AI won't build your brand for you (yet)
Written by JACK MONSON
It doesn't matter how you use AI for franchise development. What does matter is how your candidates are using AI.
AI has drastically changed how franchisors market their brands and opportunities. And a bit of it is actually helping. Unfortunately, much is not.
It's time to move up from AI parlor tricks, cool apps, and funny videos to sharing your unified message with the potential franchisees who will become successful owners.
Stop creating AI content
AI was not used in the creation of this article.
It's a sad state of marketing affairs when I feel that I must say that. But the amount of AI slop is growing exponentially. Every day, we see more blogs, LinkedIn posts, and articles "written" using ChatGPT and other programs.
Some media outlets are reporting that the growing number of press releases and media pitches made by AI and executed via AI from some PR firms are causing journalists to ignore news from some franchise brands.
I also now start each of my Social Geek and Franchise News podcasts with the disclaimer that AI was not used in the creation of the podcast. It's a bit of a jab, but I do want people who are giving me a few minutes of their time to know that the voices they are about to hear are real franchise pros, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders. I want people to know that they are about to engage with people. Also, all AI-generated voices on podcasts are awful and sound cheap. People are still better.
And look where all of this cheap AI content is heading: You can create your AI content, and I'll have my bots, assistants, and notetakers consume it. We will both see great metrics. And no one's business grew by one cent.
Maybe we need to put the AI content genie back in the bottle until we're evolved enough to use it responsibly.
Focus on candidates
Make sure your content is being seen and heard by the candidates you want.
I'm speaking with franchisors about this every day. It's the number one topic of conversation in franchise marketing. Never mind the faux experts and snake oil salesmen who want to tell you about a cool app.
All of your owned content needs to be clear and concise. You want unified messaging about your brand and your franchise opportunities. A few places to update as soon as possible:
- Your frandev website
- Your brand's podcast/your CEO's podcast
- Your brand's Wikipedia page
Your goal is to be the number one answer when candidates ask questions on their favorite AI engine or app.
Organic social media
While owned media and earned media (think PR) are critical for feeding the large language models (LLM), your shared media on social channels is becoming more important every day. This is especially true as the cost of running ads about your franchise opportunities is becoming drastically more expensive.
The 2024 Annual Franchise Development Report (AFDR) shows that the costs for paid ads on Meta, Google, and others have more than doubled in the past three years. The average cost per lead is now $351, and franchisors must plan on spending more than $17,000 in ads for each closed franchise deal.
Paid search and social ads are still effective in driving sales, accounting for a combined 34% of franchise deals. That number will surely decline in the coming weeks and months as ads continue to increase in cost while not feeding the LLMs like organic channels.
The most important social channel today, as we go to press, is Reddit. While many of us faded away from Reddit over the past few years, it's time to fade back in. There are now 97 million daily active users. More importantly, it's now the top source for citations by all AI programs. See you soon on Reddit! ■