Technology Feature Articles

Technology Feature Articles

Franchise Sector Showcase

Informative Technology franchise articles to support business buyers, franchisees, and franchisors.

When Shelly Sun and her husband JD founded BrightStar, their full-service healthcare staffing agency in 2002, the concept was rooted in their experiences searching for quality care for JD's sick grandmother. "We were managing multiple relationships and thought how great it would be to have one company handle the entire continuum of care," says Sun, CEO of BrightStar.
  • Debbie Selinsky
  • 7,411 Reads
In the course of my speaking and consulting engagements, I've found that many franchisees have given up even trying to get meaningful references on promising job applicants. From the frustrating experiences recounted to me by others and my own company's policy, I know that most employers will report only dates of employment and the starting and ending wage or salary figures.
  • Mel Kleiman
  • 8,307 Reads 1 Shares
Allow me to share something that is staggering to me. I spend thousands of dollars a year with many companies that have no idea I exist - and so do you.
  • Scott Klososky
  • 2,135 Reads 2 Shares
In launching Naked Pizza, our argument has never been that a healthier pizza is going to save the day, but rather that every "new" business should and can have a social strategy--a strategy that positively affects someone or something along the continuum. If you don't, then maybe you don't have a business. To us, mission, profit, and scale are inseparable. So far, so good.
  • Robbie Vitrano
  • 4,076 Reads 58 Shares
Listening is one of the fundamental principles of social media and Web 2.0.
  • Franchise Update
  • 2,694 Reads 5 Shares
Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, announces that 57 brands with more than $11 billion in annual system-wide sales, were represented at the first annual Franchise Consumer Marketing Conference.
  • PRESS RELEASE
  • 2,963 Reads 1 Shares
In early 2008, Moe's Southwest Grill was still something of a newcomer in Mexican fast-casual segment. But in the eight years since it had been founded, not much new work had been done on either the restaurant prototype or its menu. So when Focus Brands acquired the franchisor in August 2007, then CEO Steve Romaniello reached out to Paul Damico to see if he was interested in not just running the brand, but freshening it up and reenergizing it.
  • John Carroll
  • 20,045 Reads 2 Shares
Terri Miller knows how marketing is supposed to work. She has served as the marketing director in the travel franchise division at Carlson Companies and spent time on the agency side where she worked with clients such as Century 21 and Toro.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 10,391 Reads 2 Shares
The Great Recession has shifted the thinking and behavior of consumers, forcing franchise brands to respond with changes of their own as they try to keep up with the new normal. Indeed, no discussion of franchise trends in 2011 and multi-unit operators' favorite brands can begin without a nod to the recent economic turmoil and its residual short and long-term effects.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 7,044 Reads 4 Shares
Mobile applications and technologies provide the ability to significantly improve customer experience shopping at franchise stores. The mobile device provides many opportunities for advertising, customer engagement, and most important, sales. Franchises will uniquely benefit from these capabilities along the entire spectrum, from brand marketing to closing the sale.
  • Conrad Sheehan
  • 3,830 Reads 75 Shares
Core values are today's "X factor" in franchise development. To succeed in this business, franchisors must effectively position their concept in the marketplace, offering compelling benefits to both customers and potential franchise buyers. By creating a dynamic culture you'll add a powerful dimension to your brand, which can catapult your organization beyond the competition.
  • Steve Olson
  • 3,897 Reads 15 Shares
Sonny’s BBQ
SPONSORED CONTENT
Sonny’s BBQ
SPONSORED CONTENT
Sonny’s BBQ
SPONSORED CONTENT
Glenn Miller's first look at the franchising business came in the early 1990s, when the British Chartered Accountant's brother, an attorney, wound up with six Arby's in Central Illinois. It didn't take a rocket scientist to see some of the problems that needed fixing.
  • John Carroll
  • 6,873 Reads 133 Shares
Social media/networking and the collection of tools they have spawned have moved solidly into the strategy toolbox for organizations.
  • Scott Klososky
  • 2,833 Reads 35 Shares
Menchie's, the Encino, California-based frozen yogurt franchise brand, is turning to technology to separate itself from the competition while building an even stronger bond with its customers.
  • Franchise Update
  • 3,803 Reads 63 Shares
For more than 20 years Rick Huffman and his two partners--Sam Catanese and Marc Williams--have been building things. They've developed shopping centers, hotels, apartment complexes, a large stock of affordable housing units, and Branson Landing, a $400 million mixed-use project in Branson, Mo.
  • John Carroll
  • 7,058 Reads 2 Shares
Distinguish your franchise by knowing what creates steadfast customer loyalty to your brand. Franchisees profit from this consumer connection, which drives repeat business. At American Advertising Distributors I capitalized on our point of differentiation by arming our retail clients with marketing intelligence that was superior to any other service at the time, producing more successful campaigns for their businesses. I bragged to prospective franchisees about our powerful corporate research and development, which was instrumental in our 82 percent customer retention rate. Our retail market craved expertise for building their businesses, and our system delivered the goods beyond their expectations. We had raving customers who championed our brand because we provided them what they wanted.
