3 Reasons Your Franchisees Need a Digital Training Program

Sponsored content by ExpandShare.

Franchisees choose your brand, hoping to recreate your success in the market. You provide access to all the physical pieces they’ll need to open the location, get the product materials, order the uniforms… but what about delivering well trained staff?

It’s a lot of hard work to document the brand formula. Without a consistent training program in place to make sure it’s being followed, a franchisee will have a tough time reaching their goals.  Sending trainers from corporate is an expensive option and can’t keep up with the turnover rates some industries face. So to keep your training from becoming a game of telephone, make it easy for franchisees to train new hires consistently at their location.

Here are the top 3 benefits of using a digital training program:

Reason Number 1: Digital Training Makes Sure Brand Standards Are Applied Consistently.

It’s no secret that consistent training leads to more consistent practices. And during the franchising process, the number of processes specific to maintaining your brand formula fill a book - probably known as your Operations Manual. If you’re like many franchise organizations, you’ve taken the time to document all the processes a franchisee should follow, but how deep is the training support that teaches a franchisee’s new hires how to practice the brand standards every day in their roles?

Training programs that depend on corporate trainers or paper manuals often fall short of and are a major expense. By delivering a digital training program, franchisees can train their entire teams on the brand standards from day one. Every new hire gets the same consistent training on the same consistent processes, no matter when they start, so franchisees have teams ready to perform. And as a franchisor, you can easily expand the depth of the training or communicate changes across the whole organization - regardless of ownership structure. Oh, and as an added bonus you can track it all right on your phone. Your whole training empire right in your pocket.

Reason Number 2: Culture Blossoms Using Digital Training, Improving Team Productivity and Tenure.

One of the top factors that influence how employees feel about their jobs is the quality of training for their job. According to Gallup, employees that feel they were given the knowledge to do their job well and know what is expected of them are more engaged —and therefore more likely to stay, less likely to call off, and are more productive overall. 

A team that feels well supported is more likely to absorb your culture training, live your core values, and support the mission of the brand. And in a digital training program, you can really bring your culture to life through video, interactive exercises, and open channels of communication so all employees always feel in the know. While the exact ROI of happy employees and cohesive teams is hard to quote as a benchmark, the research is clear: training improves the bottom line.

Reason Number 3: Digital Training Makes Your Brand More Attractive to Investors.

One of the largest expenses on the franchisee’s P&L is always going to be labor costs. So why not provide them with a turnkey toolkit to consistently onboard every new member of their team? Franchisees essentially put the success of their investment in the hands of their production and/or service workers—and they will recognize the value of a ready-to-implement program developed by corporate to specifically train all the pieces of the brand formula and culture.

Additionally, digital training programs have dashboards so franchisees can see how new hires are progressing, if checklists are being done right, and who’s cross-trained on what. Supplying this information in real-time will definitely sweeten the deal for any investor.

Brand consistency, improved culture and turnover and a key selling point to potential franchisees. All of these are great reasons to get ahead of the curve and implement a solid, organization-wide digital training program.

If you need help, let us know. ExpandShare helps franchise organizations of all sizes create a solid training program and implement it using state-of-the-art software. Contact Us to find out more.