Make sure your bra nd is tech savvy
Without embracing innovative technology, businesses will fl ounder. So how can franchise brands stay ahead of the curve? Pip Wilkins of the British Franchise Association elaborates…
N
othing moves faster than technology, but back as far as the 1970s – the very decade the bfa
was born – who would have thought that the world would be connected with the click of a button? The pace at which technology moves is alarming, especially for businesses that may not have the capital to continually improve and adapt their business to fit consumer demands in the technological age. This can provide real and critical challenges for franchisors who need to ensure that franchisees are complying with their business model and its standards, while simultaneously looking to integrate new technology into their systems.
Caught standing still If you don’t believe that failing to embrace technology will eventually lead to a brand becoming irrelevant, then simply take a trip down through history, where there have been plenty of businesses that have turned down the opportunity to move forward with the doomed attitude of ‘if it ain’t broke, don't fix it'. Blockbuster is a business synonymous
with failing to keep up with consumers that increasingly turn to technology advancement and new ways of accessing entertainment. Once a monolith in the home entertainment industry with 9,000 stores worldwide, it has been knocked out by online streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. Now, only one store remains worldwide, in Oregon in the US.
"Ask fra nchisors how they are keeping up with technological developments to the benefit of the company overa ll and especially the fra nchisee network"
There is much to be learned from the demise of Blockbuster, including keeping a close eye on the competition, and making it your business to know what the consumer wants before they know it themselves. Staying still is as bad as falling behind. Sometimes introducing technology
to a business can be as simple as providing new systems and software that allows employees to do their jobs more efficiently and therefore providing a superior service for the consumer. Although it may sound like a simple way to streamline operations, it can save weeks of laborious tasks and allow staff to focus on other areas of the business.
Small change, big difference Theo Millward became managing director of Swimtime UK in 2016 and took bold steps to transform its IT infrastructure, moving away from a traditional analogue business to a digital one.
Theo says: “Management of thousands
of customers was driven by a slow, outdated platform giving customers limited flexibility and choice. "The central office support centre
was overrun with phone calls and even booking a new swimmer took, on average, 15 minutes. We quickly realised this simply wasn’t sustainable.”
Finding nothing suitable on the
market to resolve these operating issues, Swimtime UK decided to develop its own platform, Swimcloud, to provide a better service for customers and to help franchisees manage their businesses faster and more efficiently. Rachel Brooks, operations director at Swimtime UK, says: “This one change has led to a 60 per cent reduction in our per-client operating costs, enabling us to redeploy resources to focus on enhancing the client experience and to support the wider franchise network.”
The moral of the story is… During your search for a strong franchise brand name to invest in and work with, ask the franchisor questions about how they are keeping up with technological developments and what strategies are in place to use this tech to the benefit of the company overall and the wider franchise network. This should be an integral part of your investigations and the answers will tell you a lot about if and how a franchisor intends to stay ahead of the competition. l
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