Effective franchise marketing and advertising requires mutual cooperation. Marketing guidelines are developed by franchisors to direct your multi-location franchise business’s advertisement efforts. Franchisees execute campaigns while adhering to marketing guidelines to maintain brand consistency. Yet, putting franchise co-op advertising into practice is more difficult than merely adhering to brand norms. You must take into account the regional and local variations among your audiences. Franchises also have advertising expenditures, approval processes, and reimbursement standards.
According to Statista, there are roughly 790,000 franchise businesses in the US. Despite the fact that the numbers are not consistently rising primarily because of the pandemic, it is still a significant number.
What is Franchise Advertising?
When compared to advertisement for an internet store or a small company with one location, a franchise appears to be slightly different. Before moving forward to the definition of Franchise Advertising, let me get acquainted with who is a franchisee and a franchisor and what is a franchise.
- A franchisor is a company (or business owner) that grants permission to other people to use their name and sell their goods or services.
- A franchisee is a company owner who has been granted permission to market and sells the goods and services of a franchisor under that franchisor’s trademark.
- A franchise is an enterprise that a franchisee and a franchisor jointly own.
It is indeed important to explain each of them in relation to advertising, even if you probably already know what they all mean.
Franchise advertising is a type of marketing technique used by both the franchisor and the franchisee to promote their brands or boost sales. In some instances, the franchisor and franchisee work together to develop a unified marketing plan that connects with the primary brand and local audience in several areas.
Franchise advertisement may dramatically raise consumer awareness of your location as well as other businesses in your area when used properly. The national advertising campaigns that your corporate franchisor runs will frequently have a positive impact on your local franchises. This gives you the opportunity to concentrate on the area in which you conduct business.
Franchise Advertising Cost to Franchisor
An often-asked question in franchise marketing is who tends to pay for promotions and advertising in franchises.
The franchise and the terms of the franchise agreement determine the answer. For instance, 7-Eleven pays for brand advertising but not individual store advertising. 7-Eleven requires franchisees to pay a portion of their gross profits for advertising. There is a nationwide advertising cost as well as a price for local advertising expenses.
Many franchises follow this method. Franchisees are frequently charged annual fees by franchisors for corporate marketing expenses. Franchise ads costs are typically charged in addition to royalty fees.
However, not all franchisors demand a fee for advertising. But, for those who do, advertising fees can be fixed or continued. The percentage you pay may also vary depending on how many stores a person operates and how much profit he generates.
Benefits of Franchise Advertising
- Better ad targeting
The majority of online franchise advertisement strategies combine user behavior, artificial intelligence (AI), and location data to target the proper audiences with your ads. So, you will not end up wasting money aiming your advertising toward users that are merely browsing. Instead, you connect with potential customers who are searching for your goods or services. As a result, you save money by forfeiting marketing initiatives that are unlikely to produce the desired outcomes.
- Lower advertising costs
Franchises typically tend to receive either material or financial support for their advertising campaigns. Franchises, as opposed to sole proprietors of small businesses, have numerous locations in the same area. This makes collaborating on advertising with other nearby franchisees simpler.
Franchises frequently collaborate by allocating a percentage of their advertising expenses to a local marketing plan. For instance, a number of Toyota dealerships might decide to combine their advertising budgets. You can boost visibility at a reduced cost with a larger overall advertising spend. As your advertising budget grows, you might outcompete rival businesses and gain more clients as a result.
If a franchise has an advertisement fund, it is considered to be yet another way franchisees might reduce their ads expenses. Each month or year, a certain amount of funding is allotted to each franchises for advertising. You should make advantage of your advertising budget because many agreements call for franchisees to contribute a portion of sales to advertising.
How to advertise your Franchise Opportunity?
The following steps must be considered while advertising a franchise
- Develop an online presence
It is undoubtedly a digital world. If your franchise possesses a digital presence, your target market will find you. Ensure that they have access to up-to-date contact information. One of the quickest ways to turn off potential clients is to have no internet presence.
Consumers expect to easily find the information they seek with a simple online search. If your franchise fails to appear in the results, other nearby businesses will.
- Identify your target audience
Advertising is pointless if it does not reach its target audience. Begin your franchise marketing plan by determining your target audience and concentrating on ads that is relevant to the people you want to reach. It is really important to understand as a franchisee that your location’s target audience will not always be the same as your franchisor’s national or worldwide following.
Pay close attention to your prospective customers. Learn as much as you can about their purchasing habits and lifestyles so that you may customize your advertising strategy to attract the local clients you desire. Consumers will be aware of your brand if your franchisor’s promotion is effective. Show them how your location differs from the competitors.
