Part of the beauty of franchise marketing is that the franchisor develops well-researched, professional marketing materials for the franchisee to use, simplifying the process for franchise business owners.
Although these established marketing programs may exist, they also create a challenge for franchisees who see first-hand how a one-size-fits-all approach doesn’t resonate across markets.
In this situation, what’s a franchisee to do?
Below are three things you should keep in mind when trying to grow your brand effectively in local markets.
- Leverage Local Market Knowledge In order to identify the most effective marketing channels to communicate with consumers, you must understand who your local customers really are. Even within the same city, the demographics and psychographics of consumers can vary greatly. Once you know your customer mix across markets and trade areas, you can selectively choose the mediums your marketing messages are funneled through. For instance, with an older audience, a more traditional marketing approach – such as local newspaper ads or radio commercials – may be more appropriate than a digital marketing campaign.
- Understand How Brand Perception Varies From Market to Market If your store is located in a brand’s home turf, then marketing is a lot easier as you can tap into the brand equity and prestige that comes with being a well-known commodity. However, if your store is in a region where the franchise brand is not yet well-known, your task becomes much more challenging. In these instances, it’s critical to let the local consumers know what sets your brand apart and why they should visit your store. Working with local media outlets to create awareness of your brand will go a long way in establishing your local store as a repeat destination for customers.
- Know Exactly Who to Target With Your Local Marketing It’s common practice to blanket a trade area with marketing materials before store openings or other events, but just because it’s common practice, doesn’t mean it’s the best practice. It usually results in wasted dollars and extremely low response rates. The most effective marketing comes from a more targeted approach, which can be achieved by using customer analytics. Through customer analytics, you can determine who your best customers are by using variables such as psychographics, demographics and purchasing behavior to create a detailed customer profile. Once the customer profile is created, you can identify consumers that have the most potential to visit your store and buy your products – resulting in a more efficient use of your marketing dollars and a higher ROI. And by tracking those who have responded to promotions or purchased products, you’ll be able to understand which mediums of communication reach your customers best and more effectively retain them going forward.
The Bottom Line
Ultimately, without in-depth knowledge of the customer, your strategy will fall flat.
Customers are the life-blood of every business concept you can imagine. Franchises who truly know their customers, who understand their lifestyles and behavior patterns, have a distinct advantage over those who don’t.
Have questions about growing your franchise with customer analytics? We have the answers – all you have to do is ask.
