This blog includes a unique offer for a full sales process review by the Coconuts! Keep reading to find out why…
Improving your franchisee conversion is a VERY hot topic in franchise marketing at the moment. Tweaking your recruitment process can really boost your conversion rates and get the right prospects to say YES to you! With the first quarter of the year under your belt, Spring is the ideal time to reflect on how the year has started and plan for the months ahead.
Where is the room for change; what improvements could you make to your sales process that will make the biggest impact? It could be introducing new collateral, automating manual processes or simply ensuring the right level of communication goes out at the right time. The world is your oyster and now is the time to start reflecting on these changes.
Communication; keeping your communication channels open during the recruitment process is an important factor in converting your leads into franchisees. People like to be communicated with in different ways – it’s a balance of socio-economic factors and the level of urgency or interest involved. Make sure that you keep up with the advances in communication technology otherwise you may be left standing at the fax machine whilst your competitor runs past in a flurry of tweets
Team resource; are your staff reaching maximum capacity? What processes do they do that could be automated in the sales process, could you have automated lead capture or send automated emails? Are there any gaps in the process they could plug with the extra time saved?
Support; are there areas in this process where you would value advice? Or would you like a review of the entire process? We will be offering a Recruitment Process Review package for a limited time only this Spring and it can be utilised as a stand-alone project from our service offering! We only have 3 packages left available for franchisors to take advantage of, so get in touch now to ensure you are one of them! Once they’re gone, they’re gone!
Contact us now to book your own recruitment process review. Book quickly – only 3 left!
Social media is a great way to engage with your customers. However, with great exposure comes great responsibility! Here at Coconut, we like to bring you the most current news on marketing and our contacts at Freeths Solicitors have written this blog on the legalities surrounding social media. Here’s what they think you need to know to keep ahead of intellectual property rights online.
Part 1: intellectual property issues
1 Who owns what you post?
Check the terms and conditions for each social media platform you use (or get your lawyer to do it if they seem a bit dull). Often they will allow the platform provider to do whatever they want with your content once you have posted it. You might be OK with that, but it underlines the importance of thinking about every post.
You need to make sure that you are happy to release that content into the wild and relinquish control over its future exploitation.
2 Late to the party?
Cysbersquatting isn’t just an issue that affects domain names. Many businesses find that their preferred online moniker has been registered by a third party by the time they get around to engaging with social media as a business tool.
Different platforms will have different rules for dealing with these issues but, in general, unless the account is being used in a way that infringes your intellectual property rights, the platform provider is unlikely to intervene.
Your lawyer may be able to find a solution for you in the platform’s Ts&Cs and policies, but often there is no legal remedy. In those cases, you may have little choice but to adopt a different username, or to offer to purchase the account from the current owner.
If you choose the former, consider the impact on the new name from a brand and trade mark protection point of view. Does the variation on the main brand name dilute or undermine the distinctiveness of the brand? Is the username a variation on your core brand that might be worth protecting as a trade mark in its own right?
If you choose to offer to buy the account, there are ways to make discreet approaches and keep the price reasonable.
3 Trade mark infringement and passing off
If an account that bears your brand name (or one similar to it) is being used commercially by a third party then, on the face of it, you would appear to have a claim in trade mark infringement or passing off. Chances are though that the Twitter account will be the least of your worries and there will be other infringing acts online and elsewhere to complain of.
Of course, the world is a still a big place, and the current owner of that account might have every right to use that name in relation to the goods or services they provide in their own territory. As always, these things depend on the facts. Because intellectual property laws include remedies for “groundless threats”, it is important to talk to a specialist lawyer before taking or threatening legal action.
4 Parody accounts
What can you do if someone is using a social media account which, at a glance, looks like it might be connected to your business, but is in fact a parody account which pokes fun at your business? You know you should probably be flattered, because no-one parodies a failure, but it just doesn’t sit right with you…
Parody accounts are not typically used in the course of trade, so trade mark infringement or passing off claims will fall at the first hurdle. Defamation and similar claims will also be difficult (particularly as, since the Defamation Act 2013 came in, businesses have to prove “serious financial harm” to succeed in a defamation action). Moreover, threats of legal action may find their way into the public domain, achieving little more than proving that you have no sense of humour.
As ever, check the Ts&Cs. You may be able to compel the account holder, via the platform provider, to at least include a prominent statement on their feed making it clear that it is a parody account and not connected to you.
