Marketability
Simplifying Digital Strategy for Your Franchise System BY L U K E AU L I N
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etting consistent, measurable return on investment for your marketing dollars is hard enough for the one-off home services, restaurant or retail store, never mind your multi-location franchise business. As a franchisor or franchisee in a new or established system, today’s digital marketing landscape can be difficult to navigate. This often results in traditional thinking, status quo operations, and seeing misplaced investments between marketing, sales, and customer success. Questions often asked by franchise owners include: • Is digital marketing a fit for my franchise? • W hich digital channels should I pursue and with what content? • W ho pays for what inside an effective digital strategy in my franchise system and who should perform what functions?
The caveat being that every business is unique, including specific franchise agreements that often define the marketing spend between Head Office and Franchise Partner and, as such, a tailored strategy for yours is recommended above everything that follows here.
If you are lost in the haze of questions, there is a way out! And in that sea of complexity, as always, it’s the simple solutions that often make the most sense. With rationale for why digital is a must for your franchise along with some clarity around functional responsibilities, the aim of this article is to reveal a possible path to an effective digital marketing and sales strategy for your franchised business.
To put the above stats into context, before the internet age, car buyers would visit an average of roughly six car lots before making what is one of their largest personal purchases. Today, they visit roughly 1.5 car lots before making that same decision. We live in the age of the educated consumer. Simply put, your online presence is essential to deliver on the journey your customers now expect when buying from you.
Canadian Franchise Association
Why Digital? For the majority of businesses today, having a digital strategy isn’t optional. Consider: • 70 - 90 per cent of a buyer’s decision is made by the time they contact you or visit your website (Newman, 2014) • The average person spends four hours a day on their smartphones and nearly half of that on social media (Curtin, 2018)
The Franchise Voice // Winter 2020
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