Blo Blow Dry Bar's Most Effective Tech for Recruitment During Covid

We asked Patrick Pantano, Vice President of Franchise Development at Blo Blow Dry Bar, what technologies he is finding most effective for franchise recruitment during Covid.

Gone are the days of incessant phone calls to prospects following a lead submission. When is the last time any of us answered a call on our cell from an unknown number? That being said, phone calls still have a place in follow-up contact efforts, but technology has pushed forward, and now there are better and more efficient ways to establish that coveted connection.

Texting has pushed ahead of email as the best method for making that first connection with prospects to schedule an initial call. At Blo Blow Dry Bar, we’ve seen a 26% increase in our connection rate using text when compared with other options. This is followed by email, then phone calls, as the top ways of connecting with our prospects.  

With regard to identifying leads, our Google pay-per-click and Facebook campaigns have been very strong for connecting with interested potential franchise partners. We are able to geographically target folks in both our emerging and infill markets and touch them where they are searching on the Internet. Many franchise portals have stepped up their game in recent years as well, adding prospect screening to ensure that leads are real people who are qualified financially to develop a franchise location. These portals typically have had a bad rap (well-earned in some cases) over the years. However, the smart groups have adjusted their systems to improve the quality of tangible lead generation. 

As always, a healthy mix of all the resources above is critical to finding the right volume of quality and qualified leads.