  • Steve Olson
  • 3,580 Reads 1,023 Shares
Senior care is one of the hottest growth segments in franchising today. The demand for senior care services, both medical and non-medical, has been growing by leaps and bounds, in tandem with the growth of the country's aging population, who are living longer, staying healthier, and remaining more active than any seniors in history.
  • Eddy Goldberg
  • 5,332 Reads
There is no denying the impact technology has had on business. It has allowed companies to market and sell their products and services to customers in every corner of the world, and to do so 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
  • John Tschohl
  • 11,775 Reads 995 Shares
As many franchise professionals explore new methods of recruiting franchise candidates, there's been a great deal of discussion on how to incorporate social media into the mix. Sure, social media could be used to generate franchise leads, and, quite effectively... that, I have no doubt. But, it's what comes after generating the leads that concerns me more. So, let's take a look ahead, before jumping in with both feet.
  • By: Paul Segreto
  • 4,311 Reads 12 Shares
James Young, president of Spring-Green Lawn Care, describes his approach to marketing as tactical, because it "allows our franchise owners to do what they do well," he says.
  • Franchise Update
  • 3,441 Reads 11 Shares
The goal of customer experience management is to move customers from satisfied to loyal and, ultimately, to be advocates for the brand.
  • Jack Mackey
  • 8,084 Reads 1,014 Shares
Indevia Accounting
SPONSORED CONTENT
Indevia Accounting
SPONSORED CONTENT
Indevia Accounting
SPONSORED CONTENT
Franchisee validation can make or break your franchise sales. Pow! Just like that and a once-supercharged prospect can deflate to nothing in 24 hours, bailing out of your process instantly. Validation is the most influential stage in the selling process. What franchise owners say means far more than what corporate sales execs tell them. Franchise operators are "doing it," and it's their experiences that count foremost to cautious buyers.
  • Steve Olson
  • 5,602 Reads 110 Shares
I certainly enjoyed successful broker relationships over the past 20 years. Discovering qualified franchise owners through the professional efforts of franchise and business brokers contributed to the growth of several franchise companies I represented. Based on my personal experience and the insights from hundreds of franchisors who have sold broker-referred prospects, here's how to increase your popularity and closing rates with broker networks.
  • Steve Olson
  • 6,436 Reads 324 Shares
Last month we discussed the shift in online behavior and how it is affecting the way we engage with our prospects and customers. Social engagement is a concept and term we are growing comfortable with, but what is its real impact on growing a franchise business? More specifically, what is its direct impact on us as individuals in our specific roles in franchise growth and development?
  • Tom Hochstatter
  • 2,821 Reads 27 Shares
Multi-unit franchising is one thing. Multi-concept franchising is something else entirely. Nevertheless, it's a place--and a choice--that many franchisees love, and where they excel. These determined operators look for growth opportunities and potential across several concepts, sometimes in wildly different sectors. The multi-concept franchising model offers power in numbers (units, brands, territory, and income potential), as well as the security of spreading their risk across different concepts in a diversified portfolio.
  • Kerry Pipes
  • 9,370 Reads 1,023 Shares
How are technological changes affecting how you recruit, and how are the latest tools changing how your development department does its job?
  • Franchise Update
  • 7,390 Reads
As the first in-home senior care franchise company, Interim HealthCare has always been on top of market trends. Successfully responding to those trends has allowed the company to steadily build its business for more than 40 years.
  • Linda Shaub
  • 4,110 Reads 2 Shares
In last month's Franchise Update Sales Report, I provided an introduction to working with brokers to increase your franchise sales, and highlighted some of the advantages of using brokers as part of your development strategy. This month I examine some of the risks and downsides, as well as how sign up with a broker that works for you.
  • Steve Olson
  • 5,276 Reads 245 Shares
Online behavior is maturing more rapidly than ever before. Social networking advancements from all the market leaders have, and will forever, change how we collaborate, communicate, share, and engage with any relationship online--whether it's the closeness of a family member or a first encounter with a franchise sales representative. Trust and transparency are the new operating rules, and engagement is determined by the initiator.
  • Tom Hochstatter
  • 4,277 Reads 10 Shares
Now, more than ever, is the time for every franchisor to look at opportunities to expand its system outside the United States. A bold statement, especially coming from a lawyer who, for the past 27 years, has cautioned clients and employers against moving too quickly outside the U.S. when the brand hasn't yet been fully exploited within the U.S.
  • Michael Daigle
  • 6,107 Reads 3 Shares
Share This Page

Subscribe to our Newsletters