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The 2026 Franchise Growth & Marketing Conference was a wild success. Attendance at the rebranded event beat the expectations of speakers and sponsors like me, and I assume the same for the attendees and organizers.
Thanks to Franchise Update Media and the International Franchise Association for producing the best marketing-focused event in franchis-ing in many years. Thanks also to Lauren Fernandez, a social media strategist, for co-presenting a marketing workshop with me on day one of the event.
I walked away from our session and the overall event thinking that this conference could not have been an email. It could not have been a LinkedIn post, an Instagram story, or a TikTok video.
Sure, we saw lots of those online messages before and after the event. But the email blasts from exhibitors or interchangeable selfies on social media with long lists of people tagged don’t measure up to real conversations taking place live and in person.
A thousand AI-written LinkedIn posts can’t equal the value of one 10-minute chat in the conference hotel lobby, exhibit hall, or hotel bar. This is where franchise marketers share what is really going on in the space. What channel is bringing your system the best leads? How much more are you spending on your ad budget this quarter? What agency or service is killing it right now? These were just a fraction of the actual conversations I heard.
Besides sharing transactional best practices, events like this are also where franchise professionals make lifelong friends. Relationship building is one part of marketing, sales, and franchising you can’t automate or do remotely.
Another observation I made recently is about relationships: The people I consider part of my closest circle were not met on a Zoom or Teams call.
It’s true: All the long-term clients and partners I serve, all the trusted supplier friends with whom I brainstorm, and all my go-to podcast regulars are franchise pros with whom I developed a business relationship in the flesh, not on a video screen.
Think about the people in your circle. You may do a lot of business with people you only know online. But the professionals you go to for advice, recommend for jobs, or call when you’re in trouble are likely peers with whom you’ve spent time in real life.
I’m not saying that if you go to one event, you’ll make instant friends with whom you’ll do business for a decade. There are no straight lines or shortcuts in relationships. It’s a long-term build. Salespeople and marketing people may understand this better than most.
If you’re newer to franchising, think about what you can do to get in-person face time (not FaceTime) with your franchise peers.
And if you’re a seasoned franchise pro, you need to think about the next decade for your brand and your team. It’s our job (actually, our duty) to get our next generation of franchise executives away from their desks. Invest time and resources into their success both for your team and for their career goals.
Here are a few ideas to help accelerate your in-person franchise game:
So, send the email. Like the LinkedIn post. Watch the webinar. Just don’t confuse those things with building relationships. The franchise business has always been built by people who show up for each other. That’s still true today. And it probably always will be.
Jack Monson is the chief growth officer of franchise marketing agency Thunderly and has been working with franchise brands in marketing for nearly 20 years. He is also the chairman of the IFA’s Marketing & Innovation Committee and the host of “Social Geek,” the most popular franchise podcast.