How Franchise Website Suppliers Aid Brands with Specialized Digital Marketing

Not so long ago, advertisements were what we saw on TV, heard on the radio or got in the mail. Nowadays, marketing comes to consumers from all angles, and with that change, companies are trying to stay ahead of the curve. One way that franchises make sure their presence online is reaching a target audience is with the help of web service suppliers. 

Brands hire specialized digital advertising agencies because “modern day marketing is engineering essentially,” said Jeff Beyer, founder and CEO of Big Rig Media LLC, which has done web development, digital marketing and advertising for a number of franchises, including Postal Connections and iSold It. 

Beyer explained that he has often seen clients try to design their own websites and become frustrated at the ever-changing technology and lack of traffic. 

“You need a team of specialists that knows how to integrate these technologies when it comes to marketing, lead generation and optimization, who will make your website work for you,” he said. “Companies can do Wix or Squarespace or download a free theme and put up something online, but is that website actually working for them? No.”

Fernando Meza, CEO of web design and development firm Oneupweb, which has worked with brands like Neighborly, Molly Maid and Mr. Handyman, echoed that point. The average company does not have the manpower or resources to dedicate to staying on top of the shifts in best practices in the industry, Meza said. 

“You have to make sure that it's built a certain way for Google, that it has relevant content, that it uses search engine optimization (SEO), has good user experience, is accessible, all these things,” said Meza. “These trends change so rapidly and they can affect your positions online and the efficacy of your marketing, but some brands don’t have that expertise. But they have suppliers like us as a source to make those decisions so they don’t have to be bothered with the technicalities.”

Companies like Big Rig Media and Oneupweb have large teams with specialists devoted to specific types of digital marketing. The teams all work together to ensure their franchise clients have great corporate sites, as well as individual franchisee sites and an efficient intranet system for company communications.

“Some of these companies grow anywhere between 30–50 locations a year. So we have to make sure we build a web presence that is rock solid from a technology perspective,” said Fernando. “There's a lot of nuance to building a platform that helps these franchises and franchisees manage their own information and maintain compliance.”

The approach to developing and managing franchise websites and digital marketing campaigns is two-pronged, Beyer said. 

“With a franchise site, it really has to act as a sales tool. You have got to focus on providing all the information to the consumer about how the process works and convince them you're a viable franchise network.”

Second is capitalizing on the traffic you get and continuing to market to them, because the advertising space is extremely saturated. “Once you have visitors coming to your website, it’s very important to know how to nurture them. The average sale requires seven to 15 touch points. If they come to a site and you're not remarketing to them, they're going to move on to the next opportunity,” said Beyer.

All these nuances are what make web services highly technical and why franchises seek the assistance of suppliers like Big Rig Media and Oneupweb. With large teams of Google and Facebook experts, content marketers, copywriters, web developers, SEO specialists and more, they are well-versed in how to propel their franchise clients to have a high visibility to potential service customers and franchisee candidates.