Five Things Franchise Marketers Need to Know

Marketing professionals thrive on the opportunity to work with franchises. Not only are franchises spread across a large area—but since franchises grow from the ground up, marketing pros have the perfect opportunity to measure growth by the their campaigns are organized.

In theory, marketing for a franchise sounds easy-as-pie, but there are five basic things that every franchise marketer needs to know no matter how big or small their franchise is.

1.)  Know what can damage your brand:  We’ve all heard the term “ by failing to plan, you’re planning to fail” and that applies now more than ever.  A crisis communications plan should be firmly in place before you ever have to use it. With franchises being so widespread, the chance of a crisis happening is a likely possibility. Consider all possible crisis scenarios, from tainted ingredients to employee fatality. Brainstorm the best way to handle any situation, and implement it into your plan. The more you prepare now, the less stressed you will be later.

2.)  Know your marketing mix: Editorial calendars are imperative in making sure all of your marketing efforts sink together. Using an editorial calendar helps you fine-tune strategies and areas of focus on a month-to-month and quarter-to-quarter basis. Implement your in-house strategies, as well as your agencies strategies (if you’re working with one).  This will help future planning run smoothly and ensure that everyone is on the same page.

3.)  Know your competition: Knowing your competition is extremely important—especially in the franchising realm.  Pay attention to your competition at all times—not just during the launch of a new product. Set up news alerts using keywords in order to track their successes and their failures. The more you know about your competition and what is and isn’t working for them—the smarter you become. Make it a point to learn from their efforts.

4.)  Know your franchisors: Think outside of the box when it comes time to telling your franchisee’s story. The beautiful thing about working with franchises is the diversity that comes along with franchise owners.  Everyone has a story to tell, and franchise owners are no exception. Take the time to find out what their story is and what makes them unique. Encourage them throughout their story telling and find the proper marketing avenues to share their story.

5.)  Know your audience: Being knowledgeable about your company is one thing—but knowing and understanding their audience is key when it comes to creating marketing materials. The more you know about the people you’re marketing to, the better your efforts will be. Build competitor lists, track previous placements, and research what age groups or types of people contribute most to the overall profit. Once the research has been done, the creativity can flow and you can build angles around what you have found.

Remember to take into consideration your customer’s interests and motivations when it comes time to planning a marketing campaign. Thinking about the customer first and implementing these five marketing tips will ensure success.