2026 Franchise Marketing Leadership Award Winner, Primrose Schools

Primrose Schools’ creative and engaging Primrose Friends YouTube Channel won the top award for Franchise Marketing Leadership as part of Franchise Update Media’s 8th Annual Franchise Innovation Awards.

Primrose’s YouTube channel featured a consistent cadence of weekly, curriculum-based videos with familiar puppets, original music, and character-building stories.

Since launching the channel on Oct. 1, 2025, Primrose has generated 45 million video views and grown its subscriber base to more than 75,000. The channel has also served as an early introduction to the school for families considering preschool enrollment. Primrose’s research showed that 71% of parents who watched the channel said they would be likely to schedule a tour, and 76% wanted more information about Primrose after viewing.

Franchise Update spoke with Mike Schatz, Primrose Schools’ senior creative director, about the planning and strategy that went into the channel and the successful results the brand has experienced since the launch.

Briefly describe the Primrose Friends YouTube channel. Set on a cheerful farm inspired by the very first Primrose school, the Primrose Friends YouTube Channel brings 12 lovable puppets into family homes with weekly video releases as an extension of our familiar and trusted Balanced Learning curriculum.

Created by our in-house creative and education teams, the channel is a mix of original music, reimagined classic children’s songs, and character-building stories that parents and families can enjoy alongside their children. Each episode was designed for co-viewing to help families turn screen time into shared moments that extend learning beyond the classroom.

What were the original goals and objectives in launching the campaign? From a marketing perspective, the goal was to create something so fun and engaging that when families start thinking about preschool, Primrose already feels familiar. We want new parents to feel like they have an understanding of our values and approach to education before they’ve even stepped into a school.

The early education landscape is increasingly competitive, and we saw this channel and content as a way to stand out while connecting with parents—not by selling to them, but by creating content they genuinely want. That’s especially important for today’s families, who are increasingly aware of screen time and are looking for content they can trust and feel good about bringing into their homes.

How long did it take to plan, create, and launch? In many ways, this idea has been 30 years in the making. The Primrose Friends were created by the chairwoman of the board and former CEO, Jo Kirchner, as hand puppets to support lessons and character building in the classroom. They are still a beloved part of the curriculum used by Primrose school teachers across the country each day.

About five years ago, when I interviewed with Jo for the creative director role, I said I would like to give the hand puppets their own voices and feet. From there, we partnered with top puppet builders and performers who have worked with Sesame Street, Jim Henson Productions, and PBS Kids. We began developing the channel in 2022, and it officially launched on Oct. 1, 2025. We worked closely across teams to ensure everything felt intentional, using real puppets and real performers while staying true to Primrose’s values.

What were the main results, impacts, successes, and ROI? Since launching last fall, the channel has surpassed 45 million video views and grown to more than 75,000 subscribers, putting us on pace with some of the most recognized new names in children’s entertainment when they were a year in.

More importantly, we saw meaningful shifts in how families engage with the brand. Families aren’t just watching; they’re coming back for more. Brand lift studies showed that 71% of exposed parents were likely to schedule a tour, and 76% wanted more information about Primrose after viewing. We also saw a measurable increase in unaided awareness. Those results highlight something important: When content feels natural, valuable, and intentional, it builds familiarity and trust. That trust is essential to the Primrose experience.

What role did digital media play in the success of the campaign? Digital media was really the engine that drove discovery and ongoing engagement. YouTube served as the primary streaming platform, but paid media helped us appear in the trusted family environments where parents are already spending time. From there, social channels, influencer partnerships, and a dedicated content hub created a connected experience that kept children engaged and families coming back for more.

Why do you think this message resonated so strongly with your customers? What we are creating aligns with what modern parents are navigating every day. Families are making thoughtful decisions about how children spend their time, especially in the early years. There’s a real desire for options that feel safe, intentional, and developmentally appropriate.

The channel is designed to help meet that need in a way that feels both practical and meaningful. It gives parents something they can feel confident about turning on while also creating moments they can share with their children. The Primrose Friends play an important role in that connection. That consistency helps learning feel connected across environments, from school to home and even into everyday conversations and play.

Families are looking for content that does more than entertain; they want it to support how their children grow, communicate, and interact with the world. When content reflects values like kindness, empathy, and cooperation and presents them in a way children understand, it creates a deeper level of engagement. What we’ve seen is that this combination of familiarity, trust, and purpose doesn’t just capture attention; it builds a lasting connection. That’s what keeps families coming back.

What ways did Primrose Schools market and promote the new channel? We went all in on the launch with a fully integrated, multichannel approach. Paid media helped us expand reach quickly while earned media and influencer partnerships added credibility and real storytelling. Social media, email, and in-school activations extended that experience further, and having franchisees and teachers help bring it to life locally was a big part of what made it feel authentic. That combination of national momentum and local connection is really what made the difference.

What was the impact on both existing customers and on reaching new audiences? For current families, the channel adds a meaningful extension of the classroom experience into everyday life at home. Children see familiar characters, songs, and themes show up in new moments. This reinforces what they are already learning in the classroom and creates more opportunities for connection with their parents. Designed as purposeful edutainment, it helps carry those lessons beyond the school day in a way that feels natural and engaging, strengthening both the learning experience and the emotional connection to the brand.

For new audiences, it creates a highly accessible introduction to Primrose. Families can discover and engage with the content on their own terms before they begin actively searching for a school. That early exposure builds familiarity and trust over time, so when they do enter the decision-making process, the brand already feels recognizable and relevant. It effectively creates a continuous entry point that brings new families into the brand in a more organic way.

What was the impact on franchisees? Primrose franchise owners benefit from increased brand visibility and stronger alignment between national storytelling and the experience they deliver locally. The channel helps extend their reach through high-quality, ready-to-use content that they can incorporate into tours, conversations, and ongoing parent engagement, making it easier to bring the brand to life in a consistent way.

The channel also helps shift the starting point of the relationship with prospective families. Parents often arrive already familiar with the Primrose Friends and the values the characters represent, which allows franchisees to have deeper, more meaningful conversations from the start. That stronger foundation supports engagement, reinforces credibility, and helps create a more connected experience both before and after enrollment.

How gratifying is it for a brand when a campaign not only meets your objectives but also far exceeds your expectations with its success? First and foremost, it’s validation for both the concept of the Primrose Friends that was conceived more than 30 years ago and for the families and children we serve. For decades, the Primrose Friends have been in our classrooms, shaping the early experiences of hundreds of thousands of children. Seeing that grow into the millions is exciting not just because it’s good for business, but because it means we’re reaching more children during one of the most formative and curious times of their lives. That’s what we’re responsible for, why it’s been so fun to work on creatively, and why it matters to so many. Knowing that is what makes this campaign and this brand so successful.