In new franchise brand marketing, foundations come first: establishing your brand as a recognisable entity, putting the first locations correctly into Google, Apple and Bing, and only then recruiting. In 90 days you build a base that every subsequent location benefits from straight away. We work with a fixed plan in three blocks of 30 days.
What do you do in the first 90 days of a new franchise brand?
A young franchise brand has little time and little money, so the order matters. Anyone who starts with advertising before the profiles are right pays for clicks that end at a wrong address or an empty page. That is why we build from the inside out.
| Period | What we put in place | Why in this order | How we measure it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 to 30 | Website, brand profiles, schema with sameAs, consistent name | Everything that follows refers back to this | Number of channels with identical brand details |
| Day 31 to 60 | First locations in Google Business Profile, Apple Business Connect and Bing Places, location pages | Customers search nearby first | Verified listings per location |
| Day 61 to 90 | Content, collecting reviews, recruitment campaign | Only now do visitors land on something that is right | Reviews per location, candidate sign-ups |
How do you make new franchise brands recognisable as a brand and entity?
Search engines and AI assistants build a picture of your franchise brand from separate pieces of information: your website, your profiles, mentions elsewhere. If those pieces match, you become a recognisable entity in the knowledge graph. If they contradict each other, a system does not really know what you are.
For a new franchise brand that is an opportunity. From day one you can use the same name, description and links everywhere and tie them together with schema and sameAs. That is also the foundation for Generative Engine Optimisation for franchise brands, so that ChatGPT or Gemini can mention your brand when someone asks about your sector. How we ourselves work with a network of connected sites is shown under our network of franchise websites.
One name, identical everywhere
Choose the exact spelling of your franchise brand and locations before the first profile goes live. A difference of a space or a capital letter seems small, but makes linking harder.
Organisation and locations in schema
The franchise brand gets organisation markup, and each location its own local markup that refers to the brand. That way systems understand the relationship between head office and locations.
Work together on measurable results, not on an annual contract. Start with the free visibility scan.
How do you get the first locations of a new franchise brand online?
With the first locations you set the template for all the ones that follow. Each profile gets the same categories, photo layout and standard copy, supplemented with local details. Many chains only do Google. From the start we also include Apple Business Connect for locations and locations in Bing Maps, so iPhone users and Bing searchers find you too.
| Component | Why | How we measure it |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile verified and complete | At the start this drives most local searches | Profile completeness as a percentage |
| Apple Business Connect with photos and opening hours | Apple Maps shows the place card on iPhones | Listing active and identical to Google |
| Bing Places registered and verified | Bing also supplies data to other services | Status of the listing |
| Dedicated location page with local markup | Profiles link to it | Page indexed and linked to the profile |
| First reviews and responses | A profile without reviews does not convince | Number of reviews and response time |
When does a new franchise brand start recruiting online?
You only recruit once candidates have something to see: a location that is listed properly in Maps, reviews and a clear recruitment page. Then you set up the funnel for prospective franchisees, with qualification on region and own capital. Prospective franchisees also research matching platforms such as franchise-starten.nl, a site from our own network.
The Dutch Franchise Act also applies to a young franchise brand. You must inform a candidate in advance about matters including fees and required investments, after which a four-week cooling-off period applies before signing. Have your contract reviewed by a franchise lawyer; this is not legal advice.
A young franchise brand in particular has little budget for paid listings and stands at fairs. By making your own website and profiles visible in Google and AI assistants, candidates find you directly. Weighing up a portal against your own recruitment shows what each channel costs and delivers.
| Item | Calculation | Fictional amount excl. VAT |
|---|---|---|
| Full service for 4 locations | 4 x €600 x 12 months | €28,800 per year |
| Strategy kick-off session (fictional 10 hours) | 10 x €65 | €650 one-off |
| Recruitment campaign | Fixed monthly price on a quote | On a quote |
| Advertising budget | Paid directly to the platform | Your own choice |
How does a new franchise brand get started with us?
Even if you only have one or two locations, you start with a no-cost scan of your locations. It shows what is already online about your franchise brand, including things you did not post yourself. Then you choose which channels to tackle first from our channel services.
What does a location outside the Google Maps top 3 cost you?
This calculation uses Dutch figures instead of American click-through rates. The average revenue per franchise location comes from the Dutch Franchise Association (NFV) statistics, reference year 2025. Nobody can say in advance exactly how much revenue a location loses without a top position in Google Maps, with a Google Business Profile that is not in order, or without proper review management. So you calculate a scenario per cause: a few percent of revenue going to a more visible competitor. Add them up and you see the combined cost.
| Sector | Revenue per location per year | 1% revenue missed | 3% revenue missed | Growth package (€4,800 a year) as share of revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All sectors (average) | €1,445,000 | €14,450 | €43,350 | 0.33% |
| Services | €480,000 | €4,800 | €14,400 | 1% |
| Hospitality | €1,230,000 | €12,300 | €36,900 | 0.39% |
| Health care | €1,270,000 | €12,700 | €38,100 | 0.38% |
| Non-food retail | €1,750,000 | €17,500 | €52,500 | 0.27% |
| Food retail | €2,910,000 | €29,100 | €87,300 | 0.16% |
| Other brands | €680,000 | €6,800 | €20,400 | 0.71% |
- 6 of the 100 largest Dutch franchise chains reply to a Google review within 24 hours; the average response time is 6.8 days and 90% has no demonstrable review management process.
- Only 40% of the 500 Google Business Profiles examined is fully completed.
- In the measurement one review was viewed around 15,000 times on average: an unanswered complaint stays visible to thousands of people.
- 42% of consumers would rather not do business with a company that never replies to reviews (BrightLocal 2026).
Sources: NFV Franchise Statistics, reference year 2025 (34,937 locations, €50.5 billion revenue); Local SEO Franchise Benchmark 2026 (100 largest chains, 500 profiles); sector model on franchiseseo.nl (in Dutch). The percentages are scenarios you choose, not a measurement or a promise. We do not promise rankings or revenue.
Questions about marketing for a new franchise brand
Is a new franchise brand with two locations not too small for an agency?
Why the brand first and advertising only after that?
What does it mean for your franchise brand to become an entity?
Should we be in Apple Maps and Bing straight away too?
How do new locations get their first reviews?
When can we start recruiting franchisees?
Which legal rules apply to recruitment for a new franchise brand?
Roughly what does marketing for a new franchise brand cost?
Can you also build the franchise brand's website?
What if we grow quickly after the first 90 days?
Sources
Gijs Bodenstaff
Franchise marketer, local SEO and GEO specialist, author
Request the free visibility scan and see what is already online about your new franchise brand.