Editorial

Franchisees make a profit from their first sale!

Our Town America - A unique advertising franchise, providing welcome packets to new residents For people who love sales, there are few businesses as profitable as the opportunity offered by Our Town America. “Franchisees,” says Michael Plummer, president and founder, “make a profit with their very first sale.” With a profit level of about 50%, very sale will add to your income on an ongoing monthly basis.

Our Town America of Pinellas Park, Florida helps small and medium-sized businesses connect with new customers through a gift package containing certificates for free services from local neighborhood merchants. The gift package welcomes people to a new area and also helps them find new sources for the services they need, from pizza delivery to drycleaners to a hair salon.

“We use a sophisticated process to find the names and addresses of new residents to an area,” says Plummer. “We have huge databases that we scrub to be sure the information is accurate. Once we get this list, we mail these new residents a lovely gift package containing gift certificates from those businesses with which the franchisee has contracts.” From the prospective of the business owner it is a great way to get new customers and increase a client base. The Our Town service targets only those people within geographical proximity to the business who are new to the area so the recipient is likely to try out the business, particularly because the offer is for something completely free such as a meal or oil change.

“The welcome package is immediately perceived as something valuable by those who receive it because it is personalized with the recipient’s name – not only on the envelope but on each certificate,” says Plummer. “We use parchment paper rather than bond,” he adds, “so the package is seen as something of worth – which it is. The envelope says it is a housewarming gift from your neighborhood. Many of our packages offer up to $500 in free gifts.”

Plummer started this business 34 years ago but began Franchising only recently. They already have 35 franchisees across the U.S., from DC to California. “What we do is unique. This is not a saturation mailing and we aren’t offering a two for one or something like that,” explains Plummer. “I found through my own experience with a business that those kinds of offers bring in far more existing customers than new customers, resulting in unnecessary discounting, as well as not really focusing on what the business wants and needs… new customers. By targeting people new to an area, we give these families the opportunity to try new businesses and, because of the more focused targeting, our advertisers are able to make genuine offers that will bring people in and give these prospects an opportunity to experience the businesses service or product.”

Franchisees are awarded a territory equal to about 2,000 to 2,500 families who move each month. “We find that this will allow them to achieve their financial goals although a very aggressive Franchise can buy a larger territory. Their responsibility is to call on local businesses who may be interested in our service,” says Plummer. “Sales, customer service and collections are handled by the franchisee while the corporate office does everything else. We handle layout of the certificates, production of the welcome packages and mailing them on a monthly basis.

“One of the many positive aspects of this business is that the Our Town client, or sponsor as we call them, signs an ongoing contract, and is billed monthly until he cancels. This creates recurring and dependable revenue for franchisees. “We offer our sponsors category exclusivity,” says Plummer. “If a florist wants to keep out their competition, they would continue to contract with us. Many of our sponsors stay with us for years and years.”

Once the contract is signed, Our Town produces the certificate and begins sending them out to new residents. “The franchisee sends out invoices we have produced for them and collects the fees. We’ve made it all very turnkey for them,” says Plummer.

“What we offer our franchisees, besides a great opportunity, is a truly independent lifestyle,” says Plummer. “Because the corporate office handles the mailings and because much of the advertising is on-going, our franchisees are actually able to take time off. Freedom to take vacations is something many people want but few can accomplish when they become franchise owners. At Our Town, our franchisees actually can leave their business for days or even weeks.”

Another benefit, says Plummer, is that if you sell to a sponsor who has locations in other areas, the contract can cover these other areas. You get a portion of those profits and the franchisee in the other location also gets a portion of those profits.

“This is an excellent opportunity for someone who is self-disciplined and can follow a system,” says Plummer. “Our franchisees have varied backgrounds – from a personal trainer to a dry cleaner. What they have in common is discipline, drive and that they enjoy sales. The business can be run from home and without additional employees. You have no inventory and the franchise fee is very reasonable. We’ve done everything we can to help the franchisee be very successful.

“Our Town currently sends out 9 million envelopes a year,” says Plummer. “Statistics show that 17-20% o the U.S. population moves every year, which equals about 15 million families. Digital technology has enabled us to ramp up our production capability so that we are ready to tackle this moving population in an even bigger way.”

Sponsors who contract with a franchisee for Our Town’s services receive more than initial advertising with Our Town. “One of the services we offer,” says Plummer, “is that we bar code our mailings. This means an advertiser who receives a certificate from a customer can find the customer’s name and address through the bar code and send a thank you note, or if needed, follow-up on a complaint.”

In addition, a person who has used one of the certificates mailed by Our Town can go online to fill out a survey about the business they visited. The feedback adds another layer of value to the Our Town service. “Sponsors also pay less for advertising through Our Town than they would with a competing welcome service and,” says Plummer, “we feel our welcome package is superior to what any other company offers. Often included in the gift package is a refrigerator magnet with information about the family’s new community. The magnet also has advertising space to generate more revenue.”

Our Town provides extensive training to the franchisee. There is a three-week phone course followed by a week at the corporate headquarters. After that, a field trainer will spend a week with the franchisee to help them get started making sales calls. In 4-6 months a field trainer will again visit the franchisee to offer more support. Recently added is a telephone sales coach to help with issues as they arise.

“The real key to this business is that if a person is good at sales, this is the very best opportunity available,” says Plummer. “You start making a profit from your first sale and that first sponsor is likely to stay with you for years and years. Our franchisees love our business because it lets them get where they want to be financially very quickly.”

FranchiseBusinessREVIEW.com, a leading market research company in the franchise industry, named Our Town America to their Franchise 50 2006, an exclusive list based totally on franchisee satisfaction.

“We feel we offer something to everyone,” continues Plummer. “We help new movers adjust to their new communities while helping businesses gain new customers. We also give our franchisees a wonderful opportunity.”

The Keys to Success at Our Town America