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Keep ReadingOne of the most common frustrations among franchise operations teams is hearing franchisees complain that local marketing is not working. The second most common frustration? Watching the same franchisees fail to execute the marketing tools, campaigns, and opportunities already available to them.
Operations professionals naturally want to help. After all, you are problem solvers. When sales soften, the instinct is often to jump in, create a plan, make calls, rewrite advertisements, or even run campaigns on behalf of the franchisee. Unfortunately, that approach rarely produces long-term results and creates friction among franchisees who are not receiving this custom plan.
The most successful franchise systems understand that the role of operations is not to become the franchisee’s marketing department. Instead, it is to coach franchisees to become better marketers of their own businesses.
Start with Accountability Before Tactics
When a franchisee says, “My marketing isn’t working,” resist the urge to reflexively suggest solutions.
Instead, start with a pause for research:
- Look at their marketing expenditures, income and profitability
- Link those to their performance metrics
- Study their social media reviews
- Look for causes and effects.
Now, ask these questions:
- What local marketing activities have you completed in the past 90 days?
- How much have you spent?
- How many leads or inquiries did those activities generate?
- Which activities produced the best results?
- Proposals, sales, increased average tickets, etc.
- What follow-up process was used?
Surprisingly often, the issue is not the quality of the marketing plan but the consistency of execution.
A franchisee who has not completed the required activities cannot accurately evaluate whether the strategy works. Coaching should focus first on execution discipline, then comprehensive analyses before introducing new tactics.
Teach the Process, Not the Promotion
Many FBCs spend too much time discussing individual promotions and not enough time teaching franchisees how local marketing actually works.
Strong operators help franchisees understand concepts such as:
- Building awareness before expecting immediate sales
- Tracking lead sources
- Measuring return on investment
- Following up with prospects consistently
- Leveraging customer referrals and reviews
- Participating in community-based marketing
When franchisees understand the process behind successful marketing, they become less dependent on headquarters and more capable of adapting to their local market.
Review Execution During Every Field Visit & Call
Marketing should not be discussed only when sales are declining.
High-performing franchise systems build local marketing accountability into routine operational reviews.
Field staff can evaluate questions such as:
- Is the local marketing calendar current?
- Are community partnerships active?
- Are social media posts being published consistently?
- Is the location requesting reviews from satisfied customers?
- Are leads being followed up promptly?
- Is required marketing spend being documented?
These conversations help franchisees view marketing as an ongoing business discipline rather than a rescue tactic.
Use Coaching Questions Instead of Giving Answers
One of the most powerful tools available to field consultants is the coaching question.
Rather than saying:
“You should sponsor the local Little League team.”
Try asking:
“What organizations in your community align with your target customer?”
Rather than saying:
“You need to post on social media more often.”
Ask:
“How frequently are you communicating with potential customers today?”
Questions encourage ownership. Answers often create dependency.
The goal is to help franchisees think like business owners rather than waiting for headquarters to solve every challenge.
Share Best Practices, Not Mandates
Franchise systems frequently discover outstanding local marketing ideas from their own franchisees.
When that happens, operations teams should capture and share those successes throughout the system.
Notice the distinction, however.
A successful tactic used by one franchisee may be a best practice rather than a brand standard. The role of operations is to share what has worked and explain why it was effective, allowing franchisees to evaluate whether the approach fits their local market.
This creates a culture of learning instead of a culture of compliance.
Focus on Results, Not Activities
Franchisees do not ultimately care about marketing activities. They care about outcomes.
Operations leaders should therefore help franchisees connect marketing efforts to measurable business results, including:
- Lead generation
- Appointment volume
- Customer traffic
- Conversion rates
- Repeat business
- Revenue growth
When franchisees can see the connection between execution and results, motivation improves dramatically.
The Bottom Line
The strongest franchise systems do not create franchisees who rely on you for every marketing decision. They create confident business owners who understand how to market effectively within the framework of the brand.
Operations leaders, field consultants, and support teams play a critical role in that development. By focusing on coaching, accountability, execution, and measurement, they can help franchisees improve local marketing performance without crossing the line into doing the work for them.
The result is stronger franchisees, healthier unit economics, and a more scalable franchise system.
Thank you to Franwise for being a Bronze Sponsor of the 2026 FBR Summit.
FBR offers a free guide for franchise marketers. Download your copy of The Ultimate Franchise Marketing Playbook now.
The Only Event Designed Just for Franchise Operations & HR Teams
How can you make an immediate and lasting impact on your franchisees’ success? Find out at the FBR Summit, October 28-30 in Austin, TX. The Summit is an intensive, franchise industry event created just for operations leaders and their teams that directly support franchisees. Don’t miss it!