- Set up a business profile for online reviews
Create a business profile on several review platforms while developing your web presence and organizing your franchise advertisment campaign. According to BrightLocal’s Local Customer Review Survey, 77% of consumers prefer to read online reviews when looking for a local business. Consumer reviews are as important to 49% of consumers as suggestions from friends and family.
Therefore it is important not to enable online reviews and respond to them. In the same poll, 89% of consumers indicated they were “somewhat” or “very” likely to use a company that reacts to all evaluations, positive and negative. 57% of those same customers indicated they would be “not very” or “not at all” likely to pursue a business that fails to reply to reviews.
Examples of Franchise Advertising
Franchise marketing is not a new concept. It is also not a theory because real-world multi-location brands are adopting it to increase their local sales. The following are real-world examples of franchise marketing in practice:
- McDonald’s Celebrity Meals
McDonald’s has increased its connections with celebrities to offer “celebrity meals” in recent years. As the name indicates, these are the McDonald’s meals that celebrities frequently order.
McDonald’s has generated millions of app downloads by teaming with celebrities who have significant fan bases. Customers must download the McDonald’s mobile app to order and receive loyalty program savings. For example, some food items may be offered for free with the app, whereas you would have to pay full price without it.
The fast-food restaurant has been a big success. For example, the collaboration with Travis Scott was so popular that it started a TikTok trend and caused a shortage of Quarter Pounders. According to reports, the rapper earned more or about $20 million from the contract, making it extremely profitable for the fast-food chain.
Since then, McDonald’s has promoted additional celebrity dinners and more companies are going the same way. In addition to increasing in-store visitors, the collaborations have increased profits via merchandising.
- Panera bread franchise Loyalty Program
Panera Bread has an email subscription campaign to promote in-store franchise sales. Customers sign up for the loyalty program, named Panera’s Unlimited Sip Club, by going to the Panera website and entering their email addresses.
Contrary to other reward programs, there is a monthly subscription fee. Customers pay $10.99 a month and receive limitless lemonade, tea, and coffee. They also get refills on some drinks. Customers can additionally download the Panera app to make use of the subscription end store.
There are various advantages that can be reaped by Panera and its franchisees. It generates recurring subscription revenue and improves the number of mobile downloads, returns consumers, and in-store traffic.
- 7-Eleven’s “Take it to Eleven” Campaign
7-Eleven franchise is a local convenience store chain that has been in business for decades. But in recent years, 7-Eleven has launched 24/7 delivery services. Many people are unaware that they may get 7-Eleven products delivered, thus in order to raise awareness, 7-Eleven has been experimenting with various franchise advertisement strategies.
For instance, they launched the “Take it to Eleven” campaign using Internet and broadcast advertising. An interesting fact is that the commercials were shot in front of genuine 7-Eleven franchise shops.
7-Eleven examined the connection between when customers visited a store and when advertisements appeared on television to determine the efficiency of its franchise ads.
Conclusion
Franchise advertising is a comprehensive marketing strategy that is employed by franchisors and franchisees to increase sales as well as to maintain consistency and brand awareness. Corporate franchisors determine the message and image they want to convey to the public at the brand level. Franchisees take on that message and spread it as they engage with the community.
Franchises provide several chances to engage with clients and boost sales, but they are difficult to run on your own. It is critical to select a franchise marketing and advertising expert while seeking a marketing professional.
The key to the success of your company will be to master the art of franchise advertising. As you build your franchise, you can rely on your franchisor’s brand marketing and reputation, but it is crucial to distinguish your location from your competitors. An efficient franchise advertisement strategy will help you do this.
Franchises offer a great way to capitalize on an existing brand and expand quickly.
Franchise advertising can be a powerful tool for gaining more customers and increasing brand recognition. Franchise advertising should be tailored to the specific needs of the target audience. Utilizing multiple channels for franchise advertising can be effective for reaching the widest possible audience. Franchise advertising should be consistent with the overall brand image.
Strategic use of local and regional media outlets for franchise advertising can be beneficial for targeting potential customers. Creating a sense of urgency with franchise advertising can be effective for motivating customers to take action. Offering incentives and discounts through franchise advertising can help to drive sales.
Promotional campaigns should be regularly evaluated to determine their effectiveness.
Franchise advertising should be used to build relationships with customers and create loyalty.
Utilizing online platforms for franchise advertising can be an effective way to reach a larger audience. Offering rewards and loyalty programs through franchise advertising can be beneficial for retaining customers. Franchise advertising should be used to highlight the unique features and benefits of the product or service.
Franchise advertising should be used to emphasize the importance of customer service. Franchise advertising should be monitored to ensure that it is compliant with all applicable regulations.