According to recent reports, the U.S. fast food industry is growing faster than the restaurant industry at approximately 4 percent each year. As the industry grows, frustration can easily mount when franchisees can’t get marketing materials that are targeted to their specific location. This tends to happen when little marketing support meets an ineffective marketing supply chain.

Without the proper tools and services, printed materials may be poor quality, expensive, and may not meet brand standards. At Archway, we are seeing an increase in the amount of companies looking for services to create marketing materials all in one place, instead of gathering them from multiple, scattered locations. A recent QSR Magazine article explores this topic and points out a few ways to overcome local marketing obstacles in the supply chain:

1. Technology.

   Make sure you have an easy-to-use ordering tool to browse, modify and order materials. The tool Archway uses is also web-based which has become a standard in ordering platforms. 

2. Education.

   Once you have the right technology in place, ensure local franchisee operators know how to use it. Properly trained franchisees are up to speed with the systems available to them, and will more likely take advantage of marketing opportunities. 

3. Customizable Design.

   Certain components of the marketing materials should be customizable so that individual franchisees can modify the materials to work with their demographics. Using a variable or POD model also means marketers don’t have to completely re-design pieces to include updated or new information.