Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their very own.
Ever really feel such as you’re courting your leads? They present curiosity, ask all the best questions and arrange a follow-up name. Then, nothing. No e mail. No response. Simply silence. Folks purchase from folks, not faceless manufacturers. In case your content material is chilly, robotic, or generic, they will disengage. In case your outreach feels like everybody else’s, it is simple to disregard. And when you’re not constantly displaying up in a manner that grabs consideration, another person will.
And here is the painful reality: If a lead ghosts you, it is your fault. The excellent news is, you possibly can repair this. The answer is not extra follow-up emails — It is storytelling. I’ve seen franchise manufacturers wrestle to transform leads, doing all of the “proper” issues — operating advertisements, sending emails, following up — however after we inform the best story on video, every thing adjustments. Leads do not simply come again, they interact and join. Not as a result of we pushed more durable, however as a result of they felt one thing.
Franchisee success tales
A couple of years in the past, I sat throughout from a Glory Days Grill franchisee as she shared her story. Simply 5 years prior, she was homeless. Now, she’s a multi-unit proprietor. As she spoke, the load of every thing she had been by poured out. She cried, I cried, your complete set fell silent. This wasn’t nearly enterprise. This was about transformation. And that is precisely why the sort of video works.
Franchise leads aren’t simply shopping for a enterprise mannequin. They’re shopping for a future for themselves. A well-crafted franchisee success story ought to comply with a transparent emotional arc: Who they have been earlier than franchising — the true struggles they confronted. What made them take the leap — why this franchise, and why now? The challenges they confronted—as a result of success tales with out wrestle do not feel actual. How their life is totally different now—the transformation. In case your franchise is not capturing these sorts of tales, you are lacking essentially the most highly effective gross sales device you may have.
Associated: How a Police Officer Began a Pet Care Enterprise Making $3 Million a Yr
Behind the scenes video
I’ve sat in rooms with franchise gross sales groups who could not work out why their numbers weren’t transferring. That they had robust FDDs. That they had nice financials. That they had an unimaginable product. However they weren’t displaying the folks behind the model. Franchise leads aren’t simply evaluating a enterprise mannequin. They’re evaluating management, help, and tradition.
A behind-the-scenes video offers them an actual take a look at the folks they will be trusting with their funding. What to incorporate: Management interacting with franchisees — not simply sitting in an workplace. Coaching groups working one-on-one with homeowners. Candid moments that mirror the true tradition — not company fluff. If a lead does not belief the folks behind the model, they will by no means transfer ahead.
Associated: No Expertise? No Drawback. How This First-Time Franchisee Constructed a $3 Million Enterprise.
Franchisee validation movies
Some of the emotional shoots I’ve ever been a part of was for Batteries Plus. The franchisee’s father had abruptly handed away, and his son and daughter have been stepping in to run the enterprise. In the course of the shoot, they appeared instantly into the digicam and spoke to their father. “We’re doing this for you. We’re conserving this legacy alive.” Everybody in that room felt it. And that is precisely why the sort of video works.
Leads do not belief spreadsheets or gross sales pitches — however they belief different franchisees who’ve walked this path. A terrific franchisee validation video ought to embrace: A franchisee sharing their actual expertise, not a scripted testimonial. The second they realized this enterprise was altering their life. What they might inform somebody contemplating the chance. For those who’re not letting your franchisees inform their tales on video, you are making your gross sales course of more durable than it must be.
Associated: How I Went From $80K in Debt to $1 Million in Enterprise in Simply 3 Years
Day within the life
I’ve filmed franchisees who got here to the U.S. with $2 and a backpack. At present, they personal a number of places, make use of dozens of individuals, and have constructed a life they by no means thought doable. That sort of transformation is unimaginable — however what does the day-to-day actuality appear to be? That is what day-in-the-life movies reply.
Leads want to have the ability to image themselves within the function. A well-produced documentary-style video follows an actual franchise proprietor by their day, from their morning routine — together with opening the shop and establishing operations — to the tip of the day. The objective is not to make it look good, it is to make it really feel actual. If a lead cannot see themselves within the function, they will not take the subsequent step.
Associated: What I Discovered About Management as a NCAA Division 1 Soccer Referee
Meet the gross sales staff
Franchise gross sales can really feel chilly and transactional. A lead fills out a kind. Then, abruptly, they’re getting calls and emails from somebody they’ve by no means met, asking them to make a six-figure resolution. That is overwhelming. A Meet-the-Gross sales-Group video adjustments the dynamic.
As a substitute of a stranger reaching out, it is a acquainted face saying who they’re, why they love serving to franchisees and what the primary steps appear to be. There isn’t any stress, only a dialog. Leads are way more seemingly to answer somebody they really feel they already know.
Associated: I Constructed a $1 Million Enterprise Whereas Overcoming a Incapacity — Here is How I Did It
Cease promoting, begin storytelling
I’ve filmed franchisee tales that made total rooms cry. I’ve watched management groups get emotional as they understand the impression of what they’ve constructed. I’ve seen hesitant leads signal on the dotted line — not as a result of they have been pressured, however as a result of they lastly believed. That is the facility of video storytelling in franchise growth.
In case your franchise is not telling these tales, you are not simply lacking conversions. You are lacking the possibility to encourage, join, and produce folks into one thing larger than only a enterprise. In case your leads are ghosting you, do not simply comply with up. Inform them a narrative they will always remember.
