Whether you’re a franchisor or franchisee, social media is key to profitability. But successful strategies and tactics differ for each side of the coin. And a misstep can result in serious damage to your brand. So, this is one area where you definitely don’t want to wing it. Kymera is a franchise marketing specialist and we help small to national brands take their businesses to the next level.
Social Media for Franchisors
Franchisors should build brand awareness in a way that’s appropriate and beneficial for all their franchisees. Determine what channels are most relevant and set a visual and editorial style for franchisees to follow. Corporate needs to maintain a delicate balance, requiring a consistent presentation of the brand while allowing franchisees to differentiate themselves and appeal to local markets.
A common concern for franchisors is maintaining control over social channels. You never want a situation where a disgruntled franchisee “goes rogue” online, potentially damaging the reputation of the brand. For that reason, it’s important for franchisors to maintain administrative control over all franchisee social media accounts.
Decide whether you’ll actively manage accounts for franchisees. You’ll likely find that while some franchise owners are enthusiastic and eager about social media marketing, others are intimidated by it and appreciate a little hand-holding.
Actively monitor engagement on your corporate channel and all franchisee accounts. Evaluate the traction each franchise gets in its respective market. Share what you see working (and what’s not working) with other franchisees.
Provide franchisees with clear brand guidelines to adhere to when posting to social medial channels. Specify hashtags, logos, taglines, style and tone. Maintain a consistent brand voice across all franchisee social media accounts. Consider providing an editorial calendar for brand-building content, but always give franchisees the freedom and discretion to market locally.
Social Media for Franchisees
As a franchisee, your goal is to engage customers locally. Often, there’s more than one franchise in a metro area. When this occurs, franchisees must market on the city and neighborhood level, with targeted hashtags and a specific content strategy to differentiate themselves from competitive franchisees. And be sure to sync all your business directory listings — any inconsistencies can result in a significant drop in web traffic.
Market segmentation is critical for franchisees because of the different customer demographics that can be relevant from neighborhood to neighborhood. Create targeted content for all of your buyer personas. Understanding your demographics in detail can also help you boost social media posts for maximum impact.
Individual franchisees likely won’t have the same level of resources as the corporate office, so hiring an experienced agency to help guide social media marketing can be invaluable even if some things are done in house.
Use social media for two-way communication with customers and your community — not just a one-way megaphone to sell, sell, sell. Respond to both positive and negative feedback — promptly. Resolve complaints when possible, and always be professional no matter what customers say online.
Kymera Can Help
Whether you’re a franchisor or franchisee of a large or small brand, Kymera can help support your social media and other marketing goals. We are franchise specialists who help local and national operations grow. You can read more about our franchise work here. Contact us today for a free franchise marketing consultation.
