Consistency in franchising is like the secret ingredient in a great recipe – without it, something just isn’t right.
In the world of coworking franchises, branding consistency is the glue that holds all individual locations together. It’s not just about having the same logo on the wall; it’s about delivering a seamless experience that makes each location feel like part of a unified whole.
In fact, G2 found that consistent branding can increase a company’s revenue by up to 20%. Brand consistency is crucial for coworking franchises as it builds trust, fosters loyalty, and ensures a unified member experience across all locations.
From the smallest design details to the tone in which staff members greet guests, consistency creates a sense of trust and reliability that’s crucial for scaling successfully.
This has become all the more important since the rise of coworking spaces and the competitive industry it has turned into.
Members are choosing spaces based not only on convenience, but on the quality and reliability of their experience as well.
When a coworking space franchise maintains consistent branding – whether through design, services, or culture – it creates a strong, recognizable identity that members can rely on, no matter which location they’re in.
Quick Summary
Top ways to ensure brand consistency include:
Consistency in branding helps to set clear expectations for your coworking community. When members walk into any location of a coworking franchise, they should feel a seamless continuation of the brand experience they’ve come to know and appreciate.
This familiarity breeds comfort, making it easier for members to transition between locations and stay loyal to the brand.
Forbes hit the nail on the head in this article discussing branding for franchise success, saying,
[Branding is] the customer experiences and company culture that intertwines everything that your business does. It’s that feeling that people get when they think about your business and product or service, the perception that they have and the reaction they have to you. Ultimately your brand isn’t you – it’s who your customers think you are.” The article goes on to say, “It’s that consistency that is the lifeblood of your franchise network – franchisees will join you and customers will come to you because of the surety factor of being part of an established and recognized brand.
Brand consistency is vital for coworking space franchises as it directly impacts trust, customer loyalty, and brand recognition – the three pillars that are essential for long-term success.
Trust is the foundation of any successful relationship. For coworking space franchises, trust is built when members know they can expect the same high-quality experience every time, regardless of where they are.
Whether it’s the ambiance, customer service, or the unique amenities that they’re attracted to, keeping these elements consistent assures members that they can rely on the brand to meet their needs, no matter what.
Delivering on your promises consistently fosters confidence amongst your members and turns first-time visitors into lifers.
Loyalty is earned through consistent positive experiences. When members encounter the same welcoming environment, reliable services, and community-driven atmosphere across all franchise locations, they develop a deeper connection with the brand.
This loyalty is crucial in the coworking industry, where competition is fierce, and switching to another space can be as easy as a single click.
Competing spaces will be after your members, so give them a reason to stay with you. A consistent brand experience is the key to retaining members, reducing churn, and attracting potential memberships or visiting workers.
Brand recognition is what sets a coworking space apart in a crowded market. A consistent brand image – encompassing everything from visual identity to the member perception – makes a franchise more memorable and easily identifiable.
When members and potential customers consistently encounter the same logo, color scheme, messaging, tone of communication, and quality of service, it reinforces the brand in their minds.
This recognition not only helps attract new members but also solidifies the brand’s reputation as a reliable and professional coworking provider.
In essence, brand consistency is not just about visual appeal and marketing tactics – it’s about creating a unified, predictable experience that builds trust, fosters loyalty, and enhances brand recognition.
For coworking space franchises and even for coliving spaces, this consistency is key to standing out in the newly-saturated market and achieving sustainable growth.
With anything, there cannot be a triumph without trials and tribulations – maintaining brand consistency through coworking space franchises is no exception.
Three challenges that stand out the most include geographic dispersion, diverse franchise management styles, and varying customer demographics and local market needs. Let’s take a closer look.
Franchise locations are often spread across different cities, regions, or even countries. This geographic dispersion can make it difficult to guarantee brand standard adherence across all locations.
Variations in local culture, regulations, and economic conditions can influence how the brand is perceived and operated.
For example, the available amenities in a bustling metropolitan area may differ significantly from those in a smaller, more suburban location.
To address these challenges, franchises must implement strong, clear guidelines and maintain regular communication to ensure consistency without stifling local adaptability.
Each franchisee brings with them their own management style, business practices, and interpretation of the brand.
