When you’re deciding among franchise business opportunities, one of the questions you ask has to be, “Does this company have effective marketing?” One of the advantages of a franchise compared with an independent start-up business is the national name recognition. You’ll want to make sure that the company you choose is keeping their name in front of potential customers.
College Hunks Hauling Junk uses a relatively new strategy that has been proven to work: a website that provides ample and accurate information, with frequent blog updates that build connections with potential customers before they even pick up the phone.
Depending on the industry, up to 96% of consumers will go online first to search for local services. Many franchisors require franchisees to use the corporate website or forbid franchisees to create their own, so it makes sense to check out the websites of franchise opportunities you’re considering.
Moving is a particularly personal and even emotional area for consumers. People looking for a moving company are often thinking about stories they’ve heard about terrible movers who broke the family china or left the homeowners with no furniture for weeks. Even if they don’t have negative experiences in their minds, they’re looking to hire someone to come into their homes and take all their belongings – an unusually intimate action that requires a lot of trust.
The consumer looking for a moving company is probably looking for much the same things every time: a service that’s easy to arrange for and use, movers who will not be scary or unpleasant to have in their homes, and some assurance that their belongings will be safe. The personal communication of a blog is perfect for this scenario.
College Hunks clearly is aware of these things. “Hunks” stands for “Honest. Uniformed. Nice. Knowledgeable. Students.” The movers will be uniformed, so homeowners know they are from the company. They’ll be honest and nice. They’re students, but they’re also knowledgeable, implying both training and an economical work force.
The blog’s happy multimedia posts fully embody the franchise’s spirit of stress-free, impeccable customer service. They have plenty of posts about individual franchisees — College Hunks Dallas, College Hunks Lexington, and more — reinforcing the idea of a national brand whose local franchisees are real people in their local areas. Snapshots and videos show the “hunks” in action – at both work and play.
There are also practical posts about how to get organized, how to pack, how to clean your home during a zombie apocalypse – the last example is of course part of the fun young vibe the company focuses on. It wouldn’t be the best choice for every moving company, but for the College Hunks, it’s a light-hearted touch.
They take the next step and connect customers immediately with a local franchisee near them. Consumers are asked to put in their zip code. Submitting a zip code takes the potential customer to a page with contact information and a map for the nearest franchise location. This ensures that their corporate blog benefits individual franchisees as well.
