Australian Franchise News – 08-12-14
Victoria café chain, Degani, is reaping the digital rewards, delivering strong results since embarking on a dramatic digital drive to entice new franchisees, raise brand awareness and learn more about its customers.
In a three month period, the company has strategised its marketing to heavily focus on digital, social and online media including utilising Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, to drive its key messages and hone into its target market – and now has 10 new franchisees as a result!
Degani’s main goal through engaging digital and social media as a platform was to create a voice through social media for a brand that really, other than in Victoria, had no market relevance in Australia. Facebook was a key driver in turning this around and allowed Degani to focus on geographical targeting to potential new franchisees in markets that were unbeknown.
Living and operating in a digital age is something businesses must start to do as part of their normal practice said Clementine Scott, marketing manager for Degani.
“Progressing our strategies into the digital space, was an absolute must and it began when we turned to online sources to learn more about our audience. From this, we identified that our core audience, which is potential franchisees, were aged between 30 and 54, were professional managers, frequented cafes and coffee shops regularly and had at least $100,000 in savings. We therefore had to develop our strategies to suit this,” Ms Scott said.
“Once this profile was shaped, we tailored our communications to ensure we were speaking to this core group with the right messages and information. We launched a modern campaign to suit this profile audience, drove it heavily through social and online media and as a result – we attracted 10 new franchisees who came on board in the first three months.”
A combination of organic engagement and advertising allowed the franchisor to tap into an online audience that was as close to its created profile as possible, in turn, creating more relevant enquiries for the business.
Launching a new campaign and using hashtags for the clever ‘For the Love of Coffee’ promotion included #mydegani and #fortheloveofcoffee and helped propel the company’s Twitter feed to over 500 followers and encourage retweets and brand awareness.
Findings for Degani showed that its audience are consuming 80% of their daily information via online channels, which reinforced the company’s decision to ensure more messages were being displayed through its online channels.
According to the latest report from the ABS, published in June 2014, 26 per cent of all businesses have a social media presence these days including a presence on blogs, micro-blogs such as Twitter and content communities such as Facebook and LikedIn.
The propensity for a business to have a social media presence increased in alignment with staff growth and this is a trend that Clementine Scott sees as a growing one.
“It makes sense that the bigger a company grows, the greater the need for social media. What was once utilised to communicate key messages, is now being used for attracting the right employees and partners and that’s exactly what we see the benefit in for Degani,” Ms Scott said.
Get your Degani fix and start following the company through facebook.com/deganicafe, @degani, degani.com.au, or follow the popular hashtags #mydegani #fortheloveofcoffee.
For more information about Degani and franchise business partnerships currently available visit degani.com.au or call 07 3373 1072. New Degani stores start from $350,000 and there are currently opportunities across Australia as the company expands rapidly outside of Victoria.
Degani is a Melbourne-born company, founded by Melbourne-based entrepreneur George Pezaros in 1999. It started with a single bakery café in Victoria’s Clifton Hill and has grown to 70 stores in the past 15 years to become a much-loved local brand, synonymous with individual, chic interior fit-outs, superb coffee and great fresh food.
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For further commentary, more information, photos, or to arrange an interview please contact:-
Dawn Watt, Elevate Senior PR Account Manager
07 3286 3333 / 0415 756 736 / [email protected]
Dawn Watt
Elevate senior account manager
(p) 07 3286 3333
(m) 0415 756 736
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