Franchise Update Magazine Issue IV, 2013 | Page 46

Grow Market Lead

Mystery Shoppers
local, and mobile technologies (SoLoMo) to connect with
and further engage prospective candidates and customers for their franchisees. With a 125 percent increase in
mobile usage over the past year, SoLoMo is important
if you want to be found online.
We found that 66 percent of respondents provide
microsites to their franchisees, 87 percent have integrated a Facebook link, and 73 percent have a Google+
corporate page; however, only 33 percent use plug-ins
on their microsites, and only 20 percent have integrated
a Google+ link on their main site. When you see that
87 percent of franchisors have a Facebook link on their
website and 73 percent have a Google+ corporate page,
it is clear these things have reached the mainstream. Yet,
there is not a great understanding of how to use these
tools. Having the presence is essential, but it is really
just the first step.
One of the most surprising things we discovered is
that fewer than 5 percent of franchisors have responded
to negative reviews or comments in a public way. It could
be they just aren’t sure how. There is a conversation going
on out there, and you need to give your brand a voice.
You can’t afford to let the discussion around your brand
be run by detractors.
Recommendation: We suggest that brands take incremental steps into this SoLoMo realm. If you haven’t
claimed your franchisees’ listings on Facebook and
Google+, that is job number one, because that gets you
on the map (literally). Then you’re in position to take the
next step and further the engagement with your fans—and
prospects who want to know more about your concept.
Social media has become mainstream. You can’t afford
to ignore it. Take small steps and wade in. Your brand
will thank you for it.

Mobile Response
Michael Alston, Landmark Interactive

W

e studied franchise recruitment trends in more than
25 million visits since 2010 across our network of
franchise portals (Franchise.com, FranchiseOpportunities.com, FranchiseSolutions.com, FranchiseGator.com,
and BusinessBroker.net). We analyzed how people connected to the Internet (mobile phones, tablets, laptops,
desktops), how many submitted investment inquiries, and
how much available capital the prospects had.
For the second year in a row, mobile phones and tablets doubled their share of investment leads submitted
by prospective franchise buyers. More than one-third of
investment inquiries now come from mobile devices: 37.9
percent of all visitors to the network of portals, and 34.7

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percent of all qualified investment inquiries to franchisors. This is a hefty new marketing channel, not a fad.
We were surprised to see that leads from mobile
phones are growing at a faster rate than from tablets,
with phones’ share up 130 percent (a factor of 2.3 times)
in just 12 months. That is a significant change from last
year, when tablets showed the fastest growth.
One thing that hasn’t changed: tablet users are highvalue prospects and were 10.7 percent more likely to
request information on brands requiring an investment
of $100,000 or more.
Recommendation: Franchisors must make sure their
recruitment efforts are represented well on several kinds
of smartphones, as well as on tablets and desktop computers. Portals are one way to do that, but franchisors’
websites should be mobile-friendly as well.

Fast Response by Franchisors
Joel Gooch, eMaximation

W

e found that more franchisors are dedicating resources to reviving older prospects, and in some
cases with great success. (Some of this may be attributed
to our emphasizing this in marketing strategy discussions with our clients, but we’ve also seen many franchise marketers, without prompting, become savvier
and