2017 Franchise Marketing Forum Assembles Stellar Line-Up

A prominent line-up of speakers from some of Australia’s leading franchise brands, and open and interactive debate on the hottest issues in franchise marketing, will be showcased at the 2017 Franchise Marketing Forum to be held in Brisbane on Friday 27 October. 

Book now to secure your spot at the must-attend event for anyone involved in the fast-moving world of franchise marketing, as early bird registrations close on 13th October. 

This year’s Forum is shaping up as one of the biggest and best ever, with senior executives from Just Cuts, Soul Origin, Total Tools and The Cheesecake Shop to share valuable insights into the successful growth and marketing of these high-profile franchises. 

In addition to its stellar line-up of keynote speakers, this year’s Forum will also include the release of the first-ever Marketing Fund Benchmark Survey as well as the Open Exchange session examining the big issues in franchise marketing and a special facilitated group discussion on franchise recruitment marketing. 

The annual Franchise Marketing Forum is jointly organised by Griffith University’s Asia-Pacific Centre for Franchising Excellence and the Franchise Advisory Centre.  

This year’s event is presented with valuable sponsorship support from brand automation technology provider Outfit, corporate advisory firm McGrathNicol and digital marketing experts Epicuest. 

Outfit and Epicuest will also be presenting two special LAM, branding and cloud marketing workshops on the afternoon of Thursday 26 October, the day prior to the full-day Franchise Marketing Forum. These value-add digital marketing workshops are free for all registered Forum attendees. 

The keynote speakers at the 2017 Franchise Marketing Forum are: 

Darren Gunton, General Manager Marketing – Total Tools 

Darren will address the topic of ‘how to sell online without antagonising franchisees’ which will include the risks of channel conflict in online versus franchisee sales, to centralise or decentralise online sales, and applying royalties and transaction costs to online sales. 

Kendall Meijer, National Marketing Manager, and Maree Magdas, Corporate Marketing Manager – Just Cuts 

Kendall and Maree will address the topic of ‘growing sales through excellence in Local Area Marketing (LAM) including franchisee involvement in LAM campaigns, maximising in-store opportunities, making the most of shopping centre promotions, and using a branded App. 

Monica Grzesiak, National Marketing Manager – Soul Origin 

Monica will address the topic of ‘managing rapid growth and accelerating demand’ covering: marketing challenges in a rapidly growing brand, the rise of healthy fast food and changing consumer demands, and the role of social media in connecting consumers to food. 

Avril-Summer Cusack, National Marketing Manager – The Cheesecake Shop  

Avril-Summer will address the topic of ‘how to get franchisees to increase their marketing investment’ including the importance of researching marketing effectiveness, why traditional media is still vital, and the benefits of spending a further 1% marketing royalty contribution. 

This impressive line-up of franchise marketers is supported by an exciting range of interactive panel and open exchange sessions promoting the group sharing of ideas and solutions to franchise marketing problems among Forum attendees. 

What really sets the Franchise Marketing Forum apart is the rare opportunity its open and personal setting provides for direct questioning and group discussion. 

The Open Exchange Forum, a highly interactive group brainstorming session, will analyse some of the most pressing issues in franchise marketing including: incentivising franchisees to activate LAM initiatives; social media misfires; recruiting, retaining, rewarding and motivating marketing support personnel; mystery shopping; and a final topic to be determined by the audience on the day. 

Renowned franchise finance master David Campbell of Avatar Consulting will host a special presentation on ‘Trends in the use (or abuse) of franchise marketing funds’ which will include the release of the inaugural Marketing Fund Benchmark Survey, the first and only study of its kind in Australia to compare and contrast how costs are allocated to and within marketing funds by different franchise brands.  

There will also be a facilitated group discussion on ‘Franchise recruitment marketing: what works and what doesn’t’ focussing on how to determine a marketing budget for franchise recruitment and how small budgets can be leveraged for maximum impact. 

This action-packed full-day program, plus plenty of opportunities for networking with fellow franchise professionals, makes the upcoming Franchise Marketing Forum an event not be missed. Secure your early bird booking before October 13. 

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For more event information visit www.franchise.edu.au 

WHAT: 2017 Franchise Marketing Forum  

WHEN: Friday, 27 October 2017 

WHERE: Where: Griffith Graduate Centre, 31 Sidon Street, South Bank, Brisbane 

CONTACT: Tel: 07 3382 1401; franchising@griffith.edu.au 

For more marketing information visit www.outfit.io or www.epicuest.com