For many years, I thought I had a solid sales process. My team was following up with leads frenetically, we had scripts in place, and we were doing everything “by the book.”
We’d put in the effort, yet warm leads were turning ice-cold before we could close the deal.
Then it hit me: we weren’t just competing on value or service; we were competing on speed and consistency. And even though we were working hard, we weren’t working smart. The missing piece was automation that actually works.
That’s exactly what we cover in ClientTether’s Speed2Lead Playbook: a no-fluff, battle-tested guide to turning more leads into customers without exhausting your team.
If you’re tired of watching good prospects slip away, stick with me. I’ll show you what works.
Why Lead Nurturing Alone Isn’t Enough
If you’re reading this, you probably already know that in franchise sales and franchise unit operations lead nurturing is key to higher conversions and sustained growth.
But here’s the deal: most businesses nurture leads the wrong way.
To be fair, part of the cause of this in the franchising industry is published bad data. This is the only industry I’ve ever been a part of (and I’ve worked in and consulted in about a dozen different industries now) that’s still following the 1987 sales playbook of “call the lead in 4 hours.”
Every other industry, and FranDev teams that discarded this bad advice are trying to get on the phone with their leads within 5 minutes, and they’re seeing massive results.
In general, most franchise organizations and franchise owners follow up once or twice, assume the lead isn’t interested, and move on. Others chase prospects inconsistently, leaving massive gaps in their communication strategy.
And then there are those who rely on manual follow-ups, hoping their sales reps remember to send that crucial text or email.
You can imagine how “effective” the last strategy is. I’ve actually heard seasoned franchise sales professionals say that they don’t follow up with leads, “because if they want to buy the franchise, they should be showing the effort, not me.”
The bottom line is if you don’t have a structured, automated system in place, you’re losing deals. No way around it.
In a recent webinar our own Ryan Arcoraci, Franchise Sales Director at ClientTether, unpacked the art of nurturing relationships and earning trust with automation. Don’t miss his insights!
Lead Nurturing Automation Strategies That Work
We’ve spent years helping franchises, small businesses, and sales teams refine their lead engagement strategies using our franchise software.
And while I can’t give away all the details (you’ll want to grab the playbook for that), here are three automation-driven strategies that separate top performers from the rest:
1. Engage Within the First Two Minutes—Automatically
Did you know that 53-78% of deals are won by the first company to have a meaningful conversation with a lead?
If you’re waiting even five minutes, you’re probably too late – especially if one of your competitors is already using our franchise CRM 🙂
Here’s the fix: Automate your initial response. The moment a lead fills out a form or expresses interest, your CRM should trigger a personalized text and email and trigger a phone call to your team. No delays, no excuses.
Why?
✅ 90% of texts are read within three minutes
✅ Leads who get a fast response are more likely to pick up the phone
✅ Automated outreach makes sure no lead is forgotten
If you engage quickly with the lead, you’re more likely to interrupt their efforts to fill out more competitors’ lead forms, which means reducing competition 🙂
Inside the playbook, we show you the exact timing, messaging, and automation flows that drive better response rates.
We’ve helped transform Roof Maxx’s Lead Management by, among other things, ensuring immediate engagement with leads through personalized texts, calls, emails, and even physical mailers.
Automated follow-up and scheduling technology allowed dealers to convert leads more efficiently and to leverage the power of their closed deals with proximity mailers There’s nothing wrong with leveraging the power of FOMO with home owners.
2. Mix Up Your Follow-Up Methods
Most businesses only use one or two channels, usually email and phone calls.
But guess what? Your leads have different communication preferences, depending upon their age, gender, etc.
Your lead nurturing automation strategies should be omnichannel to support the different needs of your prospects.
A winning strategy includes:
- Texting before calling (boosts call answer rates by 40%)
- Personalized video emails (increases click-through rates by 300%)
- Strategic nurturing across multiple days and times
Think of it like coaching a football team. If one receiver struggles with deep passes, do you keep throwing Hail Marys? No, you mix up.
Short throws, screens, routes, whatever’s in that tool box to help you score and bring it home. Same goes for lead nurturing.
In the playbook, we break down exactly how many touchpoints you need, what to say, and when to say it.
3. Automate the “Long Game” for Cold Leads
Not every lead is going to convert right away. But that doesn’t mean they’re a lost cause.
Most sales teams give up too soon, but a well-built lead nurturing franchise sales CRM keeps you top of mind without requiring constant manual effort.
- Drip email sequences with helpful insights.
- Quarterly check-in texts to re-engage dormant leads (for previous clients – emails and calls for prospects)
When done right, this approach turns cold leads into future customers without overloading your sales team.
That’s why in a recent episode of the Advisory Board Podcast, the great Karen Wenning urged franchisees to focus on nurturing relationships through regular follow-ups, incentives, and engagement tactics to maintain a loyal customer base. But what does she know 😉
What’s Next? Get the Playbook. See Results.
At this point, you might be thinking, “Okay, I need to tighten up my lead nurturing game. Where do I start?”
That’s exactly why we created the Lead Nurturing Playbook. It’s packed with step-by-step automation strategies and timing frameworks that will help skyrocket your Frandev or unit operations conversion rates.
Ready to take action?
If you’re serious about winning more deals and automating smartly, don’t wait.
Your future customers are already searching, you just need the right strategy (and franchise software) to capture them.
Building a Franchise is Hard, Growing One Doesn’t Have to Be
More than a boring, outdated CRM, ClientTether’s industry-leading franchise management software engages with your customers 1-to-1 in real-time across multiple channels, so your team can focus on selling rather than administrative work.
- Automate internal communications to coordinate client needs
- Create automated lead outreach and nurture campaigns
- Communicate with clients in real-time over the phone, text, and email
- Engage clients with new AI chat sessions to answer questions and advance the sale
Start your free trial of ClientTether today and see just how engaging our franchise management software can be.
When you automate lead nurturing the right way, your prospects never feel ignored but they also don’t feel pressured. Instead, they get the right message at the right time, keeping your brand top of mind.
Once that happens, my friend, those initial sales quotas? You’ll be waving them goodbye in your rearview mirror.
