What to Consider When Building a Franchise Website
Every business needs a website, and not having one is leaving money on the table. It doesn’t matter if you’re on Facebook or LinkedIn or some other social network, you still need a website.
But if you’re running a franchise business, where the franchisor already has a corporate website, do you even need your own website? If so, what does the GLASS™ franchise website builder have that similar services don’t?
These are questions we often get at GLASS™ and we’re happy to provide some answers.
Published on January 19, 2023
Top Questions Franchise Businesses Ask About Building a Website
- Q: Do franchises have their own websites?
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A: The short answer is it depends on the franchisor. A franchisor may want central control over all stores under a single domain name, which lists all store locations and other critical information. Consequently, franchisees do not have their own websites where they can conduct digital marketing campaigns.
Other franchisors recognize the importance of franchisees having their own website and provide them with their own domain name or subdomain. Therefore, the franchisee should use a franchise website builder such as GLASS™ that has the capability to meet the franchisor's website design requirements.
- Q: How does a franchise website work?
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A: A franchise website—or any other website for that matter—increases a brand’s online presence. It differs from a typical business website in that it promotes both the franchise brand and individual franchises.
- Q: What if I don’t know how to build a franchise website? What are my options?
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A: There are three primary approaches to building a franchise website:
- The franchisor builds and maintains all franchise websites: Preserves brand consistency but is extremely time-consuming for the franchisor.
- Franchises build their own websites from scratch: This may lead to inconsistent brand messaging, which can confuse customers, and lead to trade secrets being divulged.
- Use guidelines and a franchise website builder with templates to create independent websites: This is the most ideal option among the three because the franchisor saves time, the franchise website builder provides templates to ensure branding consistency, and franchisees can exercise some degree of creative freedom.
- Q: What’s unique about the GLASS™ franchise website builder?
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A: Before we get to that, let’s first discuss what you should know about building a franchise website— assuming you have your franchisor’s approval to build one.
Considerations When Building a Franchise Website
According to InternetLiveStats.com, roughly 2 billion websites exist today. As a result, there is a need for your website to stand out. Keeping the following factors in mind will help you accomplish just that:
User Experience
It is important that visitors to your website receive the information they want when they want it without having to jump through hoops. In order to achieve this, incorporate elements that improve the usability of your website, such as:
- User-friendly navigation
- Search boxes for finding information on their own
- Updated menu of offerings and prices
- Social media buttons pointing to your business pages
- A contact page with your business address, a working phone number, and an email address
- Live chat functions for customers needing immediate help
- Web design that’s mobile-friendly
Scalable Content
In other words, this is the kind of content that leverages your existing assets, evolves as your business grows, meets the needs of your consumers, and keeps your company at the top of their minds.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Google is the most visited website in 2022 and according to Fit Small Business, about 92% of all searches worldwide happen through Google. Taking this statistic into consideration, tailor your content to target the search words and phrases your customers use to find your franchise website, by incorporating SEO.
eCommerce Capability
Post-pandemic, the buying landscape has become increasingly hybrid. Therefore, visitors must be able to place orders/reservations and pay online via your website. Your content management system (CMS) should also allow customers to log in and save their information, so they don’t have to enter it every time they make a purchase.
Partner with a Franchise Website Builder That Understands Your Needs
Building a franchise website without any experience can be daunting. Add to that the stringent requirements franchisors demand their franchisees to meet, and you have a real problem on your hands.
This is exactly where GLASS™ excels as a franchise website builder. Built with scalability in mind, our CMS suits all types of users, integrates keyword research to power your SEO, and lets you expand and adapt your content without impacting user experience. Plus, our website themes are easily customizable, allowing you to build the website you want without upsetting your franchisor.
For more information on the powerful features you get with each GLASS™ subscription, check out our website builder pricing page.