The key message is this: by all means have your lawyer look into it – everything turns on its own facts – but where there is no legal remedy the best response is probably to publically ignore it, learn what you can from it about perceptions of your business in the marketplace and factor that into your marketing strategy. In the words of Don Draper: “If you don’t like what’s being said, change the conversation”.
Part two of our social media tips will look more specifically at advertising and reputational issues.
This is only a summary of the law in force at the present time and is not exhaustive, nor does it contain definitive advice. Specialist advice should be sought from a member of Freeths Franchise or Intellectual Property and Technology teams in relation to any queries.
Click here to see the original blog post and if you would like further information or advice on this topic please contact:
Our second marketing workshop of the year took place last week and focussed on increasing franchisee conversion. Our delegates created their very own ‘keep warm’ campaigns using our famous techniques and heard from expert speakers on they can tweak their recruitment process to yield better results.
Here’s what some of them had to say about the day…
“So many ideas my head is spinning. Can’t wait to get started.” Gemma Tumulty, The HR Dept
“A lot of value offered, with some really actionable marketing tips” James Mooney, The Dwyer Group
“You cannot stay abreast of best practice in franchise marketing without attending a Coconut Creatives workshop” Dan Archer, Red Flag Alert
To help you improve YOUR franchisee conversion, our Founder, Sarah Carlile, shares her top tips on keeping your leads warm.
Dave Williams is Director of Franchising at RBS. He is a banking franchise expert and knows the industry inside out – he works with both Franchisors and Franchisees. Below he offers some useful tips to those Franchisors that are looking to make their business a bigger success.
“At RBS we specialise in looking after the financial needs of SMEs and mid to large corporate businesses. The bank’s Franchise team have a wealth of knowledge and experience and aim to provide bespoke solutions to both franchisors and franchisees.
As the franchisor, you face many demands. From recruiting new franchisees to liaising with stake holders, from managing operations to maintaining a competitive edge. Here are some top tips I can offer to take your franchise to the next level are:
Keep your operations manual up-to-date
Ensure your projections are based on recent franchise data
Maintain a great relationship with your franchise bank
Manage your cash flow and plan for expansion
Assess how your business is performing and analyse this regularly
Offer training tools for new employees to create first-class customer service
Utilise the ‘cloned’ model that is there to help you avoid failure
If you think there’s a ceiling to how much money you can make in franchising, you’re wrong. For most of us, if we want to “hit the big time,” we’re going to need to grow to that point rather than start there. It may take a little longer that way, but the advantage is that you have learned everything you need to know along the way.
Remember, you are part of a bigger franchise picture, with thousands of new business start-ups forming every year, so make your franchise stand out for the right reasons and run your business with the aim to making it profitable.”
Mail Boxes Etc. (MBE), a client of Coconut Creatives, Stratford-upon-Avon recently had the opportunity to witness history in the making. Cynneth Bonanos’ store partnered with West Midlands auction house, Cuttlestones, to provide pack and ship services for a very interesting one-off auction.
MBE is one of the world’s largest non-food retail franchises with over 1,500 stores in five continents including over 150 in the UK and Ireland. They are the only high-street chain that offers consumers and local companies a truly comprehensive range of business services. Their high-street, one-stop-shop concept offers a mix of logistics, postal, print and copy services to help meet people’s every day needs.
The sale, which attracted an international audience of bidders, included lots derived primarily of arms and armour held within a single, private collection that spans various periods and continents. It included a set of 19th Century Horse armour, which comes complete with knight in full suit of armour and was formerly housed at The Metropolitan Museum, New York. Also included was the world’s largest trebuchet arm, a giant crossbow designed by Leonardo da Vinci, and several 18th Century flintlock pistols, alongside a host of other fascinating items.
Cynneth and his team from MBE Stratford-upon-Avon were there on the day to help remote bidders from private collectors to public museums, snap up their favourite lots with confidence, partnering with Cuttlestones to ensure that all lots were collected, packed and shipped to their lucky new owners – wherever in the world they might have been!
“As a local business, we thought it was great to have a presence at the auction. We had pre-priced the lots in advance so that we could give quotes for packing and shipping in both the UK and overseas quickly,” explains Cynneth.
The collection was sold because the museum wanted their exhibitions to focus on three key periods – the Civil War and World Wars I and II.
