ex per t advice
Adam Hannath | Sales Director | Buddy CRM
Optimizing Franchises through CRM Technology The franchise industry continues to go from strength to strength with many franchisors seeing significant uptake of licenses from people looking for the opportunity to own a proven business model and hit the ground running. According to the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) annual Economic Outlook Report for 2021, franchising is projected to open more than 26,000 locations, add nearly 800,000 new jobs, and contribute $477 billion to the US GDP. It is also expected to experience the highest upswing of franchise sales since the last recession, which in doing so, will negate much of the damage caused by COVID-19 in 2020.
missing their sales targets, which could be disastrous for the franchise as a whole. To mitigate this, there must be an emphasis on ensuring regular communication and adherence to systems and procedures. Yet the more the network grows, the greater the administration and oversight that is needed to manage it. This can test the organisation and efficiency of any business, which, more often than not, will have to evolve new ways of doing things.
Naturally, seeing so many franchises expanding, especially during a downturn, is fantastic news, but consideration must be given to the implications of such sudden growth. For example, a franchisor must be able to monitor how each unit in their network is performing, and also quickly identify when problems arise. Failure to do so will likely result in franchisees
The most effective solution to this is likely a technological one. It is no secret that tech has become a valuable asset to all manner of businesses. Across many industries “digital transformation” has become a commonly heard phrase, which at its most basic level is used to describe the adoption of new technologies by companies, in order to automate key areas like payroll or
Franchising USA
sales. Doing so is increasingly considered an essential business activity, helping to reduce operational costs, improve
productivity, increase profits, and generate
an overall better customer experience. It is
no wonder then that worldwide IT spending is projected to total $3.8 trillion in 2021,
an increase of 4% from 2020, according to the latest forecast by global research and advisory firm Gartner.
Yet achieving genuine digital
transformation is often beyond the means of most businesses, requiring huge
investment, fundamental organisational
change, and employee reskilling, with no
guarantee that it will be successful. Costs
can run into the thousands, if not millions, and even when achieved, savings not realised for many years.
