Monthly Archives: April 2014

Diversifying the Businesses You Own

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Many feel that if managed properly, owning a diverse set of businesses can help insulate against business peaks and troughs in the market. Many wealth planners will generally present diversification models to allow the purchase of multiple asset classes such as stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Diversification in the franchise industry is different. Franchisees can diversify within a particular industry by acquiring different brands.  Diversifying within the same industry, such as the buying several different restaurant brands, still allows the franchisee to apply the same basic infrastructure to their business.

This strategy of franchising helps spread the risk from a franchisee’s perspective. If the demography of existing brands and new brands are vastly different, there becomes an opportunity to cross-market both products and knowledge. Aziz Hashim, the president and CEO of NRD Holdings, LLC, highlights a smart way to diversify in his recent piece in Franchising World about this topic, stating that “The most effective way to execute a diversification strategy is to identify opportunities in new sectors where the operational complexity is generally lower than the existing operations so as to not dilute the franchisee’s time and focus, where at least some existing infrastructure can be leveraged and ideally where there are natural synergies through complementary service offerings and similar demographic.” Complementary service offerings can play a key role in expanding your opportunities and create growth.

Do you own a diverse set of businesses? We would love to hear feedback from you!

Marketing to the “20-Somethings” of the World

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I have been reading recently about a hot topic in marketing and advertising – targeting the Millennial generation. Who is the Millennial generation, you may ask? While there has been some debate over when the generation starts and stops, generally, it is considered those born between 1977 and 1995. Larger than the baby boomers’ 76 million, there are an estimated 80 million Millennials in this group of 18 to 34 year olds.

So from a marketing perspective, how do we target this generation of people ranging from college students to young parents? First off, we must recognize that most Millennials are technology dependent. There are several tips that Susan Glosby from FIT4MOM offered in this past month’s issue of Franchising World magazine offers some advice.

1. Offer ease of access to your information

Most Millennials use their smartphones and other similar electronic devices to access webpages. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and is easy to read for those accessing info via a smartphone. Additionally, make sure you have all the information people are seeking on your site – contact information, sales information, costs of goods – if they can’t find it quickly, they may take their business elsewhere.

2. A sense of involvement and purpose

Millennials are said to care about the purpose and identity of the brands they support more than generations of the past. What does your brand do to make the world a better place? This generation wants to know. Do you promote local volunteering with your franchisees and employees? Do you help educate your community? Do you donate to certain causes as a company? They want to know those things, and are more likely to be a repeat customer if your ideals are in line with their own.

3. Peer value

Use social media to provide peer endorsements! Millennials have the sense that when using technology, they are never truly alone – their peers are always with them. Having Instagram tags, a Facebook page, a twitter account, allows this generation to easily do some of the advertising for you among their friends.

 

What other ways can we appeal to our 20-somethings? Leave your marketing tips in the comments below!

Franchise Profile: Baskin Robbins

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Are you looking for a cool franchising opportunity?

Named “#1 Ice Cream & Frozen Treat Franchise” by Entrepreneur Magazine, Baskin-Robbins is the world’s largest chain of ice cream shops. Baskin Robbins has developed over the years to  offer ice cream and frozen desserts with creative cones, unique cakes, specialty desserts, frozen beverages and take-home treats. They also offer BRight Choices®, a line of better-for-you options including fat-free, dairy-free, no sugar added and light ice creams.

Reasons to Invest

  • Simplistic operations with convenient operating hours
  • Multiple revenue streams – in-store, take home, cakes and beverages
  • 95% brand awareness with a multi-million dollar national advertising program
  • Flexible real estate options
  • First-rate product innovation and new product pipeline
  • World-class training and support

Baskin Robbins can be opened in a traditional storefront with a floor plan usually between 800-1,500 square feet, or in non-traditional venues such as gas and convenient stores, universities, airports, mall food courts, and stadiums. To learn more about Baskin Robbins and available franchising opportunities, check out Baskin Robbins over on Franchise Clique.