Evaluating and hiring marketing professionals to help your franchise sales and your franchisees average unit volume (AUV)
You have probably seen the bumper sticker: if you think education is expensive—try ignorance. The same holds true when considering whether to invest in professional marketing services to promote your franchise: while it is one of the heftier year-round out-buys a savvy franchise owner will write checks for, at the same time, any one of them who has done it the wrong way will tell you that the alternative is even more expensive. There is such a thing as bad publicity. Well-done, professional marketing increases revenues: poorly executed, amateur marketing decreases it by damaging your brand and wasting resources along the way. Before taking marketing short cuts, first drive down the highway while tossing hundred dollar bills out the window to see if you like the way that feels.
Despite being one of the fastest growing segments of consumer purchasing in the world, when it comes to marketing franchise products and services to consumers, with few exceptions, still only the super brand franchises seem to fully grasp that professional marketing is not a frivolous expense, but a first-principle investment that will produce returns commensurate with the level of energy and expertise of a professional franchise marketing firm.
Self-admittedly, mega franchise founders such as Ray Kroc (McDonald’s), Tom Monaghan (Domino’s Pizza), and Anita Roddick (The Body Shop) would probably tell you that their own marketing know-how wasn’t what got them going. What set them apart was their willingness to know what they were good at—and what areas are best left to the professionals. And the pay off they realized from investing in professional marketing continues to be obvious to the world: their professionally-developed brand and suite of marketing tools is ultimately what helped consumers recognize whey they should buy from their business.
A results-oriented marketing plan—a key component of your business plan—should be built on a foundation that answers these questions: Who is the buyer you’re going after? What is it about your product that makes you stand out from the competition? Where will you spend money to reach your potential customers? How much do you need to spend so you can still realize projected profits? Then, as you begin to measure consumer response—or lack thereof—you should be prepared to continue to invest in ongoing modifications, upgrades and refinements until the consumer buying response is proportionate to the amount of money you’ve invested.
Although many franchisees believe they have a solid marketing team, what they really have is a stable of here-there-everywhere freelancers, in-house production assistants, and commission-driven media representatives and vendors who produce materials that are nowhere close to being capable of increasing sales: each of them understands only a small part of marketing academics, based on their limited area of expertise. The result is messaging and a look that is one-size-fits-all and is disconnected from your franchise branding and marketing strategy. Franchise marketing is a highly specialized discipline that should only be trusted to a professional, full-service consulting firm that has a diverse portfolio proving its depth of experience, professional instincts, and insider’s understanding of your business, marketplace and franchise industry. Developing and implementing a marketing plan requires a wide range of expertise that would be impossible to have on-board as paid staff for a single franchise. The qualified agency will have proven expertise in concept development, print and electronic graphic design, media buying, creative direction, production, copywriting, and public relations.
You don’t know where you’re going, if you don’t know where you’ve been. A reputable marketing team should also be able to measure and justify its work relative to your profits—if they can’t, it’s a non-essential expense. Too often, whether the numbers are good or bad, franchisees don’t know why. Marketing is not wand-waving behind-the-curtain magic. A professionally developed marketing strategy, including advertising, sales and public relations components, is formulaic and should mirror your business plan by including strategies for capturing new business while continuing to grow your existing customer base. A good marketing program is your tool for establishing branding standards and measuring market impact, so you know where to make adjustments as you watch the marketplace respond in the way that you intended.
How do you know if your franchise marketing strategy is working? It’s a tough question, especially when you are a using a mix of components and campaigns simultaneously. Still, you need to insist it be answered. A professional marketing firm will honestly evaluate your marketing platform and ask—and answer—the painful questions: Is your product being perceived the way you want it to be? How did your clients hear about you? Are marketing materials fresh and compelling? Are they producing direct response from potential customers who are likely to buy? How does your marketing hold up next to the competitions? Is the return in sales exceeding your investment? Are promotions increasing your local revenues and corporate royalties?
As you evaluate your current marketing capabilities and prepare to hire a professional franchise-marketing firm, here are ten starter guidelines you will need to consider when determining if they have the expertise you need:
Marketing plan—A good marketing plan is the plan of action for implementing a marketing strategy and should have clearly defined goals so you can establish expectations for your marketing firm’s performance. Depending on your industry, business plan and marketing strategy, it can cover one to five years and should include quantifiable results the firm expects to accomplish.
Budget— A budget helps you manage your marketing investment so you keep costs down and get a higher return on your investment by knowing what price point you need to reach to break even. Although there are no by-the-book rules for developing a budget, a good starting point is to plan for about five percent of annual revenues, including time, materials, and media placement.
Market segmentation—Why do your customers buy from you? Do you really know who your customer is? A professional firm will define your market, then research the demographics of these buyers and divide them into segments according to: age, gender, education, income, marital status, ethnic and/or religious background, and family life cycle (married, children). The more you know about your customers, the more effective and less expensive your marketing efforts will be.
Target—How do you attract new customers? Once you know who your customer is, your brand and collateral will be crafted so that it resounds with new and existing customer, and they see themselves buying what you’re selling.
Positioning—What is your position in the marketplace relative to the competition? Are you the cheapest? Only? First? Highest ranking?
Branding—This is the fingerprint of your business. As the firm develops your logo, they will ask: If a consumer sees this brand 1,000 times, what do you want them to remember? Branding should be memorable and have universal appeal so that it resounds with all market segmentations. It should support the product, so the customer knows what to expect and it is consistent with what the customer will actually experience.
Website—Any worthy franchise marketing firm will insist that you have a robust website, along with a plan for bringing traffic to the site, including maximizing your search engine optimization (SEO) so that search engines can find you. The firm’s professional web developer builds the “under the hood” technical capabilities and a graphic designer who specializes in electronic media handles the front-end creative development.
Collateral—The better you look, the better you’ll be perceived and the more likely customers will be to look your way. Strong imagery and a clean layout should be the backbone of our brand so that it is eye catching and recognizable, giving your business a higher amount of recognition. Professionally designed and written sales materials will increase revenues and also help qualify your customers. Brochure content, or what is called “copywriting,” should be compelling and have personality so that it separates you from the clutter. Messaging should be crisp and clean with a clear call to action.
Shelf life—How long will materials work before they go bad? The industry standard is about two years, though it depends on the purpose of the piece. Seasonal campaigns can be recycled and stay fresh longer, because they are only distributed around special events or promotions, like a grand opening, anniversary, or holiday promotion. Materials that get more exposure will need refreshing more often. To maximize your budget, a professional franchise marketing firm will anticipate your needs for the year and plan according to each quarter so you can react to opportunities or changes in the marketplace.
Marketing Mix—Promotions typically fall into seven categories: events, direct marketing, Internet marketing, advertising, public relations, word of mouth and referrals, and strategic partnerships. To increase reach and frequency of the message, professional franchise marketers think in terms of “campaigns”—a series of advertising messages that share a single them and appear in different media across a defined timeframe.
When you are ready to hire a professional marketing firm, make sure and hire based on qualification—not cost. Professional services can range from $40 to $400 per hour. You may not need the $400-per-hour professional, but most certainly you will not see much return on services priced at the lowest end. Whether you are shopping out a full-service agency, or a consultant, invest in the process in the same way you would if you were searching for an interior decorator or an attorney: interview more than one, ask for references and request to see a portfolio presentation. Once you have agreed to secure their services, an in-depth “discovery process” will help the marketing team learn more about your business growth goals and marketing needs, and they will come back to you with recommendations and preliminary concepts.
By: MJ Alto
