1851 Launches New Design as No. 1 storytelling distributor for franchising

We have redesigned the site for the fourth time since our launching in 2012. Why, you ask? To be disruptive, we must be willing to adapt.

We apply our similar feelings about franchise development to the way we treat our publication. When things don’t work the way you expect them to, change them.

Now, it wasn’t that things weren’t working. More so, in a quest to be the No. 1 digital reference point for the franchise industry, we had to stay ahead of the game.

2015 has been quite monumental for the publication: 200,000 monthly readers (primarily those interested in discovering more about franchising); the ability to retain more than 25 percent of our readers on a daily basis; 30 great brands jumping into our platform (some not understanding all of the tools, but willing to try something different); more than 1 million page views (crossed that mark last week); and an expansion of our team from one to seven on the 1851-specific staff, while adding 30 contributors of various tasks.

2015 was a good year. And 2016 will be a better year. But why wait?

The new design is engineered to keep you here longer and give you more tools to discover your pathway—whether as a franchisee, franchisor or supplier. We hope these new tools will be seen as monumental on our mission to disrupt technology, content marketing and digital storytelling.

This is day one, but just like versions of the past, this is just the beginning of an ever-evolving platform.

Many still don’t understand the complexities that live behind the stories we tell. You see that brand sign-up at the top of the page? That’s where the magic happens for brands. That’s where we, as a team, are creating the most robust virtual tools in the content marketing world.

A recent hire said this about the site’s backend performance: "I am speechless. I had no idea that this was more than the user facing publication."

That’s the beauty of our redesign. It gives you, the reader, a visually appealing platform and you, our brands, the ability to fully manage your franchise marketing—to your consumers, prospective franchisees and your current shareholders.

As I said, to disrupt, we must be willing to change. We will continue to monitor the performance of the site, its analytics and the feedback we gain to continue to provide you with a daily distributor of content, experience and knowledge that is important to you.