Pet Franchise

Why Pet Store Franchises Need to Focus on Social Media

There is no denying the power of social media. Pictures and posts can find their way around the world in a matter of hours this way. This is why many businesses have begun using this as a way to bring in more business. The truth is this can be a powerful tool for just about any business, especially pet store franchises. Here is what you need to know about the power of social media.

 

What Social Media Can Actually Do

pet store franchisesThere are several things social media can do for pet store franchises. Sure you can market to your audience but it goes even deeper than this. It can be a great way to bring greater brand awareness to your community. It is also a great way for you to get to know your audience and what they are looking for as well as build rapport with them. You will also find this can be a very useful PR tool. It lets you not only let people know the things your pet store franchise is doing for the community but also get in front of any issues that may arise.

 

Works in Conjunction with Your Marketing Campaigns

Another thing pet store franchises should keep in mind when it comes to social media is it can be used in conjunction with a marketing campaign. These do not have to be separate entities but rather it can be just one more way to diversify your marketing campaign and drive more traffic into your store. In some cases it can be an even more powerful tool than other methods.

 

Seeing Results in Social Media

For pet store franchises that have never used social media, it is important to note that this is not an overnight process. In order for people to see the things you are posting you need to build an audience. More than this you need to make sure you are actually using techniques that can be measurable. For instance, if you are posting the same offers on social media as you are with all your other marketing avenues without any way of differentiating them there will be no way to tell what leads are coming from which source. This is one of the reasons people think social media does not work for pet business opportunities. Not that it is defective but that it is not being utilized properly.

 

Even if you are offering the same deal you should at least have different codes for the deals to make it evident where the lead came from. This will help ensure you can track your leads to determine the results you are getting from each of your marketing sources.

 

Can You Do Social Media on Your Own1.4.15-Inspiring-Stories-of-Dogs-making-it-Through-Tall-OddsFEAT

A big question people have about social media for pet store franchises is whether or not they can handle their social media on their own. Now in theory this is perfectly fine. You know your business and what you are offering so this seems like a way to save money right? However the thing most people do not realize is that digital marketing, including social media, is a science. There is a specific order that you need to follow.

 

Sure you can spend a ton of time getting to know how this works for business and then finding the right methods to use for your business and pouring hours of your time into the work every day. However, at the end of the day if you do not have the time to spend hours each day focusing on social media and want to make sure you get the best results, then you should go with a social media professional to handle this for you.

 

Creating a Business Plan for Your Pet Franchise

Opening a franchise is the ideal way for many people to realize their dreams of business ownership and financial freedom. If you are among this category, then it is important that you take the steps to get there. One of the things you need to do with this is to create a business plan for the pet franchise. For those that don’t know where to even start with this, here’s the information you need to know.

 

The Importance of a Business Plan for Your Pet Franchise

Many people opening a pet care franchise do not see the value in create a business plan. The truth of the matter though is that this is an invaluable tool for your success. First of all, there are many franchisors who will want to see this information. Even if your franchisor does not want to physically see it, they will at least want to know that you have a grasp on how you will run the business to ensure you are the right fit for their company.

 

If you plan on getting a loan to help you pay for the franchise or are looking for investors you will need to have a business plan as well. This will show that you are less of a risk as you have a plan for how to achieve your business goals. Even if you are not taking out a loan you will find this to be very helpful to you as you will want to understand where you are going. It will give you a reference to look at, which is helpful with your pet franchise.

 

Writing the Plan

Once you understand why you need to have a business plan, the next thing you will want to do is sit down and work on creating this. There are many tools out there that can take the information you write and make it look professional and eye catching for investors and others that want to see it. To start with though, you will need to get it all written out in the appropriate sections.

 

Introduction

This is the first part of your business plan to look at. As the name suggests you will be introducing the franchise, what you want to get out of the business relationship. You will also want to address your goals as well as the challenges you will face in reaching your goals. Make sure you also address the risks you are personally taking on with the pet franchise. Be as thorough as possible with this to really get an idea of who you are and what the franchise will offer.

 

Define the Roles of the Business

Another section will look at the people you will need to hire in order to be successful. Depending on the concept that you buy, there will be different needs for the business. If you are going with a smaller concept for the dog grooming business, then chances are you will manage it and will need to provide a defined role for other employees. This could include the groomer, front desk staff and more. When defining the roles make sure you include the level of expertise you are looking for with the position as well as the duties that will be included in that position. Even if you will be the manager of the business you will still need to define your responsibilities.

 

Financials and Projections

This is where you will want to include all the pertinent financial information. This includes cash flow projections and the projected financial performance of the company. When you create these graphs and charts you need to also include the information that you have used to help you get to these numbers. The accountant you have hired for your pet franchise can help you come up with these figures if you numbers are not your forte with the business plan.

 

The Need for Financing

The last piece of the puzzle here with the business plan is to look at the need for financing with the business. This will show how you plan to get the money needed to start the business. Even if you will be paying for the entire cost of setting up the franchise with your savings accounts you still need to put this in here. This helps show the costs needed for the business as well as where the funding will come from. When going through this you want to make sure you address all the costs, including the working capital. If you are not sure what all the costs are, you can find this information in the FDD.

[popuppress id=”4542″]