Marketing a Franchise isn’t easy. It takes a lot of planning to devise the best strategy that will work best to your advantage. So, what do you need in your plan to make it the most effective for you long term? This article will give you the top key components that are required when developing a franchise marketing plan. Let’s get started.
Marketing Plan 101: What You Need to Know
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1. Find Who Your Target Audience Is
Before you can market your franchise, you need to know who your target audience is so you can effectively create a strategy that will sell to them. To find this out you need to break down your target audience via their demographics based on what you’re trying to sell. Here’s a graph below with an example on a bike store franchise and their possible target audience when they want to sell heavy-duty mountain bikes.
| Age | Gender | Location | Income | Personality | Hobbies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25-35 | Male | Memphis | $70,000+ | Outgoing, Fun to be around, Adventurous | Forest bike riding, Mountain Bike riding |
Based off the above you’ll see the type of audience they should be directing their efforts to. In narrowing down your target audience you’ll be able to reach the right people making your marketing efforts more effectively.
2. Know Who Your Competition Is
The second thing you need to consider is who is your competition? This is important because you can’t market yourself against them if you don’t know who your competition is. The best way to find out who your target competition is and what they’re doing to market themselves is by:
- Searching online for similar businesses and franchises in your location. This will indicate who your major competition is as they’ll be higher in your search results.
- Check social outlets to see if they’re marketing via these platforms. Take note of how they’re marketing their brand. Example: giveaways, funny quotes, discounts etc.
- Check business listings to see if they’ve been listed in local directories.
- Attend conferences that they may be involved in to see how they present their brand to the public.
- Call them to see how their customer service is and how they treat their potential customers.
- Check if they have any Google AdWords campaigns in place. You can find this out by Googling their name and seeing if an ad pops up in the search results.
As Adam Heitzman, the managing partner at HigherVisibility, mentioned in his blog on Franchise Marketing,
“Before jumping into a marketing game plan and hitting the ground running, you will need to do competitor research. And this goes for both your corporate plan and individual franchise plans. Chances are, you’re not the only corporate entity in your space. Everything from fast food to plumbing to auto shops has competition. At the corporate level, you will need to assess who your top competitors are, what they are producing, and how they attract both customers and franchisee interest.”
3. Decide Your Unique Position in Your Industry
In order to market yourself effectively, you need to know your unique position in your industry. In other words, what can you offer that your competition can’t? Here are some ideas to help you:
- Do you offer a higher level of customer service? What makes your customer service better than others?
- Are you offering products at a lower price?
- Do you sell something that’s unique that no one else is selling in your industry?
- Do you have a special service that no one else is offering in your area?
4. Do Market Research
Market research is important when creating a marketing plan for your franchise. If you don’t do your research you run the risk of being undermined by your competition. Your market research should show:
- The need for your services both locally and worldwide.
- How you’ll take advantage of market conditions in your industry?
- Who your target audience is?
- How long the lead time is?
- Projections for the first year and how many sales.
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Conclusion
Developing a franchise marketing plan is important to know how to really push your franchise to that next level. By taking these tips into consideration you can definitely become the competitor you want to be in your industry. So, are you ready to make your marketing plan?
