Franchise Blogging About Franchise Blogging

Today we’re franchise blogging about franchise blogging. Lots of blogging about franchises, and we’re getting into the fray.

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article (by Richard Gibson) all about franchise blogs, and the franchise blog community promptly blogged about the article on franchise blogs.

• To wit:
  Franchise-Chat (http://www.franchise-chat.com/). This blog has an international flavor, if you’re interested in going global.
• The Franchise Pundit (franchisepundit.com). Advice and news from a franchise attorney.
• Unhappy Franchisee (http://www.unhappyfranchisee.com/). Provides a forum for discussion of negative aspects of a franchise.
• WikidFranchise.org. WikidFranchise.org Like the well-known Wikipedia, a place for anyone to add relevant information.

…And then franchise blogs blogged about the franchise blog article…

Bizzia.com blogged about the WSJ article and managed to eclipse the actual article in Google prominence.Notable sites that escaped mention include FranchisePick.Com, FranBest.com, TopNewFranchises.com, Michael Webster’s The BizOpp News, and Joel Libava’s The Franchise King blog. While not a blog, Richard Solomon’s Franchise Remedies also includes a wealth of information and insights.

All this makes me believe that the term blogosphere is literal, not figurative – the image of a giant wired structure, perhaps plexiglass, surrounding the literal globe, with electronic info pinging out and back, so that every bit of information known by any human at any time about the world of franchise is instantly known by every other human.

Check out marketing assistance, direct mail for franchises for more information.

Franchise And the apocalypse…

Franchise And the apocalypse…

Questionable economic times put me in mind of apocalyptic novels. My favorites, Alas, Babylon and Lucifer’s Hammer make the big point that it’s people with control of their own small business – can you say franchise – who have the best chance of survival.

Because having control of your own small team of well-trained, hard-working people who you’ve chosen to help run your franchise is a big step up.

Franchise and The Big Comet…
Say the big comet hits unexpectedly, and you and your franchise team are working a typical day. You’ve got a pool of people already practiced at working together, with a variety of skills, AND a supply of coffee, which will make you king in a post-apocalyptic environment.

Franchise and Pandemic…
Stephen King’s The Stand, right? Millions fall, but you and your franchise team are running a yacht service out of the Gulf of Mexico – you’ve got fishing gear and strong people; you’ve got a better chance than most.

Franchise and Nuclear Destruction….
Basically, no more electricity for awhile, Alas, Babylon, but with your barbeque franchise, you’ve got the tools to cook with fire, and you’ve got your franchise team of employees who are accustomed to hard work and irritable, hungry people.

Franchise and the e-bomb thingie
Nothing electrical at all, but with your furniture repair business you’ve got building skills and your franchise team of craftsmen – you’re golden!

Check out marketing assistance, direct mail for franchises for more information.

Cylon Philosophy as Applied to Direct Mail Marketing

Don’t know if you’ve been keeping up with Battlestar Galactica, but you may have noticed the following recurring phrase: “All this has happened before, and will happen again.”

Cylon Philosophy as Applied to Direct Mail Marketing

This is pretty much the way of things in life, fiction, and in marketing of all sorts. Direct mail marketing might have been presumed to have gone the way of the “Toasters” – the original Cylons – obsolete.

Direct Mail Marketing On Earth

But direct mail never really went away. Direct mail marketing to potential customers is still a viable marketing technique. Direct mail can be customized to specific neighborhoods, districts, zips, as well as to specific economies and interests.

Direct mail marketing has an additional advantage in tough economic times – customers are more willing to carefully consider mail containing coupons than they might be in more affluent times. Direct mail marketing is obviously a great way to get the coupon directly into the hands of customers.

You can get a little expansive with direct mail, unlike the rigid constraints imposed upon radio or television advertisements. Direct mail can contain far more information, and consumers may well pay more attention, as they can pick up your direct mail postcard at their leisure and read it all through

In troublesome times, consumers tend to take emotional solace in tradition, making them more likely to celebrate holidays and events and thus more likely to look twice at the coupon in your direct mail postcard.

All this has happened before and will happen again – applies to direct mail marketing as well as to the destinies of humans and robots.

Check out marketing assistance, direct mail for franchises for more information.

Franchise Issues for Women

Franchise Issues for Women

It’s odd to realize that my mom was raised in an era that produced Mildred Pierce, perhaps the earliest film female franchisor.

And Mildred’s story is fairly standard when it comes to franchising; she rose from being a waitress to support her family on her own, to being an owner, to being a franchise owner, ruling over a sea of franchisees, all in a woman’s area of expertise – food.

Mildred's Marketing Expertise
Marketing and branding, along with building and expanding her franchise, come as second nature to Mildred – her restaurants are called “Mildred’s” – and the franchise seems to expand practically effortlessly.

Franchise Issues Nowadays
Statistics nowadays for female franchise owners are difficult to come by – though female franchisees seem to be keeping pace with female business owners in general – around 38% -- statistics for female franchise owners are more difficult to come by. Speculation is that, quite often, the husband’s name appears on the franchise finance papers because, surprise! Banks still prefer men when they’re doling out money.

And, it’s still true that the path to franchise for a woman is fraught with difficulty – developing, marketing, branding, franchises is time-consuming, and something else is time-consuming – what was that? Oh, raising children!

...And What About Marketing?
A franchise owner has to develop marketing and promotional plans that will work in varying markets, as well as be an expert in the business itself, in franchise contract law, in franchise training and administration – it’s a big task.

Mildred Pierce was successful with her franchise but failed – spectacularly – with her children – and for women today it’s still a legitimate fear – running two parallalel franchises – a business and a family – is still a fabulous prospect.


Check out marketing assistance, direct mail for franchises for more information.