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Social Networking Drives Franchise Industry

Written on February 18th, 2008 by Joseph in Franchise Industry.

Networking is of utmost importance to all businessmen. That is why they had guilds in the middle ages and have the Chamber of Commerce today. It gives them the right platform to meet others of their kind, exchange ideas and grow their business. Today, with the world going digital, they have a new tool in hand – social networking sites such as Franchise Ultra Lounge. These sites have come up as effective and low-cost means of advertising wares. More and more people are spending considerable amount of time in the cyber-world chatting with friends, checking out new videos or downloading songs and in order to get their attention, companies are trying out every possible way.

When a franchising company creates a profile, usually it generates the attention of the customers by posting something eye-catching in the site. For example, one Mexican fast-food chain held a contest of unsigned artists and uploaded the winner’s song in its profile page. The page, which counted only the employees as friends, soon had numerous visitors as people flocked to the pages to hear the songs. The contest or the loading was not advertised in the traditional methods. Only word-of-mouth publicity generated so much curiosity! The huge interest surrounding the profile of the company translated into increased traffic in the stores of the food-chain. As a result, the concept raked up a handsome profit and is planning to start a new contest very soon. This is a great example of how the “social” part of social networking sites can work wonder!

But before you jump in, there are some things that you should keep in mind. First is the target customer. If your target customers are young and net-savvy, then think about joining a good social networking site. But, if your target customers are financiers and stockbroker types, then this may not be the right approach. Also be genuinely interested in the subjects that you will be promoting in your page. If you are a fake, then you will surely be spotted and the whole affair will be a waste of time. Do not try to sell your business directly; instead generate such response that will make come asking for more information.

You can use these social networking sites in many ways. You can advertise your business, find interested potential franchisees or create an exclusive board where you can just chat in a relaxed environment. Then there are social networking sites especially for franchising businesses.

To know more, contact brandEXPANSION.

2 Responses to “Social Networking Drives Franchise Industry”

Megan Left at 6:12 pm on February 18th, 2008
1

I always enjoy when non traditional marketing means find their way into business culture outside of the online marketing industry. Great stuff in this post.

“But, if your target customers are financiers and stockbroker types, then this may not be the right approach.”

If I may add: This isn’t necessarily so. By engaging with ‘power users’ of social networking sites, taking on a natural relationship building networking approach, you can begin to ‘influence the influencers’ so to speak. You can search sites like facebook and digg by content they distribute. Then by offering up evocative content that appeals to their interests and previous submissions, you can gain social media exposure indirectly.

Sorry for the rant.

Franchise Business Opportunities | Social Networking Drives Franchise Industry Left at 11:00 pm on February 18th, 2008
2

[…] When a franchising company creates a profile, usually it generates the attention of the customers by posting something eye-catching in the site. For example, one Mexican fast-food chain held a contest of unsigned artists and uploaded the winner’s song in its profile page. Read full post. […]