Getting the Word out: Building a Co-op Program: Aim for Flawless Execution of Your Advertising Plan, But be Prepared to Change Strategies if Your Customer Base Shifts (Fw Focus: Marketing‪)‬

Economically-challenging times make franchisors and franchisees acutely aware of the cost of doing business. With commodity and labor costs on the rise and consumers' disposable income in jeopardy, brands need to make their dollars work as hard as possible to drive traffic through the front doors of their businesses. In times like these, and in stable-market conditions, the allocation of franchise advertising funds to a brand's various marketing initiatives can enable it to rise to the top of consumer preference or fall flat. It's up to the franchisor and the franchisees to keep the latter from happening. Ultimately, advertising funds, often collected from franchisees as a percentage of gross sales, as well as from vendor contributions to market their products, are designed to promote and enhance the brand's overall market position with the primary goal of driving customer traffic. While called advertising funds, these dollars can be broadly used for promotional opportunities, Web marketing, public relations and advertising, among other related activities. These funds also support the monetary obligations of the use of both agencies and in-house personnel in developing and executing marketing initiatives.