When we walk into franchise locations, we expect familiar things: the same product lines, general tone and messaging, even physical layout of the store. In short, we expect consistency.

Why, then, should digital storefronts be any different? These consumer expectations are increasingly extending to digital, especially for younger, more mobile-focused consumers.

Franchisors need an enterprise-ready digital content distribution system to meet these expectations. That is where a modern web content management (WCM) platform comes in.

 “Thriving franchises are embracing the power of a flexible WCM platform to deliver competitive results,” writes Geoffrey Bock, principal of Bock & Company.

Consistency a Top Priority For Retailers

According to the BRP Digital Commerce Survey, 56 percent of retailers reported delivering a consistent brand experience across channels was their top digital priority. This consistency should carry from the in-person store experience to the digital experience and across mobile, tablet, and desktop devices.

Organizations spend large chunks of resources to design marketing campaigns to target specific market segments, and these efforts must not go to waste.

Local Content is King

When it comes to your digital presence, content is still king. Content is what connects franchisees and customers, whether it’s through promotional offers, co-marketing, or local store news.

Consumers only want to see content that is relevant to them, as evidenced in the rapid rise of personalization. Personalization, geolocation, and customer tracking are all ways that retailers plan to deliver more consistent experiences.

With highly relevant, locally focused content, connections are forged between franchisee and customer that are essential to the success of the franchisee and the franchisor’s business.

A Modern WCM is Essential

To deliver localized content and brand consistency across channels, it’s imperative to have a web content management (WCM) platform that is built for the unique challenges franchisors face.

The WCM platform should allow franchisors to deploy any number of microsites with a consistent look and feel across a wide network of franchise locations. It should let franchisors publish articles to hundreds of sites with one click, while empowering franchisees to publish their own content to their sites that is branded appropriately.

But these aren’t the only capabilities necessary for an effective franchise WCM platform. To reflect the varied ways in which franchises operate, the platform should also have:

• Robust, flexible permissions – A customizable defining of roles and capabilities on viewing, editing, and publishing is vital to be able to reflect the organizational structure of the company.
• Integration with other systems – Large franchisors rely on a variety of programs for CRM, marketing automation, and other functions. The WCM platform should be able to plug into these systems with a direct integration or web portal.
• Scalability – Franchise enterprises can have dozens to hundreds of locations, and a WCM must be able to keep up with expansion.

WCM Bolsters Training and Operations

Not only is a modern WCM platform essential for bolstering customer-franchisee relationships, but it should also be leveraged to ensure consistency in franchisee operations and employee training.

Articles can be published to sites internally and not made visible to the public. These can include training manuals, tests, SOPs, and other documents. Franchisees and their employees can then access the WCM platform through a web portal and view their own copies of the documents.

This centralized, organized system should be able to mark expiration dates for distributed articles, so that content is automatically deprecated as it expires.

By distributing training and operational documents through a WCM platform, operational consistency can be promoted across a multitude of franchise locations.

Learn More

Learn more in this whitepaper by analyst Geoffrey Bock: “Three Reasons Why Franchisors Need a Web Content Management System,” and see the competitive advantages gained with a modern WCM platform. 

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