Franchise businesses are complex. Unlike a typical B2C company that markets to a single audience, franchisors have to balance two distinct audiences – and thus, two distinct marketing objectives. On the one hand, franchisors need to market to potential franchisees. On the other, they need to provide marketing support to the franchisees that they currently have.
But there is an answer. A carefully constructed online marketing plan can give franchisors the targeting precision to reach consumers and seek out potential franchisees, as well as results that will make both franchisors and their franchisees happy.
So you can understand my shock when I heard that our (Oneupweb’s) new study on Entrepreneur’s 2008 Franchise 500® list found that only 13% of the top 100 franchisors are actually taking advantage of online marketing! This means that 87% of the top franchisors are denying their franchisees important marketing support and missing out on profitable opportunities.
And something else that shocked me – established brands, such as Pizza Hut, are risking market share. By relying solely on branding, and therefore having poor SEO practices, they are virtually leaving the door open for smaller, better-optimized competitors.
Our Franchise 500® Study does point out that with well-executed marketing initiatives, attracting franchisees becomes a more cost effective practice and direct-to-consumer sales deliver greater returns to franchisors.
So there is light at the end of the tunnel – and the study actually shows franchisors how to make online marketing work for them. Special “lead opportunity calculators” provide franchisors with a way to calculate their ability to surpass the competition and perfect their strategy to stay ahead of the game – online and off.
It’s clear that the time is now for franchisors to wake up to the benefits of online marketing, and start reaping the rewards.
Get started by downloading Oneupweb’s Franchise 500® Study.
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