Choice Hotels

Choice Hotels Plays Up Free Services
March 2, 2009

-By Elaine Wong

Choice Hotels International is going after money-conscious consumers with a new campaign highlighting the value travelers get by choosing its family of brands.

Three new spots, via Arnold Worldwide in Washington, show that Quality, Comfort Inn and Comfort Suites--among other Choice Hotels International properties--offer complimentary services like free breakfast and Internet access. Choice Hotels has 5,800 locations worldwide.

The spots, which show hotel guests dining, visiting an amusement park and taking a carriage ride, relay the value message via free amenities that Choice Hotels offers. In the past, however, ads played up the convenience of its locations with Johnny Cash's “I’ve been everywhere” serving as the jingle since 2005. The change in advertising strategy comes as Choice Hotels reported a 33 percent drop in fourth quarter profit.

“For us, it’s not an entirely new focus. Our brands have been known for providing the best value and convenient locations, but we are placing more emphasis on the value,” said Chris Malone, Choice Hotels CMO. “The message to our consumer is: ‘You don’t have to give up all the things you enjoy and love.’”

Choice Hotels, which spent $75.3 million in both 2007 and 2008 on advertising, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus, did not disclose cost of the campaign. Malone said the push coincides with the company's heavy emphasis on search and online advertising.

The hotel chain has ramped up its keyword search for all properties, as 60 to 70 percent of all hotel bookings are made online, Malone said. Malone also added that in 2009, the company would increase broadcast and online impressions by 4 percent and 39 percent, respectively.

Even during an economic slump consumers still want to travel, but they’re looking for value more than anything else, said Woody Kay, managing partner and chief creative officer in Arnold's Washington office. “If anything, this is the year of the deal. The staycation is becoming the nearcation. People are discovering that staying at home is not fun,” Kay said, adding that events like weddings and business trips will always call for a hotel stay. The only difference is that instead of seeking out more luxury brands, consumers will be focused on hotels that provide more bang for their buck.

McDonald's

McDonald's names new China chief executive
Mon Mar 2, 2009 8:30pm EST Email | Print | Share| Reprints | Single Page[-] Text [+]
Market News
Global stocks rise on China hopes
China hopes, oil's surge snaps Wall Street's 5-day rout
Oil gains nearly 9 percent on U.S. crude stocks drop
More Business & Investing News... BEIJING, March 3 (Reuters) - McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) on Monday named Kenneth Chan as its new chief executive officer in China, replacing Jeffrey Schwartz, the company said in a statement.

Chan, a Singaporean, has been with McDonald's for 12 years, most recently acting as regional manager in Malaysia, Taiwan and Korea, and managing director of its restaurants in Singapore.

Schwartz, a 40-year McDonald's veteran, will retire from the company, the statement said. (Reporting by Michael Wei; Editing by Ken Wills)

Francorp Client Schotzsky's

Schlotzsky’s Goes Web 2.0 for Sandwich Debut
March 3, 2009

-By Becky Ebenkamp

Schlotzsky’s is throwing out the first pitch for its initial major QSR deal this week with a spring baseball-themed program that supports the casual chain’s launch of three Big League Clubz sandwiches.

The creative challenge was to spread the word about the new Beef ‘n Bacon Club, Chick ‘n Turkey Club and Ham ‘n Turkey Club sandwiches among dads and their ball-playing kids by the bonding the sport brings—from Little League to the big leagues. (The promo has no affiliations with Major League Baseball or any other organization, however.) Austin, Texas-based Schlotzsky’s is owned by Focus brands (Carvel, Cinnabon, Moe’s Southwest Grill) and has about 350 restaurants in 35 states.

This is the largest promotion Schlotzsky’s has ever done, and the first time the chain has gone beyond the traditional TV, radio, FSI, POP route to communicate.

“We brought in all these [components] to help [Schlotzsky’s] understand the power of social media to drive sales and to show them how measurable it is,” said Van Vandegrift, executive producer at branded entertainment company Matrixx Pictures in Santa Monica, Calif., the agency that devised the promotion. “In Web 1.0, we used to care about the time visitors spent on the site and where they went; now, the sentiment is about the brand, how many times it’s mentioned in blogs and in what context, photos posted to Twitter, drive-by buzz. This is great because this is a brand new sandwich--there’s no buzz yet.”

At a microsite (Bigleagueclubz.com), fans can join a Big League Clubz club and enter a sweepstakes to win a trip for four to St. Louis (coincidentally timed around the MLB All-Star Game). The sweeps runs through May 31, and visitors who come back for extra site experiences—such as to play games or sign up for an e-letter—get bonus entries. Gameplay will be a main draw, as there are video games and a fantasy baseball league component that involves drafting friends for teams. The latter will also extend to social networking sites, such as Facebook.

