In today’s economy, franchise sales teams across the board are experiencing a decline in overall lead volume and conversion rates.
By implementing these proven approaches, we’ve seen franchise groups attract qualified prospects and increase the likelihood of successful franchise sales.
1. The key to success starts with a well-defined audience
We know how hard it can be to really define your ideal franchisee… But taking the time to really understand what they want is the first step to increasing your conversion rate.
Understanding who they are, where they spend their time, what their future looks like, their triggers, motivations and fears are all important pieces of the puzzle.
TFM Tip: A great place to start with building a franchisee avatar would be your own customers. Customers often make the best franchisees because they know, love and believe in the product already, from there, you can also overlay financial demographics to refine further.
2. Leverage programmatic video for enhanced reach
If you’re frustrated with poor or unqualified leads from social ads, it might be a great opportunity to change things up! Utilising programmatic video advertising can greatly expand your reach and engage with potential franchisees across mobile, connected TVs and even some digital billboards. Programmatic video allows precise targeting by leveraging data sources from Equifax, Mastercard and other behavioural audiences to accurately target your ideal franchisee. Showcase success stories, testimonials, and the emotional appeal of your brand through compelling video content.
TFM Tip: Invest in a video content strategy that fits the platform. It’s not a one size fits all approach – we’re often asked to run a television commercial on YouTube and vice versa which statistically does not engage your audience as it’s not fit for purpose.
3. Don’t make it difficult: streamline your application process
Ensure the franchise application process is user-friendly and efficient. Simplify the application form and make it easily accessible on your website. Provide a clear overview on the steps involved in becoming a franchisee and respond promptly to inquiries. Implement lead automation within your funnel.
TFM Tip: Use your CRM’s inbuilt automation functionality or explore a plugin that will speed up the lead to call conversion. A Harvard Business Review study found that leads responded to within the first 24 hours, are 60x more likely to convert.
4. Unleash the data: harness conversion tracking for maximum impact
Setting up website and lead form conversion tags is vital for optimising digital marketing. By tracking conversions, we can analyse user behaviour and preferences, refine our targeting capabilities to effectively reach a more receptive audience. This data-driven approach enhances campaign performance and maximises ROI.
Conversion tags also help identify the platforms and channels that drive conversions. By tracking sources generating the most conversions, marketers can allocate media spend more efficiently. This allows for strategic budget allocation, ensuring resources are focused on the most effective channels. Continuous monitoring and adjustment of media spend also leads to less budget waste and higher conversion rates and overall success.
TFM Tip: Use a platform that can track across all digital marketing channels, so you have a single view of where your best leads and conversions are coming from. On average, we have seen a 30 per cent increase in conversion rates when conversion tracking tags are utilised.
5. Build synergy between sales and marketing:
Sounds straightforward right? However, this is so often overlooked or not implemented properly. Creating a strong synergy between your sales and marketing teams will greatly impact your conversion rates. Marketing needs real-time feedback from the sales team in order to tweak messaging and strategy for truly fluid campaign execution.
TFM Tip: Work with a sales training professional. Why is TFM recommending this? In our experience having a well-trained sales team enhances their skills to be able to provide up to date feedback on our lead generation campaigns which in turn increases conversion rates = more franchise sales.
- TFM.Digital are a media and marketing agency that specialise in franchise marketing, both at a franchisor and franchisee level. They are experts in franchise recruitment, brand marketing and local area marketing.
