When you become a franchise owner, you have invested in a business that’s often backed by significant recognition and consumer trust that has been built over time. While this foundation can offer franchisees a valuable head start, growing your individual franchise location still requires a strategy to help attract and retain customers in your area. One way to foster strong customer relationships is through social media.

A well-managed social presence can help connect your franchise location with potential and existing customers in your area. However, simply posting content to social media often isn’t enough. Building a meaningful social presence requires consistent effort, which requires regularly interacting with users and followers by responding to comments, answering direct messages, and encouraging conversation on your posts.

Franchisors often include marketing support for franchisees, so it is important to inquire about what is allowed and/or already provided. For instance, some franchisors will allow you to create local accounts (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, etc.) with branded elements. Additionally, franchisors may provide you with marketing material, including social posts, that you can publish to these accounts. While posting your own content (as long as you follow brand guidelines) is essential, you can also supplement your content with this pre-approved material.

If your franchisor grants you access to manage your own social media accounts, you have the opportunity to build a community and drive local traffic to your franchise. Below are some of the reasons why this can be valuable:

RAISE LOCAL BRAND AWARENESS

The franchise you’ve invested in may be recognized nationally, but it’s essential to build familiarity at a local level, as your target customers are within your local community.

To generate interest, consider posting about your products and services on social media, sharing special offers, introducing seasonal items, and providing behind-the-scenes video content to build awareness and interest. Using relevant keywords and local hashtags can also help your posts reach the right audience. Another great tactic is to partner with other local businesses and help promote each other via social media. Once you’ve posted your photos or video, engaging with users by responding to their comments can enhance a post’s visibility on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. These platforms’ algorithms often prioritize video content with high views and engagement, making audience interaction even more crucial to boost reach.

CUSTOMERS SEEK AN ONLINE PRESENCE FROM BUSINESSES

Social media can be a valuable tool for franchisees to leverage. It can not only help showcase your specific location but also allow you to maintain the kind of online visibility that today’s consumers expect. In fact, 76% of consumers check a business’s online presence before they visit.

An online presence can extend beyond just a profile with a few posts. It is important to actively engage with users in the comments, showing potential customers (and reinforcing to current customers) that you are attentive, friendly, informative, and a brand they want to do business with. It’s a chance to show that there’s a real person behind the posts, making exchanges much more “human.”

64% of consumers want brands to connect with them, so meeting this need and enhancing your presence on social media can be an important way to stand out competitively.

GENERATE CONNECTIONS WITH CUSTOMERS

Building connections with your customers is a way to foster lasting relationships that drive long-term success. Research shows that 65% of consumers report feeling more connected when brands have a strong social media presence; when customers feel that connection to a brand, they are 68% more likely to recommend the brand to a friend, 64% more likely to remain loyal, 57% more likely to spend more, and 78% more likely to buy from the brand over a competitor.

While building this connection with customers is important, it doesn’t always just happen on its own. Engagement often needs content. One way to do this is by creating interactive content. Posts that encourage interaction by asking a question or providing some form of requested response are shown to generate 53% higher engagement rates than static content, and 46% of consumers say they want to see brands post interactive content.

Including questions in captions, using polls, and sharing conversation prompts, for example, are all simple but effective ways to invite responses. Not only can these strategies encourage more comments, likes, and shares, but they also allow franchisees to respond, generating two-way conversations that can strengthen customer relations. It’s a win-win!

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GAIN FEEDBACK DIRECTLY FROM THE SOURCE

When you engage with your customers on social media, you can hear unfiltered opinions or experiences. Whether they are positive or negative, it’s an opportunity to gain feedback that you can apply directly to your business operations. For instance, likes and comments on a post can reveal what your audience enjoys (or dislikes), which can help you determine what to post more of or even promote to customers in person.

PROVIDE A CONVENIENT FORM OF CUSTOMER SERVICE

You can consider your franchise location’s social media accounts as your corner of the internet, where you and your customers can connect. It’s a chance not only to share information that applies specifically to your location but also to offer a direct line of communication with current and potential customers.

Some consumers bypass direct calls, emails, and in-store visits, instead asking their questions in post comments or through direct messages, which makes applying a strong customer service strategy here key. A 2023 report found that 51% of consumers believe the most memorable action a brand can take is responding to their customers, while 76% report noticing and appreciating when companies prioritize customer support, especially in terms of how quickly they can respond. Therefore, engaging with customers on social media can make a positive impact on your customers and your franchise business overall.

Additionally, since almost 80% of American consumers cite convenience and speed as key factors in a positive customer experience, especially among Millennials and Gen Z, social media can provide a fast and effective channel to help meet those expectations. By responding promptly, you demonstrate that your business is attentive and ready to help. This can enhance the customer experience and leave a lasting first impression, helping to foster long-term retention and loyalty.

However, it is important to note that 70% of consumers expect a personalized response when they contact businesses on social media. As well, a recent report revealed 73% of social media users agree that if a brand doesn’t respond to their queries on social media, they’ll move on to a competitor. Engaging with customers on these platforms becomes paramount to attracting and retaining customers, and responding quickly with a personalized touch can significantly boost customer satisfaction.

FRANCHISING WITH DOGTOPIA

At Dogtopia, our franchise network understands the value of creating a positive customer experience both in-store and online. That’s why we provide our franchisees with social media accounts and content that helps build their local online presence and enables them to connect directly with customers. Learn more about the support we offer here.

If you are interested in learning more about bringing a Dogtopia daycare to your community, reach out to us using our convenient online inquiry form.

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