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Franchisees: Add a Personal Touch to Marketing

By Ed Teixeira

In this era of Twitter and Facebook it’s easy for franchisors and franchisees to place added emphasis on technology to market their services and products. If we add mobile websites to the mix, these tools can be very effective ways to reach existing and new customers. However, it’s important to remember that social media tools are not a substitute for good old fashioned face to face sales building programs. Social media can support and complement more traditional marketing. A benefit of a franchise is having access to the experience, support and expertise of the franchisor. However, franchisees should be aware of how to market and combine their skills with the support of the franchisor.

Here is a strategy for marketing your franchise for new sales without incurring a great deal of cost.

Know your competitors. Successful businesses are aware of their competitors and keep them on the radar screen. Do an objective analysis to match up your strengths and weaknesses versus your key competitors.
Capitalize on your strengths. Consider your key strengths and let them become the keys to your sales strategy.
Identify your target market. Define and identify your target market. Old, young, married, single, families, homeowners, etc. This is who you want to reach.
Establish your marketing tools to reach your target. Use your franchise system tools and other resources to identify the best method for reaching your target market.
Don’t be reluctant to get some expert advice. Speak to other franchisees to gain their feedback and input for marketing.

Inexpensive marketing tools:

Partner up with a complementary business. Identify non-competitive businesses or franchisees that you can market with on a collaborative basis.
Get involved in the community. Participate in business, trade associations and charitable groups to gain exposure and visibility in your market area.
Use a newsletter. The cost is very low to publish a newsletter. Services like Constant Contact are very reasonable and easy to compose and publish.

These are some of the ways to market your franchise. Technology can be a great way to reach new customers; however, it’s not the only way.