From many corners of franchising, we’re hearing the same question reverberating from those in recruitment: “Where are my leads?” The reason I wanted to focus on this now, as we’re halfway through 2023, is two-fold. I want to explain what we’re seeing, and I want to bring reassurance to those of you who have this question bouncing repeatedly around your head when you should be sleeping. But first of all: it’s not you.
So, what is it?!
If we look back on the last twelve months, the UK has seen major economic challenges which have wreaked havoc on people; causing so much uncertainty, with many hitting “pause” on their personal dreams. The cost-of-living crisis being the main culprit, as people feel afraid of making changes to their future more than the reasons behind wanting a change.
I’ve seen this in conversations I’ve had with people outside work, as well as with clients and others within franchising. There has been a slowdown in franchise recruitment, with the prices of everything shooting up, and savings being delved into, in order to make ends meet. Uncertainty, is a real break on franchise recruitment.
How do I know this?
One of the main ways in which we can gain insight into what’s happening, at Coconut, is through Google. As a Google Partner, we understand how Google is more than a search engine, or a means of advertising your franchise opportunity. It offers an insight into how people are feeling within the UK, through trends which impact our industry.
So, as the following graph shows: People have just not searched for franchise opportunities.
Over the last year, you can see there have been a number of clear dips, down to precisely zero. This means no one was asking Google about franchising; they were more concerned about keeping their families warm and fed over winter.
So, let me repeat: It’s not you. It’s not your franchise brand. It’s not your marketing strategy.
What do we expect now?
Given the fact we’re about to approach the summer holidays – which has typically been a quieter period for franchise recruitment, anyway – we would expect to see a slight increase over the next couple of weeks, before school’s out for summer. We then anticipate a hive of activity in the autumn, as confidence in the UK economy grows, and people begin to believe there is light at the end of the tunnel, so make tentative steps forward to acting on their goals.
Engagement will likely remain lower than usual, until certainty starts to grow. This will need inflation to drop, interest rates to steady or fall, and for people to understand the cost-of-living situation.
Does this mean you should stop all marketing activity until then?! NO!
We know from past experience people are watching what you’re doing, even though they’re not making any decisions, right now. This is why brand building is such a key aspect of any marketing strategy.
And this is the interesting thing… when people are asking Google about franchise opportunities, they’re asking at odd times:
Like, as you can see from this graph, at 4am on Saturday 8th June! They’re not likely to make contact with you at this time. Extreme, I know! But, what this shows is people are reading your content when they come across you, and may even be downloading content they like the look of, to read at a later point.
So, what can we do?
Whilst Google can’t give us the details around what people are typing into the search engine, we have another tool up our sleeve which can. From “Ask the public”, we can see what questions are being typed in to all search engines.
For example, in June, we know there were 3.6k searches carried out in the UK, around “franchise opportunity” (at a cost of $1.82 for those who are interested!), with the most popular term being, “Franchise Opportunities in the UK”:
There is hope for you!
We may not be in the most ideal situation for the growth of your network, at the moment. Don’t lose heart. Once again, let me remind you… it’s not you. As things begin to settle, and uncertainty falls aways, I believe we will start to see people making steps toward achieving their dreams and aspirations. Balancing pain in their career with managing the cost of living, will once again tip to where your leads feel confident to act upon the due diligence they’ve been carrying out, “until the right time”. When they’re ready to make contact, will they still remember you?
If we can help you make sense of your marketing, or implement a brand awareness campaign you may not have thought was a valuable exercise, we’d be happy to. One of the easiest way to do this, is with a Coconut Strategy Day where we assess what you’re doing and where to make changes. Feel free to reach out to any one of the team – we know your frustration. You’re not alone.
