What it Takes to Scale a Franchise

With laser-like focus on client satisfaction and an ingenuous approach towards marketing and branding, RockBox Fitness grew from two locations to 23 franchises and three corporate locations within a year.

What’s the secret behind their success? What does it take to scale a franchise?

It begins with zeroing in on what’s missing in the industry. In the modern fitness world, variety and individuality are in high demand. Clients are looking for new ways to tackle plateaus and change up the norm with personalized workouts.

That’s what Roger Martin and Steve Halloran, founders of RockBox Fitness, jumped on. With a passion for kickboxing and an eye for the modern market, Martin and Halloran created a never-before-seen group fitness business. The RockBox Fitness model focuses on personalized member experience, destroys workout-boredom with infinite routine updates, and incorporates colored lights that change with the music to make members feel like they’re “boxing in a night club.”

Scaling a franchise starts with getting your process down pat. While speed is critical, so is quality. So how do you know when it’s time to scale? Martin says you’ll know “when the beta test no longer feels like a beta test.” Nothing is ever going to be perfect, but when the process becomes ingrained and runs smoothly with minimal bugs, then it’s ready to be scaled.

Another key aspect is effective storytelling. You need to let the world know who you are and what you do. In today’s market, that means multi-pronged marketing. It’s a delicate combination of modern strategies such as SEO and PR campaigns and following through with exceptional client service. RockBox succeeded by investing the same amount of time and money into delivering outstanding member experiences and attracting new clients.

To tie it all together, you need to clearly understand and establish your brand. Martin’s mindset when establishing RockBox was, “Brand must trump everything.” No matter what the situation might be or what campaign is up and running, never take shortcuts that can jeopardize the appearance of your brand or the member experience.

In the present age of information overload, it’s more important than ever to keep your image consistent. That means offering clients a branded mobile app with your company logo, and maintaining a consistent brand voice when facing customers every step of the way. Because at the end of the day, when you’re scaling your business, your voice is what stands in front of the customer.

Process, marketing and branding: the three pillars of growing a franchise. RockBox Fitness’ outstanding success is an inspirational example of what is possible when you effectively combine risk-taking, ingenuity and dedication. Master the trio, and you’re on your way to scale your own business.

Len Fridman is the CEO and co-founder of business management software company, WellnessLiving. For more information, email upgrade@wellnessliving.com or call 888.668.7728.