As most of us know, the buyer’s journey can be a stressful process. Whether it’s time considerations or opportunity, your customers weigh many factors into their buying decisions. That’s where social media enters the mix.

Consumers consistently look to social media content to aid in their decision-making from an informative and persuasive standpoint. Content marketing is crucial for franchises to establish their social footprint and provide the direction consumers need to purchase a product or service. Creating and marketing content can be an intimidating process for franchisees. With a litany of competing products and services out there, how can franchisees add valuable content for their audiences and stand out? Below we’ll look at how to showcase valuable content for any franchise!

1. Understand Your Audience.

When marketing your brand, product, or service, consumers come first. Consumers have wants and needs when it comes to making purchasing decisions, and it is the responsibility of franchisees to listen to their voices. Franchisees should aim to put customers in front of the best fit to meet their desires. Consider details such as functionality, price, performance, and more when attempting to find the perfect outcome for your customer. 

Each of the components above heavily influence purchasing decisions. Customer desire should guide the content marketing process and gives the audience a sense that their voice is being heard. Treating customers as individuals is critical for creating a robust brand-to-consumer relationship. 

Now that we have identified why consumers should guide brand decisions, our next step is to take a closer look at how we can create and execute our content around these ideas.

2. Sell The Benefits, Not The Features.

Regarding content marketing, the franchisee playbook is typically the same for many brands – advertise the product itself. This leads to advertising and content centered around features or how a product or service works. According to SmartPassiveIncome.com, while it is important to have a level of informativeness, plainly stating facets and details all day won’t separate you from the competition.

Consumers make purchases to solve a problem. In other instances, content is made to generate wants or needs. Overall, the consumer will be focused on finding the solution that benefits them the most. Focusing on benefits is the key to success in content marketing. Benefits such as how the features of a product or service aid in providing the remedies the consumer is looking for provide overall lift in branding. Marriott’s recent ad featuring the benefits of becoming a Marriott member was a great example of this concept.

Now that we have identified why consumers should guide brand decisions, our next step is to take a closer look at how we can create and execute our content around these ideas.

This infographic not only explains what the subject is that they’re advertising for, but it also translates into benefits for the consumer. Right away, the viewer is given several examples of how the service benefits them. It strikes an outstanding balance between being informative and practical for the consumer and accomplishes it in a straightforward manner. This simple addition to online content not only gains the heightened interest of its intended audience, it separates a brand from what is typically a cookie-cutter approach to marketing and makes a franchise unique!

3. Keep It Simple.

Overall, making valuable content for your franchise doesn’t need to be complicated. It can be as simple as finding out who your audience is and what they’re looking for, and allowing that information to guide the content marketing or creation process. 

While we understand that interpreting your audience to tailor your advertising content can be an unnerving step of the marketing process, remember that it all boils down to stepping out of the shoes of a marketer and putting yourself in your customer’s shoes. This is just one of the many ways that SocialMadeSimple can help you navigate the content and advertising landscape across social media.

If you’re looking for a franchise social media company to implement these processes, schedule a call with our team today. Our teams provide custom content, targeted advertising strategies, and a proprietary social marketing platform (SocialModo) to help each one of your franchise locations succeed on social media!