MARKETING, IT’S NO MYSTERY
Here are some guidelines to promoting your business.
As a franchisee and a business owner with many demands on your time, marketing may seem like an overwhelming task – where you should start, what to do, and then
It can be daunting for a franchisee to know where to start when it comes to promoting their business, but here are some guidelines to help put you
on the right path.
whether it is working. While your franchisor will offer national marketing support, tools and guidance, it is critical you continually invest in your local market.
For a start, it is important you understand why marketing is needed and what role it plays in growing your business. Many people think marketing is all fluff, but effective marketing has a basis in science. It is the behavioural psychology of making decisions.
Marketing is trying to influence someone’s decision when they are making a purchase. The more decisions you influence, the more people buy your product and the more your business grows.
There are three main goals in marketing. The first is to make people aware of the brand. If people don’t know your brand or product, how can they buy it? This is known as increasing brand awareness.
The second goal is for consumers to have your brand top of mind when they are ready to buy. As soon as someone says “Hey, let’s get lunch”, you want to be the brand that springs to mind.
The third goal is to make it easy for consumers to buy your product. Be easy to find, easy to buy from and easily available when and how they want your product or service.
GOOD NEWS
Those three objectives should top the list when it comes to investing in marketing. The good news is that most franchise businesses have a level of national marketing support. Depending on the size and the category, this support could vary from simple tools to national campaigns including TV, radio, billboards and digital.
National campaigns do a good job of achieving the first two goals: they increase brand awareness and keep the brand top of mind. What they cannot do, however, is localise the message for your specific customer base.
As a franchise owner, you are a local business. Your customers mainly come from a small and targeted catchment area. While national campaigns play an incredibly important role, you cannot rely on them alone to grow your business. By its very nature, a national campaign needs to have a countrywide message, and that cannot be targeted to the specific needs of your local community.
To reach the third goal and make it easy for customers to buy your product or service, you must use local marketing.
When your franchiser runs a national campaign, ask them about tools and support they may have to help you localise the national message.
MAKING IT EASY
When thinking about how best to use local-store marketing, I would advise that you first start with the behaviour you are trying to influence. For example, if your business relies on foot traffic, look for opportunities to stand out. This is all about making it easy for a potential customer to find you. If I’m shopping and want a coffee, chances are I’ll pick the first cafe that catches my eye. If I’m thinking about ice cream and I see a shop with balloons and a big ice-cream sign, that’s the one I’ll pick. It is that simple.
People want decisions to be easy, so think about how you can make your store stand out. Be quite deliberate about the headlines you choose.
If you have a business that is not a shop, think about where your customers are when they need your product or service. Are they searching online for
a printer, gym or accountant? Are they reading online reviews or asking their friends for recommendations? All of these provide targeted opportunities for local marketing.
Facebook and Google ads allow you to be super-targeted with audience and message, even down to the search terms with which you want to be associated. If your potential customer is likely to be highly influenced by reviews or recommendations, then look for ways to incentivise current customers: offers like “refer a friend” can be incredibly effective.
I am often asked how much a franchisee should plan to invest in local marketing. There is no magic number, and it can vary greatly depending on the category, level of national investment and location of your business. But I will say that marketing is all about trial and error. You need to start with an objective, try something, track the results and use the learnings to adapt your next efforts. It is best to invest a small amount purposefully, then build your investment once you know what works.
The good thing about being in a franchisee business is that you don’t have to go at this alone. Your franchisor should provide resources, case studies and insights into what works, creative materials and expert guidance on how to use marketing to grow your business.
Finally, don’t wait. If you are opening a store, it is important to start building awareness well in advance, and keep it up. When in doubt, pretend you are
Marketing is all about trial and error ... invest a small amount purposefully, then build your investment once you know
what works.
a customer. Walk down the street and see what catches your eye, do a Google search for your services and see what pops up.
Staying in tune with your customers’ needs and experiencing your own path to purchase will often make the marketing opportunities stand out.