How to promote your brand

Promotion of a franchise business plays a significant role in accomplishing the business goals, be it to expand the franchise network or to grow the revenues of the company. It is a critical part of any franchise business as the franchisor has to make sure that the potential franchisees must get the requisite information. Besides this information, it is also important to ensure that the information will positively influence the aspirants and convince them to take up the franchise and get started with the business.

Mode of promotion

There are large numbers of methods available for the promotion of the brand. It is always advisable to plan your promotional strategy considering your budget and requirement. It should be regular exercise that a franchisor needs to undergo to keep his brand reaching various levels of success. As Kumar Kannan, MD, Image Infotainment Ltd says, “A success of a product lies in the communication which reaches the target audience. To build a brand, a strong promotional strategy is required and this includes advertising in press and electronic media, conducting seminars, and events about the industry which is associated with the brand there by increasing the awareness of the brand.” Companies usually opt for marketing mix, which is considered as the best way to endorse a franchise business and its products or services. It involves all form of communications that are used by a marketer such as advertising, public relations, trade shows, workshops, entrepreneur summits and words of mouth. To use these promotional tools effectively, it is very important on the franchisor’s part to plan and structure the promotional strategy with utmost care.

Developing a promotional strategy

Promotion is an ongoing process that requires carefully planned strategy that needs to be effectively implemented and consistently carried out. According to Ghouse Mohiuddin, Managing Director, Cafe Desire, “Promotional strategy plays a very important role as it creates connect with the brand. You can communicate with consumers/aspiring franchisees by structuring and designing a proper strategy and let them know what your brand stands for.” Therefore, you need to follow the following four steps to develop an effective promotional strategy:

• Market Analysis: The thorough analysis of the market (you are planning to expand into) is required in order to understand the opportunity and the feasibility of your brand in the local market. A feasibility test should be carried out before venturing into the particular market to avoid failures and to introduce the required changes in the franchise business. 
• Marketing strategy: Once done with the identification of the opportunity, a franchisor has to start strategic planning to pursue the opportunity to be developed. A right approach coupled with the detailed description of all the leverages (that your franchisee will get when partners with you) is all it takes to convince an aspiring entrepreneur to join hands with your company.  
•  Marketing mix decision: Then comes the time to decide which, when and for how long a particular promotional tool is to be utilised for the promotion of the franchise business. It is the most critical part of the promotional strategy as the whole idea is to serve the target group. As per Kannan, “Conducting workshop related to the industry online, direct marketing promotion on the brand and the product associated with it. This kind of promotional strategy will help significantly in the growth of a brand.” 
• Implementation and Control: After deciding on the above three steps comes the implementation of the promotional strategy. Keep a check on the promotional activities and how effectively it is working to meet your goals. This monitoring is crucial to evaluate your promotional strategy from time-to-time to survive in the market.
• In short, promotion is an ongoing process that must be planned vigilantly. Know your budget and utilise your resources smartly to capitalize on the opportunity.