Yesterday I sat down to sketch out a lead generation plan for a small start up franchisor. With a small monthly budget, I found myself having to reallocate dollars originally intended for SEO/SEM.  Since leads generated by the franchisors website are far more qualified than other lead sources, I found myself asking, “How can I still focus on SEO without allocating significant dollars”?  After looking back at what FRANDEAVOR has achieved for Snipits.com (44% increase in website traffic), I focused in on the following tactics:

1. Internet Press Releases – Submit monthly press releases to webwire.com. Webwire will push the press release out to multiple PR and news websites for indexing. A couple of things to remember in drafting your press release: content needs to be news worthy, include target key words, and link key words back to your website.
2. Blogs – Add a blog to your website. Each blog posting adds to the number of website pages reviewed by the search engines. The more blogs you post incorporating your target key words the better your optimization. In addition, you can reuse blog content for article submissions on industry sites. Make sure to include a bio and a link back to your website.
3. Social Media – Trying to get your arms around social media can be challenging at best. It’s easy to feel like you are running all over the place without any direction. Think of Social Media as a branding tool. It’s an extension of your brand – just like the sign on the front of your building. Create profiles on facebook, twitter, and LinkedIn with key brand information including photos, website address, and up-to date content.
4. Participate in Media Sites: Remember the more times your URL is posted out in the World Wide Web in the same context as your key words, the higher your website will rank.  YouTube and Google Video are great sites to post newsworthy video supporting your brand. If you aren’t comfortable with a video recorder, post a PowerPoint slideshow to slideshare.com. (Hint: use stats, graphs, and lots of photos in your presentation). Tag all of the above with your key words and URL.

To quote an over used cliché, “boot-strap SEO… less than $300, seeing your website on the first page of a Google search… priceless!”

Interested in having FRADEAVOR take a look at your lead generation or franchise sales process? Contact Christine@frandeavor.com or 949-498-2611 for a free consultation.

This month I took on a special lead generation project for a major sub franchise (for those of you who know me, yes it is the same major sub franchise that I gave the better part of a decade to).  Our goal was pretty simple, generate as many leads as possible, stay on budget, and oh yeah try and come up with something new.

With my proposal in hand, I went to one of the major franchise portals. (No, I didn’t actually have to speak to the devil to get an appointment).  Working with a web portal is about as far from “new” as I could get.  However, I took advantage of a new service many of them are offering: an opportunity to send an email blast to their database. Using the portals database of prospects, I sent out an exclusive offer to 120,000 prospect email addresses.  Huge results!  The email blast yielded over 1000 leads within a week.

Couple of things to keep in mind in a portal email blast:

1. Confirm how many blasts are going out in the month. You may not get a straight answer but you don’t want your blast going out on the heels of another brand.
2. Get everything the portal promises in writing, this is still a new service for most and they don’t have all the terms worked out.
3. Content: the portals are not writers and they aren’t experts on your brand. Stay active in the creative development of both the email content and landing page.

If you are interested in having FRANDEAVOR manage an email blast on your behalf, please call 949-498-2611 for more information.

I sold a franchise to a Unicorn. Yep, last week I closed a lead that was generated from a blog posting: AKA: Social Media. We’ve all heard stories of mythical leads generated by “free” postings on blogs and social sites, but until last week I hadn’t actually seen one.

If you are like me, you’ve got your twitter account, Facebook fan page, linkedin profile, but how do you convert these medias into active live leads?

1.     Make sure your website is rock solid. All social media efforts point in one direction, straight back to your website.  As a result, your franchise offering needs to be clear, easy to navigate, and compelling. Don’t waste one dime or one minute on social media until your website is powerful enough to convert any traffic into a lead.

2.     Social Media is not free. You need a staff member and a brand champion to lead your social media efforts. This person needs to be a skilled writer, fluent in the language of social media, and they need to be an authentic FAN of your brand.  You need to pay for their dedicated time in executing your social media plan. Don’t assign your social media efforts to the intern or the receptionist; assign it to a key member of your team.

3.      Know your target franchisee. You’ve got to know everything about your target franchisee. By identifying where your target prospect shops, listens to music, and gets their news and hobbies, you can easily target the right blogs and social sites to engage in conversation.

