Alex Samios Discusses Dogtopia's Strategies for Franchise Growth and Marketing

Operating within the popular pet care industry, Dogtopia faces plenty of competition for its daycare, boarding, and grooming services. While chief growth officer Alex Samios believes the franchise has the best systems, tools, technology, training, and support, it also operates with a diversified marketing plan aimed to reach the best prospects who are a fit for the brand.

Samios shares his thoughts on how Dogtopia uses digital marketing, its balance between franchise development and consumer marketing, and the importance of building strong relationships with their franchisees. He also discusses the growth of the brand and plans for the future.

What excites you the most about the future of the brand?

Samios: We are close to opening our 300th location and we also have another 300+ units already sold. So, there is a clear path to more than 600 locations. From where we came nine years ago, it is exciting to think about the brand with that footprint of bringing the best in dog daycare, boarding, and spa services to communities across North America. As the largest, leading, and fastest-growing pet wellness brand, we have passed our tipping point and are the only brand in our category that has truly proven scale. Our largest franchisee currently operates 35 locations. Over the next few years, we will be laser-focused on continuing to increase performance and AUVs of our existing portfolio while accelerating the opening of the next 300.

Can you discuss the role of digital marketing and technology in your franchise development and marketing efforts, especially in the context of recent industry trends?

Samios: They are paramount. We have been at the forefront of driving our digital footprint, whether through social media, organic search, or paid search. Most people want to communicate with you on their time (both customers and potential franchisees), and you should be providing all the options for their diligence at their fingertips.

What unique challenges and opportunities arise when working in both franchise development and marketing within the franchise industry?

Samios: The pet industry is a hot sector, and digital marketing (SEM) has become more expensive (as well as franchising keywords in general), while our competitors have gotten smarter and budgets have grown. But digital marketing is a necessary evil, so do not go without it. You must stick with it, as sometimes you may not get results right away. Making knee-jerk decisions based on poor results or short-term marketing initiatives is short-sighted.

How do you bridge the gap between franchise development and marketing?

Samios: With our size, we must keep them very separate as the marketing fund dollars are the franchisees’ money and should only be spent on building brand awareness and driving store-level leads back to their locations. Our franchise development marketing budget is geared toward educating and attracting franchisee candidates and sharing our franchise opportunity story and differentiators. Obviously with our size, we are getting a lot of interest from customers and candidates who visit our locations. That is to be expected at close to 300 units. Many of our franchisees started as customers first, which we love!

How do you leverage your marketing efforts to attract new franchisees, while maintaining consistency with the existing brand identity?

Samios: Our goal has always been to build a recurring sales engine and not rely too heavily on one lead source. You must be diversified. Relying too heavily on brokers can be a perilous avenue. That means having a strong diversified marketing plan that includes a little bit of every vehicle: print, social, SEM, PR, trade shows, brokers, etc. In this environment, you need a healthy budget to compete and stand out. In terms of consistency, our marketing team handles all creative, and we don’t outsource. That’s the only way to maintain consistency with your brand identity. All the touch points need to be aligned.

Building strong relationships with franchisees is crucial. How do your marketing efforts contribute to fostering such relationships, and what role does franchisee satisfaction play in growth?

Samios: Relationships are critical, and you must have strong validators in your system. We utilize our positive relationships with many franchisees not just for validation, but for testimonials in our marketing. They are often the face of our brand and in our communities. We have all types of franchisees, such as spouses, siblings, father/daughter, mother/son, small multi-unit owners, large multi-unit owners, and corporate refugees.

Many candidates are attracted to the pet sector because of the “passion play” but not all of them realize this is a serious business that requires their attention full time. We are transparent with this and connect them with franchisees as much as possible to provide guidance. Additionally, we conduct an annual satisfaction survey by Franchise Business Review, and we always perform ahead of the pack. We use that feedback to identify areas for improvement and take action.

How do you ensure that your marketing strategies provide franchisees with the tools they need for growth?

Samios: Our marketing team is world class and the best I have been associated with. All our franchisees will attest to this. The downside is that sometimes there are so many strategies that some get lost and can end up complicating the business. At the end of the day, it’s about how many leads were generated, how many were converted, and how many parents were retained. It’s that simple, but it does take effort and coordination between local and national marketing.

How do you measure and track the effectiveness your marketing plans and the execution of the plans?

Samios: We track everything. First, did the plan deliver the eyeballs? In other words, did the vehicle have the distribution and reach our targeted demographics as planned? Second, did those eyeballs respond and take action? Finally, did we actually complete transactions? Which means did we close new franchise deals? If all three occurred, then it was an effective plan. Then the question becomes, how much did we spend to close those (cost per deal) and is that plan sustainable going forward and within my budget?

What are some factors you look for when adding a franchise location in a new market?

Samios: Demos, demos, demos. Competition, believe it or not, doesn’t hold much weight since we are the premium brand with the best systems, tools, technology, training, and support. We can out-operate any competitor, out of any type of location. Parents and prospective franchisees recognize it when they see it.

What advice would you give to emerging franchise brands looking to establish a strong presence in both franchise development and marketing?

Samios: Single unit economics. Before you spend a ton of money on marketing efforts or brokers, you need to invest the time to build your “four walls” as profitable as possible. Invest in your franchisee support and training ahead of your growth. Finally, be sure your franchisees know how to validate and speak about your brand and their P&Ls. Never cut corners or cheat in your FDD. That tactic is very short-sighted as your FDD is the foundation of responsible franchising.