Franchise Sales Webinar Offers Tips For Improving Franchise Development in 2021

On Tuesday, a panel of franchise development experts gathered for the “Franchise Domination” webinar, an hour-long discussion about how to improve franchise sales in 2021. Hosted by 1851 Franchise Publisher Nick Powills, the webinar revealed the one key secret to improving franchise sales.

OK, not exactly — the panel agreed that there is no one secret to franchise sales. But the webinar laid out some concrete strategies for franchisors hoping to step up their development game next year. Sean Fitzgerald, president of TRUBLUE; Jason Kaber, vice president of business development of SeoSamba; and Jack Wilson, chief development officer at FFC Franchising, all fielded questions from Nick on how to set goals, how to budget and how to measure success. 

Though the four development experts began by acknowledging there is no silver bullet or cookie-cutter solution for every brand’s needs, they agreed that there is some road-tested wisdom that can turn any outfit into a franchise selling machine. 

“If you go to your franchise sales website right now and it says ‘Welcome, look at our brand!’, then that’s not going to work,” said Powills. “That’s not a why you, why now.” 

Together, Powills and the other panelists worked through specific case studies and thought exercises that boil down decades of experience in franchise sales. 

What's your most important sale — the one you need to make first? According to Wilson, it’s the internal sale you make to your CEO when you pitch the budget and sales goals for the year. 

You have 20,000 to spend right now to make a sale. Where does it go? Fitzgerald makes a convincing case for social media that tells the brand’s story and takes the leads offsite. 

Do you turn to expensive brokers or haul down to a franchising event? Kaber evaluates the pros and cons of these avenues while keeping the focus on quality, not quantity of leads. 

So even without a silver bullet or ancient secret, the webinar unearths golden nuggets and hidden gems of wisdom. 

You can watch the entire webinar now in the video above.