4.     Finally, be authentic.  The great thing about social media is that it’s the people’s media.  It’s not sponsored by Coke, or littered with pop ups.  Social Media is like-minded people sharing ideas on a given topic.  As a result, if you post a sales pitch or canned response readers will see right through it. Be passionate, be relevant, and you’ll become a member of the community.

If you’d like more information on lead generation, please visit our website at www.frandeavor.com. 

Many inexperienced Internet marketers inadvertently rely on a “spray and pray” approach getting their message out to the public.  What is “spray and pray” you ask?  Just like it sounds; “spray” as many banner ads and impressions as your budget allows then get on your knees and “pray” for clicks.  Our clients demand a more sophisticated campaign and often ask, “Is there a strategic way to position Internet banner advertising or are all campaigns based on the “spray and pray” method?”

The answer is yes……. and no.  Even the clever boys from MAD MEN will tell you that frequency and number of impressions are key elements to an effective banner ad campaign.  In order to overcome the diversity and fragmentation of the average Internet user, franchisors must run a high number of impressions to hit the right user at the right time and earn the click.  Because we all surf the net at all hours of the day and easily jump from site to site, the more sites you are on the better.  Add the complexity of communicating a franchise opportunity in a small 720 x 80 leader board and clearly more impressions provide a greater opportunity for a response.

However, if praying for results doesn’t equate to a real business strategy, taking the following steps can dramatically increase the effectiveness of the campaign:

• Secure your banner ads with an agency that brokers large volumes of Internet advertising. They will be able to get you the best rate (i.e. more “spray” for your buck.)  These large agencies often have a think tank that monitors the effectiveness of campaigns on a daily basis. This will allow them to fine tune the number of impressions released daily to ensure the lowest ppc and cpl. In addition, they often times have bonus inventory you can test on alternative sites.
• The banner ad is only the calling card; the landing page is where the magic happens. If you don’t have a strong landing page, save your money for more traditional ad campaigns.
• Run your banner ads on nationally recognized websites that will help secure brand awareness and validate the franchise offering.  These national websites should be viewed as strategic partners.
• Know your prospect profile. The more info you know about your typical franchisee, the better your banner ad placement will be.
• Make sure your agency understands the difference between franchise recruitment and the consumer side of your business.  Look to finance and lifestyle websites vs websites in your designated category.

Christine Mudd – founder of FRADEAVOR

Follows us on Twitter at twitter.com/frandeavor

Although web portals continue to be the most cost effective source for franchise lead generation, deep down I am holding out for a campaign that is not only cost effective but also provides a franchise lead that is only looking at my clients brand. When I came across an ‘affiliate’ program, I was a little confused but hopeful.

So to be clear, or as clear as an “affiliate” program can be:

• Websites of all shapes and sizes group together and form a “network”.
• Based on the quality of a franchisor banner ad and landing page, these websites and networks will “opt” to advertise your banner ad on their site for free.
• When a candidate clicks on the banner ad, reviews your landing page, and submits a request for franchise information, you pay a flat cost per lead.
• The cost per lead varies by network. The better your banner ad and landing page are, the lower your cost per lead.
• The averages cost ranges from $35 – $50 per lead.

I am now five weeks into a campaign and have learned a couple of things. First, it takes time for the websites who “opt” in to actually post the banner ads. The first few weeks are slow, with about 10 leads a week. As time goes by, the leads steadily increase to as many as 25 leads a day.

I dislike that I never know exactly what websites are running the ads and I dislike even more that I don’t know which ones are most effective.

However, I love this program because it has little risk. If a banner ad runs 1 million times and no-one request information no harm no foul.

How qualified are these leads? It’s hard to say in at five weeks in. 

-Christine Mudd, founder of FRANDEAVOR

As the founder of a Franchise Development Firm, I spend about 30% of my day working on the business of franchise development and 70% of my life talking about Lead Generation.  Nothing happens in franchising without that first lead, sales people cant close, real estate brokers can’t secure sites, and construction guys can’t build.  Thus, “IT’S ALL ABOUT THE FRANCHISE SALES LEAD BLOG” is born.

Each week, I will feature different war stories regarding lead generation.  I’ll also invite other franchise veterans to share key tactics and strategies.  Participation is key to breaking the code in lead generation, so please  . . .  comment with your wounds, victories, and cost per leads analysis.