Coronavirus and Franchising: Joe Mathews of Franchise Performance Group and Michael Haith of Teriyaki Madness

The coronavirus continues to have dire effects on businesses across the country, and the franchising industry is no exception. Franchisors across segments are strategizing new ways to support their franchisees, keep customers satisfied, help local communities and come out stronger on the other side of this crisis.

To that end, 1851 Franchise publisher Nick Powills and Charles Internicola, founder and partner of the Internicola Law Firm, are covering the coronavirus and its impact on the franchising industry through a webinar series titled “Coronavirus and Franchising: Mindset + Strategy to Recover and Grow.”

In today’s morning webinar, Powills and Internicola spoke with Franchise Performance Group CEO Joe Mathews and Teriyaki Madness CEO Michael Haith to discuss how their brands have pivoted to better serve customers and franchisees.

Crisis strategy

Brands, particularly fast casual brands, who don’t have to scramble to introduce technology to reach customers right now are in the best position to survive this crisis and can direct their efforts toward other improvements to ensure their success when the crisis is behind us.

Lead generation is down. However, the people who are interested in franchising right now are those who understand the model and its benefits in a time like this. They may be looking nine months ahead and looking for a savvy investment, rather than a new career path that they may not know much about.

Right now, franchisors need to focus on their message. Take a breath and make sure the business is prepared for the next three to five months. Make sure portal messaging is consistent.

Consider the story you are telling, how it is being told and how it will be told in the future. That largely comes down to how you are supporting franchisees through this crisis. The strongest storytelling comes from franchisees who speak from experience.

Industry challenges

Franchising, as an industry, has allowed too many non-viable brands to enter the market. Franchise brokers have put bad opportunities in front of prospective franchisees who won’t succeed in them. The silver lining is that businesses who get to the other side of this will have very strong stories to tell.

It may be crude, but part of your brand’s story is going to be your cash position. At cocktail parties, people ask, “What’s hot?” The market props up a lot of weak players and recession exposes that.

Resilience and value

Franchising is about model replication. This is the time to look at your business model and make it resilient. Look at how you can add value and go after the people who look at franchising as more than an option for self-employment.

Franchisors should have the ability to provide the kind of expertise that independent business owners lack because they’re on their own. The franchisor has a team looking at every way to make the business model better. The economy has allowed for a lot of franchisors who have business models that simply do not work.

There is a high demand for information right now. Brands need to modify their messaging. That goes for consumer-, franchisee-, and prospect-facing messaging. It’s not business as usual. Be sensitive and empathetic to the times.

Franchisors exist to add value for franchisees. And franchisees exist to add value for the customer. If there is any lapse in that chain of value, the whole brand suffers. Customers do not see the distinction between franchisors and franchisees. They see a brand. Franchisors and franchisees need to work together in order to create value and have a constant dialogue.