Taking care of your brand image has always been a major concern for companies and franchises. Effective marketing communication strategies can develop your notoriety and attract new customers to your physical points of sale.
But the digital revolution has made web marketing an essential element for the notoriety of a franchise. In addition to the usual advertising, the use of internet marketing has become a necessary step to attract customers to franchised points of sale. This development increasingly requires a mastery of digital technological tools: Google Business Profile sheet (ex Google My Business), geomarketing or geofencing have become major assets for a franchise.
It is therefore essential for a franchise network to implement a digital strategy . Calling on a marketing agency specializing in digital therefore becomes a real asset. But what criteria allow a franchise to choose a digital marketing agency wisely? LocalMarketing gives you some elements to see things more clearly.
What is the role of a marketing agency?
Specialized branch of the communication agency, the marketing agency accompanies companies and franchised networks, but also local authorities or associations. He is able to help define an internal or external communication strategy.
A marketing agency’s mission like Warren Digital is therefore to increase the visibility of its client, whether through online or offline advertising campaigns . It’s about being able to use the best levers at your disposal and selecting those that are best suited to the client and their objectives.
The importance of digital marketing
Today, digital marketing is an increasingly important part of a marketing agency’s work. Whether it’s creating content optimized for local SEO, monitoring and promotion work on social networks , creating or improving a website, it can also intervene at any stage. of the digitalization process .
Each company is free to set its own digital objectives to be achieved according to its sector of activity.
Choosing a Good Franchise Marketing Agency
Define your marketing objectives
Choosing the right marketing agency for your franchise requires having clear and precise objectives to achieve. Your needs will not be the same whether you want a one-off service for an advertising campaign or longer-term support, to sustainably develop the traffic of your points of sale .
A franchise network must also reconcile national communication and local marketing . So do you just want to develop the brand image of the brand? Emphasize the notoriety of points of sale at the local level? Or put in place a global strategy to work on these two aspects?
Finally, consider taking stock of your own human resources, to see what elements of digital marketing can be done in-house.
However, it is not always easy to take stock of your digital marketing needs. And estimating the resources needed for your marketing plan can be just as tricky. The first discussions with an expert marketing agency will help you better define your project. The quality of a service provider also depends on its ability to offer you suitable solutions, which you might not have thought of.
Check marketing agency credentials
As we have seen, marketing agencies are numerous, and cover a multitude of professions and specialties . It is therefore important to know the universe of the agency and its chosen field. Website creation, multi-local marketing, internet communication… Specializations and areas of expertise are varied.
The marketing agency’s preferred clientele may also be a consideration. An agency highly appreciated for its global communication and recommended by prestigious multinationals is not always the best suited to develop the visibility of a small store in its catchment area . A communication box mastering proximity marketing could be an option better suited to the needs of your franchise
A provider’s customer references speak volumes about their ability to meet your specific needs. An agency accustomed to supporting networks of brands will be able to understand your problems much more quickly. And therefore to offer you truly effective solutions.
Develop precise specifications
Making a call for tenders is a good way to choose a service provider who will meet the specific needs of your franchise. You must therefore design detailed specifications that you will submit to several agencies. All that remains is to compare the answers to determine the best offer.
The response time to your call for tenders is a first criterion to take into account. A reactive agency respecting deadlines inspires more confidence. But the quality of the proposal must also be studied. Make sure that the agency has provided you with a personalized offer taking your needs into account, and not a “generic” quote drawn up in a few minutes.
The comparison of offers also allows:
- to have references, particularly in terms of price.
- to highlight useless or overestimated services offered by certain providers.
What are the key skills of a franchise marketing agency?
The marketing strategy of a franchise network requires certain very specific skills depending on its field of activity. Before choosing your agency, it may be useful to:
- Meet directly with the agency’s teams to learn more about their methods, their expertise, etc.
- Ask for information on the qualifications and experience of the team approached to manage your project. You will know right away if the profiles correspond to what you need.
- Inquire directly with existing clients of the agency. They will be in the best position to tell you if it is competent.
In addition, a digital marketing agency specializing in franchisees will need several skills.
Mastery of multi-local marketing
It is not necessarily easy to both promote a local clientele while developing the global image of a brand. Multi-local marketing was designed to address this issue.
It is a question of setting up a campaign on a large scale and consistent with the overall strategy of the brand, but with extremely fine local targeting. The multi-local allows for example to broadcast an ad that will be personalized and geo-located to adapt to each catchment area.
Also read: A Guide to Email Marketing Strategies for Local Businesses
Multi-local is the perfect compromise between global marketing that is too generic, and proximity marketing that is difficult to control and harmonize at the national level. The brand network can thus keep control of its communication, while localizing its campaigns for maximum efficiency.
Have a multi-channel approach
At a time when the boundaries between traditional sales and e-commerce are increasingly porous, it is essential for a good marketing agency to perfectly master the different communication and acquisition channels. A multichannel approach is now essential for an effective web strategy .
The multi-channel strategy also makes it possible to reconcile two seemingly opposing objectives:
- The national influence of the brand of a network of brands.
- The development of local trade in each point of sale.
It is therefore necessary to make digital and physical sales coexist . Today’s consumer gets information on the internet before going to try a product in the store. When he needs a specific product, he uses his smartphone to find the nearest point of sale.
Digital has a real impact on in-store traffic. After performing a nearby search on their mobile, 50% of consumers visit a store in less than 24 hours.
A multi-channel approach allows you to be present where your potential customers are and to use all the necessary levers to attract and retain local customers: website, social networks, digital advertising, etc.
Set up a centralized digital marketing platform
It is difficult to manage your digital marketing strategy both globally and locally, given the multitude of indicators and information to monitor. A good digital communication agency will provide you with solutions to:
- Manage the marketing actions of your points of sale, via digital and traditional channels.
- Centralize the management of social networks for all the establishments of the brand.
- Quickly plan local advertising and marketing actions.
- Monitor and analyze the results of your campaigns in real time.
You will thus benefit from a real dashboard to visualize your marketing actions in a clear way.