Generate Better Quality Franchise Leads

Franchising is a great way for business owners to expand their business into other cities and states without risking their own money. That’s because the franchisees are purchasing the rights to be a franchise for a fee and a commitment to pay the franchisor royalties. In exchange, the buyers receive a proven business model with training and support to minimize the risks of starting a business. They are essentially paying for the experience in marketing, advertising, and information about the product or the service. The franchisor has successfully grown the business and provides the franchisee with an advantage of doing it alone.

Here are some ways to focus on sending the right message to your prospect and generate better quality franchise leads:

1. Franchise websites need to be separate from the business website with a message focusing on the buyer not what you as the franchisor wants to say. So things like price, available locations, and what they can expect on a daily basis as a franchisee are questions that your website needs to answer. You also need to provide this information on a website that is easy to use with contact information for people to get in touch with you. If your website doesn’t provide a good user experience with the information that they are looking for, then you will lose them.
2. Paid search has changed advertising. We can now reach people that are online based on their interests and search phrases. If you have a good understanding of your ideal franchise prospect, then you should be able to determine their likes, what motivates them, and the search phrases that they are using to find franchises online. This information will allow you to create ads that grab their attention, get them to click, and drive them to your franchise website. You can then setup re-marketing to people that have visited your website with display ads that will appeal to them. You can reach millions of people so it’s extremely competitive. If you don’t know your franchise prospect, you can spend a lot of money getting clicks without generating quality leads.
3. Social media is a great way to promote your franchise to the ideal candidate. But you have to have a solid understanding of who your ideal franchise candidate is and the things that are important to them. You can reach millions of people at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising but social media works best when the subject is about something that people are interested in or are passionate about. For example, if you’re selling a fitness franchise, then you have to market to someone that works out or sees the value of a healthy lifestyle. You can generate quality leads through social media, but you’ll need some knowledge of how they work.
4. Trade shows are still a good way to build your franchise brand and find franchise prospects. The attendees of are generally people that are in the industry or are considering starting a business. So a franchise trade show typically has a lot of potential buyers shopping around for a new business to start. And trade shows gives you face to face time with prospects so you can present the value of your franchise vs. others. You build relationships at trade shows and get a chance to make a connection and also qualify them financially. It can be expensive to setup your team for the weekend. But if you award a new franchise, it’s worth it.
5. Franchise portals like Franchise Opportunities.com have been around for almost 20 years and have helped countless franchisors grow their brand. But there are so many of them and portals do not focus on the user. Instead they present hundreds of franchise opportunities to people that are at the beginning stages of starting a business. Because of this, the contact rate is poor and quality leads are few. With the average contact rate of 20-30%, you will have to do a lot more work to reach and qualify potential buyers. That’s a lot of work and money that can be used for other advertising sources that will provide better results without you having to dial for dollars.

Awarding franchises is not easy. So making sure that you’re generating quality franchise leads can make it a lot easier for you and the prospect. All of the methods in this article work. You just have to find out which method works best for you.

Blindspot Digital is a full-service digital marketing providing Atlanta SEO services for companies that want to improve their local search results. We have over 15 years of experience helping franchisors improve their visibility in both national and local search results, and we can do the same for your franchise.

When you work with us, we’ll get to know your business and create a custom plan tailored to your needs and help you generate better quality franchise leads to grow your business.

If you need help with your franchise advertising, call us today at 770-696-9426. We look forward to your call and helping you sell more franchises!