Which Outsourced Development Services Do Franchises Use?

Franchise Update Media has been researching franchise lead generation and franchise recruitment processes for more than a decade. An annual in-depth online survey queries franchise development professionals about a number of issues related to their lead generation and recruitment strategies. The results are presented each year in the Annual Franchise Development Report (AFDR). 

The AFDR is a valuable resource that can provide crucial insights into franchise development, lead generation, and recruitment best practices. It’s the kind of information that can help brands assess what they are doing right and what needs improvement. 

The annual project seeks to identify what’s new and innovative in franchise lead generation, recognize the methods and approaches yielding the best results, and gain insights into franchisors’ perspectives on current and future business performance. 

Survey participants were franchisors who completed an in-depth questionnaire online. Responses were aggregated and analyzed to produce a detailed view into the recruitment and development practices, budgets, spending allocations, and strategies of a wide cross-section of franchisors. The data, along with accompanying commentary and analysis, provided the basis for the 2025 AFDR. 

The in-depth report features results from more than 110 organizations actively expanding their franchise systems. The thoroughly researched report spotlights the latest trends and reveals various franchise lead-generation and sales trends. The AFDR represents companies totaling more than 50,000 franchise units and 42 industry categories. 

Franchise Update Media creates this report annually and shares its findings with franchise development teams to give them an edge in their lead generation and recruitment efforts. 

Outsourcing development services

Attracting franchise candidates is an increasingly complex and competitive process. Franchise development teams need to find creative ways to share their message and separate themselves from the competition. To do so, they must develop a comprehensive plan to reach candidates across a wide range of platforms. 

With so many methods to reach franchise prospects, a large number of these services require working with outside vendors. Franchise Update asked frandev executives which services they outsourced to other companies to help with this outreach. Although they responded with nine different services, four stood out the most. The majority of franchises in this survey outsourced the following services: web design (79 percent), digital ad buying (60 percent), social media (60 percent), and digital ad creative (55 percent). 

That response was consistent when we broke it down by development goals, sector, size, and investment level. Franchises that said they were exceeding their development goals reported the highest use of web design (83 percent), but the lowest percentage response of digital creative (44 percent). Franchises reporting they were below their development goals had the highest percentage of outsourcing the following services: print ad creative (22 percent), print ad buying (14 percent), and the use of third-party management firms that support their development strategies (18 percent). 

Several things stood out when analyzing responses by sector. Retail food franchises used outsourced services the highest amount on web design (92 percent) and social media (85 percent). Contrast that with only 36 percent of retail non-food franchises using outsourced social media services. Non-brick and mortar service franchises generally used outsourced services the least, particularly with digital ad buying (41 percent) and digital ad creative (36 percent). 

Franchise Update further analyzed the responses from development teams based on their respective financial investment levels. Each franchise at the lowest investment level ($25,000 to $50,000) used outsourced web design services, while only a quarter of those franchises used outsourced digital ad creative, digital ad buying, and social media. Franchises with investment levels of $50,001 to $100,000 generally used outsourced services in the four major category areas than their counterparts. Thirty-one percent of franchises with the highest investment levels of more than $1,000,000 used print ad creative and print ad buying, most among groups in this survey. 

The final category we examined with this question was based on number of franchised units. Not surprisingly, the largest franchises (1001 to 2500 units) used the greatest amount of outsourced services. Each respondent in this group used web design, digital ad creative, and digital ad buying on an outsourced basis, while three-quarters of them did the same for social media. Larger franchises also had the highest amounts for print ad creative (50 percent) and print ad buying (25 percent).Ninety-one percent of franchises with 101 to 250 units used outsourced web design services, while only 36 percent of that group used outsourced digital ad creative services. 

For more information about the 2025 AFDR and how you can purchase the report, please scan the QR code below or click afdr.franchiseupdate.com/.