How Painting with a Twist Reaches Customers Through Social Media and Digital Advertising

Being a concept that operates within social gatherings in a fun environment, it has always been important to market the business through social media. Painting with a Twist assists its franchisees in reaching its customers through various social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.

The franchise also attempts to reach its core audience through digital advertising and email marketing, and launched its first connected television campaign two years ago. Painting with a Twist’s marketing department works closely with franchisees to advertise and drive local awareness of the business through several platforms. These marketing efforts have been a vital part of the growth of the franchise and a rebound following Covid.

Painting with a Twist Senior Director of Marketing Brittany Graff discusses how they work with franchisees to easily promote the business and develop programs to stay timely and relevant year-round.

In what ways does Painting with a Twist utilize digital marketing channels to engage with its audience? 

Painting with a Twist franchisees leverage a variety of digital channels to reach our core demographic from organic social media (primarily Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok) to digital ads, email marketing, and connected TV.

What role does social media play for your brand, and what platforms have been most successful?

We are a very social brand by nature. In the beginning when Facebook first launched, that’s the only marketing our owners needed to do. While we’ve had to diversify our marketing over time, social media is still an integral part of our strategy. We’ve been most successful engaging our audience on Facebook and Instagram, but recently we’ve also seen great success with TikTok. That’s a channel we’ll be diverting more attention to in the near term.

How does Painting with a Twist handle local marketing initiatives to drive awareness at the grassroots level? 

Our number one goal in the marketing department is to make marketing easy for our franchise owners. We realize our owners wear a lot of hats, with marketing being just one of them, albeit an important one. We provide our franchisees with training, best practices, and partner programs to help streamline efforts and drive local awareness. We also supplement local initiatives with national programs and advertising.

Are there any emerging trends in marketing that you are exploring? 

Over the past year we’ve been working on various ways to incorporate AI into our marketing strategy to streamline tasks. This is something we’ll continue to develop over time, not just in marketing but other aspects of the business as well.

What is an example of a marketing effort you have applied to your brand that has helped existing franchise owners? 

Digital advertising is complex and always changing. It was hard for our franchise owners to keep up with the ever-evolving landscape. We needed a simpler way for franchisees to be where our customers are. We partnered with a digital agency called Eulerity in 2020. It is a self-serve platform that allows our franchisees to advertise on social channels, Google search, the display network, and YouTube with just one app and budget. The algorithm continually optimizes their campaigns so they don’t have to waste time and money figuring it all out on their own. It’s been a huge timesaver but also tremendously successful for our brand. It allows our franchisees the flexibility they want while maintaining some control at the headquarters level.

How do you support your franchise owners, especially franchisees with no prior experience in the industry? 

We have extensive training and support for franchisees in many different forms. From weekly webinars to quarterly guides and playbooks and one-on-one Zoom sessions. We make sure that any program or partner we work with furthers our goal of making marketing easy for owners, no matter their experience level.

How does Painting with a Twist foster community among franchisees? 

Culture is a huge factor at Painting with a Twist. We encourage chat during our weekly webinars, have a message board and a bi-annual conference to keep our franchisees engaged with each other.

What are some of the biggest challenges unique to your franchise? 

1. Seasonal demand fluctuations: One of the challenges we face is the seasonality of the business. Attendance can be heavily influenced by holidays, weather, and school schedules. We are always working on ways to boost the highs and soften the lows throughout the year. 

2. Staying relevant among various consumer groups: With shifts in consumer preferences, especially among younger generations, we constantly need to innovate our offerings. Keeping our events fresh and engaging, such as incorporating new themes, pop culture trends, and innovative products, is key to attracting new and repeat customers. 

3. Balancing alcohol with a family-friendly atmosphere: Since we offer a "paint and sip" experience, managing perceptions around the alcohol component while also making the environment welcoming to families, teambuilding events, and non-drinkers can sometimes be tricky.

What are you most proud of in your work with the franchise?

I’m proud of how far we’ve come as a brand in just a few short years. Covid of course was a challenging time for our brand, but we were resilient, developed new programs and processes, and are now back in growth mode. I think the most exciting marketing initiative that has made a big impact on the brand is our first ever connected TV campaign that we launched in late 2022 and have been running ever since.

What are your plans for growth? 

The future is bright for Painting with a Twist. We’re excited to grow our walk-in, self-led creative experience called Pop In & DIY. We have new products and innovations on the way to reach new and existing audiences.