“Packing everything up from the auction kept us busy for at least a month after the auction and it really tested our limits. The auction really boosted our sales for the month. Suits of armour and cannons are not something we package up everyday! However, it’s not too difficult because a suit of armour is extremely light and you can custom-build the box. Some of the weirdest items we packaged were a stuffed Dodo and Heron – the person who bought the Dodo wanted it to keep in his house,” adds Cynneth.
MBE’s experience and expertise in packing and shipping is unrivalled and they assist key clients such as world-renowned auction house Sotheby’s and, working together with Nike, assisted in increasing their in-store sales of Nike id by 80% through offering a click, design and ship service worldwide. They are full members of the British Franchise Association, promoting ethical franchising and are the only national network of Pack & Ship stores approved by UPS, Parcelforce Worldwide and FedEx.
“The diversity of the collection really was astonishing. There was everything from tribal and oriental armour through to medieval suits of armour and heavy artillery, and even lots with a Shakespearean connection. This was a once-in-a-lifetime sale of items and the fact that the items hail from a single, private collection and have been housed in a museum for several years. Add to that the rarity of many of the items and we saw global buyers out in force,” adds Ben Gamble, managing director and head auctioneer at Cuttlestones Auctioneers and Valuers.
Mail Boxes Etc., a client of Coconut Creatives, have scored a hat trick this month. Not just one but three new franchisees have opened their own Mail Boxes Etc. stores this month. Imran Naveed, Ahmad Nawaz and Louis Owens are all proud new owners of their very own businesses in London – Stratford, Welwyn Garden City and Lewisham.
Imran is completely new to the business and is looking forward to getting stuck into his new venture. Ahmad, who was already an employee in a Mail Boxes Etc. store, is hoping to use his existing knowledge of the business to build his own successful store and Louis, formerly a serving member of the Royal Navy in logistics, is enjoying transferring his skills from Navy logistics, to a slightly different form of logistics, in everyday worldwide document and parcel delivery.
Mail Boxes Etc. is one of the world’s largest non-food retail franchises with over 1,500 stores in five continents including over 150 in the UK and Ireland. They are the only high-street chain that offers consumers and local companies a truly comprehensive range of business services. Their high-street, one-stop-shop concept offers a mix of logistics, postal, print and copy services to help meet people’s everyday needs.
“Mail Boxes Etc. was a great opportunity for me because it fit with my existing skillset and you get great support behind you when setting up your business. The support from the team at Mail Boxes Etc. has been brilliant. The biggest thing they did for me was to negotiate the lease of my store. I want to be hands-on in my business so even if I employ more staff I’ll still be heavily involved in the business. It will just mean that I have more opportunity to go out and get more business,” explains Imran.
As a successful global brand, Mail Boxes Etc. have learned what it takes to keep ahead in the retail sector and they’re sharing this knowledge with each and every one of their franchisees. With multiple revenue streams, franchisees benefit from a high-street brand that has dominated in its marketplace for 35 years and their longest-serving franchisee in the UK network has just celebrated 21 years!
“I was already working for Mail Boxes Etc. when I decided to become a franchisee. I knew that I had a lot of experience in the business and knew it would be an easy transition to become a franchisee. When you become a franchisee you are given much more responsibility and you have to come up with your own solutions to problems rather than having someone tell you how to do things. My business is going well so far and there’s always someone on the end of the phone at head office if I ever need any help. My plans for the future of my business are to make this store as successful as possible and look at opening more stores in the future,” adds Ahmad.
This blog includes a unique offer for a full sales process review by the Coconuts! Keep reading to find out why…
heck the terms and conditions for each social media platform you use (or get your lawyer to do it if they seem a bit dull). Often they will allow the platform provider to do whatever they want with your content once you have posted it. You might be OK with that, but it underlines the importance of thinking about every post.
Cysbersquatting isn’t just an issue that affects domain names. Many businesses find that their preferred online moniker has been registered by a third party by the time they get around to engaging with social media as a business tool.
If an account that bears your brand name (or one similar to it) is being used commercially by a third party then, on the face of it, you would appear to have a claim in trade mark infringement or passing off. Chances are though that the Twitter account will be the least of your worries and there will be other infringing acts online and elsewhere to complain of.
What can you do if someone is using a social media account which, at a glance, looks like it might be connected to your business, but is in fact a parody account which pokes fun at your business? You know you should probably be flattered, because no-one parodies a failure, but it just doesn’t sit right with you…
