October 22, 2009 // Franchising.com // MIDDLETOWN, CT – Through their own in-house marketing department, Wireless Zone, the nation's largest retailer of Verizon Wireless products and services, is able to bypass the middle man and provide their franchisees with a truly individual marketing experience.
Wireless Zone's advertising comes from within its corporate walls through AdOne, the marketing team assembled to address the needs of its franchisees. The AdOne team focuses on the specific needs of a particular store, collaborating with the store owners to design and implement a marketing program at that location. Through print ads, radio commercials and flyers, each piece is customized based on the store owner's request. This individuality compels the community to think of their Wireless Zone as the place to go for professional wireless service.
"It's very important that we showcase our franchisees and make them the wireless retail expert in their communities," said Kevin Downs, Director of Marketing for Wireless Zone. "Our franchisees have a vested interest in not only their individual store's success, but also in the success of their community."
AdOne also implements store-wide plans that can all be customized to create not only brand awareness in any given community, but also secure Wireless Zone's image across all of the territories it currently represents. For example, its pre-produced television commercial is customized to three different locations—South, Northeast, and Midwest. Stores can use these pre-produced commercials to represent their store location, and even add their own spin at the end with owner walk-on's or a shot of that specific store.
In addition, AdOne sends out direct mail pieces quarterly that provide all store owners, and definitely those who may not participate in a ton of advertising, with the tools necessary to get their store out in the public. Each direct mail piece is sent out to a defined area around each store with their information on it. Though the piece is sent throughout the country to areas surrounding all store locations, the individuality of the store information lets consumers know the deals are specifically for them from their local Wireless Zone.
This in-house marketing also allows Wireless Zone to grow without incurring an enormous amount of advertising costs associated with opening new stores or dealing indirectly with vendors. Wireless Zone has been able to benefit financially from maintaining in-house advertising, but also maintain trust within the franchisee system because they are constantly in contact with the owners.
ABOUT WIRELESS ZONE
Founded in 1988 as "The Car Phone Store", Wireless Zone has become the nation's largest independent wireless retail franchisor and was ranked the #1 franchise in its category by Entrepreneur magazine. Every store is independently owned and operated, exclusively offering Verizon Wireless products and services. Wireless Zone has plans to expand throughout the U.S., creating promising opportunities for entrepreneurs. Wireless Zone is a division of Automotive Technologies, Inc.
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