We’re kicking off our new blog series, “What You Need to Know,” with the biggest area of franchisees: restaurants.
According to the National Restaurant Association, the restaurant industry in the United States is a major player in the economy:
- Generates $709.2 billion in yearly sales
- 1 million+ locations
- Employs 14 million people (1.5 million of which are managers)
U.S. Census data reports that 59.1% of all restaurants are franchises, either full-service table or quick-service.
Unless the restaurant franchise industry suddenly implodes, it is on track to gain 5.1% GDP in 2015 (compared to the rest of the U.S. economy at 3.1%). It’s no surprise that business entrepreneurs looking for their next move turn to restaurant franchise opportunities because of the associated strong demand and growth.
Types of restaurant franchises
In 2014 there were 155,000+ quick-service and 37,000+ full-service restaurants franchises across the U.S.
- Quick-service franchise restaurant (QSR): also called fast food restaurants, quick-service restaurants are characterized both by its fast food cuisine and by minimal table service.
- Full-service franchise restaurants: guests are seated at tables while servers take their full order and serve food and drink. Full-service restaurants are usually either fine dining establishments or casual eateries.
However, just because the restaurant franchise industry as a whole has strong growth statistics doesn’t mean that success comes easy. Whether you’re an owner of a national top restaurant franchise, like McDonald’s or Subway, or a smaller regional food franchise, like 16 Handles or El Pollo Loco, having an effective local marketing strategy can help you build relationships with your community — so you can generate new and repeat business.
Local online marketing
One of the best things about being part of a restaurant franchise is the brand name recognition that your individual location receives. You don’t have to worry about running large-scale branding marketing initiatives — your franchisor handles all of that with the advertising fund that you contribute to. While branding campaigns are an essential part of a franchise marketing strategy, it will only get you halfway; you need to add local online marketing to the equation to be successful when marketing restaurant franchises.
Branding + local online marketing = success
Branding increases the general awareness of the products you serve at your restaurant. Local online marketing will drive local customers into your restaurant’s location.
Local online marketing is often overlooked by franchises, simply because there is a gap in communications between the franchisor and franchisee. More often than not, franchisees need to address local marketing, as the franchisor is focusing on promoting the company on a national level in traditional channels (print, TV, outdoor, events, sponsorships).
Due to the way franchises are organized, franchise marketing systems often overlook or gloss over the crucial local online marketing component. Franchisees (sometimes, wrongly) believe that they don’t have the power to execute a local online marketing campaign, when in reality a franchisor may simply not have a franchise marketing system in place that empowers franchisees — and still provides the franchisor with oversight.
While franchisees should always receive approval from the franchisor before moving forward with a local marketing plan, they can still identify marketing franchise opportunities and present them to the franchisor. When you are moving forward with a local online marketing campaign for your restaurant, you’ll want to keep a few things in mind.
Consistency is key
Restaurant managers are well-aware of the fact that they are a jack-of-all-trades. From creating a local online marketing plan to filling in for an employee that called out sick, no task is off-limits for you — making consistency crucial.
One of the reasons why consumers choose to dine at franchise restaurants is because they know exactly what type and quality food they are purchasing. This knowledge can come from a few different places, two of which are under your control:
- Customer dined at your restaurant
- Customer visited a different location in your franchise
- Online reviews or word of mouth recommendations
While you can’t control experiences at other locations, you can control the experience that customers have at your restaurant. Ensure that you follow all guidelines set forth by your franchisor and you’ll build word of mouth and online recommendations for your location and the brand as a whole.
When you provide customers with the best experience possible, you’ll boost your positive reviews on sites like Facebook, Google and Yelp. With 89% of people trusting online reviews as much as personal recommendations, having positive reviews really can impact your bottom line and can mean the difference between someone visiting your location or a competitor.
Embrace local preferences
Just because you embrace consistency doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t incorporate local preferences and flavor into your restaurant. Many restaurant franchises have a core menu of items that are served at every single location, but a few regional items that reflect local cuisine.
For example, you can order the same Big Mac whether you are at a McDonald’s in Boston or San Diego. However, if you visit a Hawaii location, Spam and rice are on the menu. St. Louis locations serve toasted ravioli. Abroad in Finland? Try the halibut sandwich.
Adding local flavor into your restaurant will create a bigger customer base for your location because it will appeal to both local customers and visitors alike. You’ll get the additional benefit of standing out from a nearby competitor, too.
Manage your time
From managing payroll to clearing a table, being a restaurant owner isn’t always as glamorous as Hollywood movies make it out to be. While you do work for yourself, to be successful you need to find ways to prioritize the essentials and delegate other items.
You might not be a marketer or a chef, but you’ll have to wear both of those hats periodically. Over time, you’ll learn which tasks require your direct management and which you can have a member of your team handle.
It might feel like a burden to have to handle responding to reviews on Facebook (or how the dishwasher works), knowing the ins and outs of every part of your restaurant will make you an expert. That expertise will come in handy when it comes time to market your business to new customers, or even hire new employees.
Initially, you should be prepared to make mistakes — and learn from those mistakes. There isn’t a business out there (cough…Apple…cough) that doesn’ thave setbacks. The ability to learn and rebound from minor setbacks will set you apart from the competition and cement your place in the community.
Embrace technology
I know that I’ve painted a pretty busy picture of a restaurant franchise owner. That being said, there are lots of tools out there that can help you manage different parts of your responsibilities. Ask your franchisor if they have specific ordering software you can use, how to add information to your landing page on their website and if there are any marketing templates you can use for your local marketing.
If your franchisor doesn’t have a subscription to any local online marketing software, look into different platforms to manage things like online reviews and social media management. LocalVox Social is a local online marketing technology used by many different types of franchises — from single location restaurants to multi-location franchises — to stay connected and informed of what’s happening in real-time on social media and review sites.
Available on both your desktop computer and mobile phone, LocalVox Social helps restaurant owners work smarter and save time, all while you increase your restaurant’s engagement with customers. To learn more about how LocalVox Social can help you manage your local online marketing strategy, click here.
About our “What You Need to Know” series
The LocalVox “What You Need to Know” series takes a deep dive into a specific industry that is part of the local business community. While all local businesses share many commonalities, the industry you are a part of also plays a major role in your identity and how you market yourself online to local customers.
Whether you are a new restaurant franchisee or established, “What You Need to Know” will provide you with industry trends, statistics and ideas to help you create a local online marketing strategy that capitalizes on your unique industry.
One thing you don’t need to know how to do is local marketing. LocalVox provides a simple, effective and affordable online marketing platform, specific to local businesses, no matter your industry. You can use it to build your online marketing strategy to engage consumers in your area, even showcase your location cuisine. From local SEO to reviews, LocalVox can help spread your franchise message across every online channel with the touch of a button. Learn more about LocalVox.
What do you wish you knew about food and hospitality franchises before you joined the game? Let us know, below.
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