Chances are, your next potential franchise owner is sitting inside one of your locations right now. They may be, for the first time, researching your fran dev website on their phone.

Maybe they are waiting on their food, in the middle of a pumpkin spice latte, or doing their hair. In any instance, they are not looking at a computer. They’re on their phone.

Now think: What does your website look like on your phone? Did you have your site designed with a mobile-first mentality? You need to be prepare your franchise site for mobile users. If you aren’t, your sales funnel will suffer.

Data Supporting Mobile-First Web Design

This conversation isn’t new in the marketing world. Our clients’ Google Analytics show us more than 60% of fran dev web traffic comes from mobile devices on average. Just to be clear, this number doesn’t include tablets – only phones. In addition, users use mobile devices for about 70% of all actions on the site, like surveys or filling out forms.

When Google rolled out its page experience update in 2021, a main point on the list was mobile friendliness. Ignoring this moving forward can impact where potential clients view you in search results.

“Our clients’ Google Analytics show us more than 60% of fran dev web traffic comes from mobile devices on average.”

– Anonymous

“Page experience is a set of signals that measure how users perceive the experience of interacting with a web page beyond its pure information value, both on mobile and desktop devices,” according to the Google report.

How Mobile-First Web Design Changed Search Algorithms

As users search, Google now optimizes that search to the type of device they use. They provide results tailored to the device. If a majority of your potential business is coming through mobile devices, and your website lacks a mobile-friendly design, your site will rank lower than your competition’s.

So, if your website is outdated or isn’t mobile friendly, now is the time to begin planning a redesign. This process will take time. A custom-built website takes about a year to write, design and develop.

At the end of the day, you want your user to quickly find what they need on your site and provide you with their contact information in exchange for something valuable to them. They shouldn’t have to click through multiple pages or scroll through tons of content to get to the call-to-action.

In the case of consumer sites, the call-to-action is usually straightforward in the form of an online purchase or scheduling an appointment for a service quote. In the realm of fran dev, you want the user to feel comfortable giving their contact information. They should be able to do complete it without feeling like it obligates them to buy a franchise immediately.

Exchanging Value

To help with this, consider downloadable lead magnets that provide users with more information about the franchise. This works as a best practice approach. Users don’t expect to fill out a form and then get a phone call right away. At this point, a call from a sales rep asking them to buy an expensive franchise would not be ideal. Instead, you want to capture their contact information and put them into a less-intrusive lead-nurturing strategy. This strategy may include emails, webinar invites and surveys that provide more insight into your potential franchisee.