Franchise marketing is no different then business marketing.  Your goal is to get the customer to buy your service or product.  Effective marketing is when you achieve the goal with minimal effort or cost.  Getting the business name and products out there is not going to do it.  You need to create a marketing campaign that targets the people you want to attract to your business.  To do this, you need to first understand your customer.

There are some key principles to franchise and business marketing that you need to know.  The first and probably the most important is to know your customer.  This may be an obvious choice, but some people just don’t get it.  The most successful business owners are those that know the customer very well and can provide a service or product that they need or want.  Adjusting the service or product to meet the changing market and customer is part of maintaining that customer base and attracting new ones.  If you are either thinking of buying a franchise or you already own a franchise, then some of this research should already be done by the parent franchiser company. If it is not, or you can’t get any valid information, then the franchise might not be as good as you think it is.

You also need to know how the product or service itself is a marketing tool.  In a market with little to no competition requires very little in product marketing.  However, if you are competing in an industry with many similar products or services, then you need to make your service or product more attractive to the customer over the next guy.  Getting your business online is a key part of franchise marketing.  If you are buying into an existing franchise, then it is likely that there is already an online presence and there would be very little for you to do here.  However, there are cases where you can attract more customers by doing online promotions as well.

Different franchises will have different ways to market the business.  Often, larger franchises have well development marketing plans and already promote the brand through television, radio, coupons and other print media.  What you need to do is supplement the existing advertising and marketing with local promotions.  If you look at a subway franchise, you are buying into a business that already run national television ads that automatically promote your business.

Other marketing tools you can use are customer loyalty programs where you reward a number of purchases or value to free product or other discounts for your location only.  This will keep the customer returning to your particular location over another.  This is particularly effective in a tight, competitive market.  Involving the local radio stations for a weekend promotion and live event brings in a lot of business and first time customers.

Providing expert advice about your industry or market is another way to promote awareness of your business.  If you can provide someone with good, solid information for free then there is a higher chance that the individual will use your services over another similar business.  Depending on the industry you are in, online advice is very effective, but not always tailored to local customers.  It all depends on the type of business you run.

Trying new things is a key principle to marketing that many business don’t seem to grasp and stay static with the same old way of doing things.  This is a huge mistake for any business that wants to expand into new territories or new products. Market and demographic research should be an on going task within your business management tasks.  Identifying new customer bases and targets is essential for growth, don’t ignore the research.

The benefits of proper franchise and business marketing can be clearly identified as increased revenue.  You can’t get more simple then that.  Whether your business is centered around product sales or professional services, if people do not know that you exist, they won’t be able to purchase that service or product.  Anyone can advertise and put up an ad, but to really market a business takes a little thought and research.