A downloadable desktop widget lets players keep track of scores and other baseball info and gives Schlotzsky’s a conduit of communication. “We’ll know how many people download the widget, and when we push out an offer, we’ll know who we pushed it to and who responded,” Vandegrift said.

There are many more components: Codes from ads and POP can be texted to win additional sweepstakes chances, the sandwiches have their own baseball-type cards that factor in and fans who collect those can upload photos to a site to receive a mini engraved baseball bat premium. There’s a local market activation push to help restaurants connect with baseball entities in their communities through sponsorships, team nights and other touch points.

“It’s rare to see a 40-year-old brand take a shot at new media," said Vandegrift. Most are afraid to dip their toes in, and he believes the best way to introduce clients to Web 2.0 is to engage them personally. He added: “If you want to know how text messaging works, [we say to them,] ‘Text this message to this code and when you get a message back you can see if you like how it works. That’s better than sitting around all day saying, ‘We should have a better web site.’ It’s about building a better social experience.”

Francorp to Exhibit at the Franchise Middle East Show

Franchising Middle East expo opens
Dubai: Mon, 2 Mar 2009

Franchising Middle East (FME), the region’s leading exhibition for the franchise sector, opened at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre, with 72 exhibitors from 22 countries.

The exhibition, now in its sixth year, aims to provide an injection of business ideas to the Middle East market as international brands come to Dubai with a view to expanding across the Middle East with local partners, said organisrs.

'Never has the franchise concept been more vital to business growth than in today’s economic environment,' stated Abdul Rehman Falaknaz, president of International Expo Consults (IEC), organisers of FME.

'Franchising offers local entrepreneurs access to established brands and business models, while international players are provided with a chance to tap into new markets at relatively low set-up costs.'

Big names from Europe, Asia and the Middle East are exhibiting at the show this week, including participation from Cremeria Vienna, Subway, London Dairy Café and Tom Tailor.

Master Franchisers from Jebel Ali Free Zone is leading a delegation of international brands, many of whom are debuting at the show. These include Zerga, Bed + Bath, Padini Authentics, Trio and New Zealand Naturals.

Franchise consultants such as FranExcel and FranCorp will be on hand to offer would-be entrepreneurs advice on how to set up franchise operations in the region.

FME is the region’s only exhibition that offers a world of exciting opportunities to international franchisers to access the thriving Middle East and North Africa (Mena) market and launch their franchise concepts.

The exhibition facilitates direct communication between entrepreneurs and potential franchise buyers from the region and beyond.

The show has earned a name for providing an ideal networking opportunity for the franchising industry in the Middle East, which industry analysts have estimated is worth $30 billion.

'With the franchise industry already growing at 25 per cent per annum, the UAE and the rest of the GCC region is a fertile market for franchise companies to expand into,' Falaknaz added.

'With approximately 85 per cent of the UAE population comprising expatriates, this is the market that needs to be catered for.'

FME 2009 takes place from March 2 to 4.-TradeArabia News Service

Francorp Client - Zoom Room Featured on Animal Planet!

Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 14th at 9 pm.

The Zoom Room will be featured as the training locale for the hit series It's Me or the Dog on Animal Planet, a training show in which dog trainer Victoria Stillwell helps out hapless dog owners.

The show's producers contacted the Zoom Room because of our fun, sporty atmosphere, and thought that an indoor training facility would provide the owners of Mr. Black, a Beagle mix, with an opportunity to practice his newly acquired obedience skills outside the house.

We don't want to give away the ending, but we will say that Mr. Black deftly worked his way through a series of skill tests with both Victoria and his owners. We were thrilled to meet Victoria and host such a positive dog show, which emphasizes relationship building between owner and dog. Check us out Saturday, March 14th at 9pm!

And speaking of our training facility, in case you were ever wondering how the Zoom Room maintains its commitment to running a conscientious, environmentally-friendly and responsible play place for dogs, we've just added an article to our blog about our green products and practices - please check it out if you're interested!

All best,
Your friends at the Zoom Room
www.ZoomRoomOnline.com
(310) 636-4606

 

 

 

Francorp Middle East

Franchise demand in UAE to expand
Armina Ligaya

Last Updated: March 02. 2009 10:12PM UAE / March 2. 2009 6:12PM GMT
Customers line up at Popeye's, a fast food outlets. Experts say franchising is likely to expand this year as people seek alternative forms of income. Jaime Puebla / The National
DUBAI // The franchising industry in the UAE will continue to grow in the coming year as regional investors shift away from property and financial markets, and out-of-work executives seek new forms of employment, industry insiders say.

