, digital initiatives or social media, everything should work together. It can’t just be an email campaign or a few social posts. It needs to be a true multichannel marketing approach.”That means a franchise marketing calendar should outline far more than social media topics. National campaigns, local promotions, PR pushes, seasonal initiatives, digital advertising and budget expectations should all connect back to the same larger strategy.Titus also recommends building themes into the calendar to create consistency throughout the year. “I think it’s good to have a theme to the calendar,” he said. “Maybe each month has a different theme or each quarter has a different theme. Then you can build out the channels and approved budgets you’re going to use to support it.”For franchisors asking, “What should I include in a franchise marketing calendar?” one of the biggest priorities should be clarity. Franchisees need to know what campaigns are mandatory, what can be customized locally and how each initiative fits into the broader brand strategy.<h2>National Campaigns Need Local Flexibility</h2>While national marketing creates baseline visibility for the brand, Titus said local marketing is what makes a franchise feel connected to the community it serves.“We encourage each of our franchisees to upload pictures of their work on their local site to show what they’ve done in that market,” Titus said. “When they’re dealing with a large company, they’re part of a franchise system with 300-plus locations in 11 countries that’s been around for 26 years. But when they’re working with a local business or someone who only wants to do business with someone in their community, they can also market themselves as independently owned and operated and local to that area.”Franchisees have to be able to lean on the brand name without sounding distant from the people they serve. The calendar should give them a national message to work from, along with space for local projects, customer stories and community outreach.As franchise systems grow, that flexibility becomes even more important. Titus said many emerging brands naturally build their early marketing around the region where the first locations opened, but that approach eventually has to evolve.“When franchise systems start, they usually grow around the first location and kind of spiderweb from there,” Titus said. “If you start in Florida, the marketing calendar is naturally going to feel Florida-focused. But as you expand across the country, it has to change.”As brands expand, regional differences become harder to overlook. An October message built around colder weather might work well in Idaho, for example, but feel out of place in Florida.<h2>Franchisee Feedback Should Shape the Calendar</h2>Another major piece of what should be included in a franchise marketing calendar is franchisee input. Titus said corporate teams often overlook how valuable local operator feedback can be.“So many times, people at the corporate office look at themselves as the experts,” Titus said. “And yes, they are very knowledgeable, but the real experts are the people doing it day in and day out in their local markets.”At United Franchise Group, franchisees help guide decisions tied to the advertising fund and collaborate closely with the marketing department. Titus believes that communication helps create stronger campaigns and better systemwide alignment.Planning ahead is equally important. Titus said many franchisors wait too long to finalize the following year’s calendar because they are focused on finishing the current year strong.“If you’re going to do sales in January, February and March, you better be marketing for that in October,” Titus said. That lead time gives franchisees enough time to prepare budgets, build local promotions and execute campaigns effectively instead of scrambling after the year has already started.<h2>Practical Takeaways for Franchisors</h2>If you’re asking, “What should I include in a franchise marketing calendar?” these practical steps can help:<ul><li>Build the calendar around multichannel campaigns instead of isolated promotions or social posts.</li><li>Clearly separate mandatory national initiatives from customizable local marketing opportunities.</li><li>Gather franchisee feedback early and finalize the calendar before the new year begins so operators have time to prepare.</li></ul>For more information on franchise marketing, check out these related articles on 1851 Franchise:<ul><li><a href="https://1851franchise.com/the-secrets-to-franchise-marketing-success-how-top-brands-drive-growth-2729269">The Secrets to Franchise Marketing Success: How Top Brands Drive Growth</a></li><li><a href="https://1851franchise.com/how-do-franchise-marketing-funds-work-a-guide-2731131">How Do Franchise Marketing Funds Work? A Guide For Prospective Franchisees</a></li><li><a href="https://1851franchise.com/franchise-marketing-leaders-2025-2729422">Top 25 Franchise Marketing Leaders of 2025: Driving Growth, Innovation and Local Success</a></li></ul>

What Should I Include in a Franchise Marketing Calendar? - Question of the Day - 1851 Franchise

A strong franchise marketing calendar aligns national campaigns, local promotions and multichannel strategy while giving franchisees flexibility to connect with their communities.

What Should I Include in a Franchise Marketing Calendar?

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1851 Franchise Deep Dive graphic with Sparkle Squad logo

Franchise Opportunity Deep Dive: Sparkle Squad is a tech-forward, founder-led window cleaning franchise revolutionizing a century-old industry.

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