“The potential for growth is there,” said Matthew Shay, president and chief executive of the International Franchise Association, on the sidelines of the Franchise Middle East Exhibition in Dubai. “From what we’re hearing from our members, [the UAE] is still a positive climate.”

The US market, valued at US$1 trillion (Dh3.67tn), was forecasted to see declines of 1 to 2 per cent in 2009, according to a study conducted by the IFA and Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Mr Shay said.

However, he expects the UAE market to have a brighter outlook due to relatively easier access to credit and its role as the gateway to the region. Mr Shay estimates the UAE franchising industry, valued at about $30 billion, will grow between 5 and 8 per cent.

“This is one of those places that you can’t skip; you have to do business here,” he said.

Local investors are also looking to get into the franchising game as the traditional investment avenues such as property and the financial markets are less stable, said Imad Charafeddine, managing partner of the UAE branch of Francorp, a franchise consultant.

He said franchise inquiries have increased by 20 per cent in the past two months.

It is a similar pattern at the Kuwait-based Middle East Franchising consultancy, which has seen a 25 per cent jump in inquiries, according to its deputy chief executive, Barrak Al Homaisi.

“A lot of people who have lost their jobs and have a good amount of savings are looking to start their own business,” he said.

Mr Shay said typically in economic downturns, as unemployment rates go up, more people look to start their own business, and franchises are an easy option. However, he said recent studies in the US show access to financing will drop by 30 per cent in the next year.

“This [crisis] is an opportunity for franchises, but the rub is lack of access to credit.”

Mr Charafeddine said this is less of a problem in the UAE because Emiratis can secure funds from Government agencies and expatriates with a business background can still be granted start-up funds.

In the past five years, the UAE industry has grown by about 25 per cent to roughly 400 franchising systems, said Sary Hamway, the Dubai-based chief executive of FranExcel, a franchise consultancy that organised the World Franchise Forum alongside FME.

Franchise inquiries have gone up, he said, but investors were more hesitant to buy.

“It will continue to grow,” he said. “Retail franchises are good because it is medium-risk, and medium investment.”

Darren Smith, manager of retail and marketing support with Emarat’s coffee chain Bakeria, said the tightening credit markets have also helped to bring down the cost of rent. Outside of the major city centres, some rents have gone down from Dh350 a square foot to Dh150, he said.

“Now, suddenly, you’re hearing a word you haven’t heard before from landlords: negotiate.”

Global brands are now clamouring to enter the region to access the strong demand for international food brands, said Steve Rothenstein, the international operations manager for tasti D-lite, a US chain of low-fat yogurt stores.

“In the UAE, the people like their food brands from around the world,” he said. “It’s a great area to do business — friendly, ease of entry, and they know what they’re doing here in terms of infrastructure.”

Francorp to Present at the New York Restaurant Show on How to Franchise

Francorp International Consulting firm to present on franchising and how to franchise at the New York International Foodservice Show. Francorp works closely with the New York Foodservice show to educate and assist restaurant owners and business owners in the evaluation of franchising as an expansion option.

Several Francorp clients and former clients will also be taking part in the show including Uno Chicago Grill, Buffalo Wild Wings and McDonald's . Francorp Executive Vice President Thomas DuFore will be handling the workshops and presentations during the week in New York.

Francorp is headquartered in Chicago, IL but operates out of 22 offices globally and does work for franchise companies in over 40 countries around the world.

Below are the details and featured events during the show. For more information on Francorp and Francorp's development work visit the corporate site, www.francorp.com.

Intl. Foodservice Show of NY opens today
01 Mar 2009
The International Restaurant & Foodservice Show of New York starts today at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. The show runs March 1-3 and features National Restaurant Association chairman Michael Kaufman as the keynote speaker. Kaufman's address, America's Restaurants - Serving our Nation, will be held at 1 p.m.

Educational sessions for the day include:
"Menu Targeting Trends: See what Generation Y and the Millenials are Eating Before they Hit Your Market," presented by Rob Harison, a chef with Princeton University Dining Services - 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
"Fast Casual - Changing the Way America Eats," a panel discussion hosted by Linda Duke, CEO of Duke Marketing. Panelists include Paul Barron, publisher of Fast Casual magazine; Ed Frechette, senior vice president of Au Bon Pain; Louis Basille, CEO of Wildflower Bread Company; and James Strobino, SVP, new concept development, Uno Chicago Grill - 2:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
"6 Reasons Why You Should Franchise Your Restaurant," presented by Tom Dufore, executive vice president, Francorp - 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Co-located with this year's event is the New York Pizza Showcase. The showcase features performances by the U.S. Pizza Team and the Hall of Fame Award presentation. Dom DeMarco of Di Fara's Pizza and chef Santo Bruno of Marsal & Sons are recipients of this year's awards.

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