While this diversity can offer valuable local insights and innovations, it can also lead to inconsistencies in how the brand is represented and experienced.
Some franchisees might have different approaches to customer service, decor and space layout, or operational procedures, which can create variations in the member experience.
Ensuring that all franchisees are aligned with the brand’s core values and standards requires comprehensive training, ongoing support, and a robust system of checks and balances.
Customer demographics and market needs can vary widely between locations. A coworking space in a tech hub may cater predominantly to startups and tech professionals, while one in a more traditional business district may attract more corporate clients.
These differences can affect the types of amenities, services, and community activities that are most relevant and appealing to members – what’s in high demand in one location, might not be as popular in another.
Balancing the needs for a standardized brand experience with the need to cater to local market preferences requires a strategic approach.
Franchises must adapt their offerings to meet local demands, while ensuring that the core brand experience remains intact. To address these challenges, coworking franchises should focus on establishing clear brand guidelines using these key strategies:
Clear brand guidelines serve as a roadmap for franchisees, outlining everything from visual identity to service standards, and help to maintain the familiarity and integrity of the brand.
With well-defined guidelines, franchisees can effectively implement the brand’s core values and aesthetics, creating a cohesive and trusted experience for members, regardless of where they are.
A comprehensive brand manual is the cornerstone of ensuring brand consistency across all coworking franchise locations.
It acts as a detailed blueprint that guides franchisees on how to represent the brand in every aspect, from visual elements to communication style. A brand manual helps maintain a cohesive and recognizable experience for members, no matter where they engage with the franchise.
When developing your coworking franchise brand manual, consider ways to level the playing field and create a model any location can use. The most important factors to include in your manual are as follows:
1. Logo Usage: The logo is the most visible and recognizable element of your brand identity, making it crucial to clearly define its usage. The brand manual should include specifications on logo placement, sizing, and spacing to ensure it is always displayed correctly and consistently. Addressing other logo aspects like acceptable color variations, backgrounds, and how the logo should (or should not) be used in different contexts, such as digital media, print materials, and signage, will also get you a step closer to guaranteeing logo uniformity across your coworking franchise locations.
2. Color Schemes: A consistent color scheme is essential for brand recognition. Colors can be a powerful way to invoke emotion and nostalgia, making colors synonymous with your brand. HubSpot recently revealed “using consistent brand colors can increase brand recall by up to 80%.”
The brand manual should specify the primary, secondary, and tertiary colors, if applicable, along with their exact color (Hex) codes. This ensures that all franchise locations and marketing materials maintain a uniform look and feel.
3. Typography: Typography plays a key role in setting the tone of your brand. The brand manual should outline the specific font families to be used, along with font sizes, weights, and styles for different types of content (i.e. Page titles and headers, body text, etc.). Specify how these fonts should be applied across digital and print materials to ensure a consistent visual identity.
4. Tone of Voice: The tone of voice reflects the personality of your brand and how it communicates with its audience. The brand manual should define the desired tone – whether it’s formal, friendly, professional, playful, or otherwise – and provide examples of how this tone should be used in various communications. A social media post or newsletter may require a different tone than an email communication or customer interaction, so knowing your audience and the purpose of your messaging may help determine tone of voice.
5. Imagery and Visual Style: Your brand manual should also provide guidelines for the type of imagery and visual stylings that align with the brand. This includes the use of photography, illustrations, and graphics that reflect the brand’s identity. Specify the types of images that should be used in marketing materials, on social media, on the website, and on other print materials (i.e. letterhead, paper products, etc), ensuring that all visual content is consistent with the brand’s aesthetic.
Though your brand manual needs to be detailed in order to be effective, sometimes overcomplicating things will have an adverse effect. Use these best practices as guidelines to help create an effective brand manual:
Reaching true success in coworking space franchising requires more than just developing a well-crafted manual and setting your franchisees free – it demands ongoing training and effective onboarding.
By investing in comprehensive brand training programs, you’ll equip franchisees with the knowledge and tools they need to uphold your brand’s identity and values, ensuring a uniform experience for members across every location.
Franchisees are the ambassadors of your brand at the local level. They play a crucial role in how your brand is perceived by members, partners, and the broader community – a bad experience in one location could ruin it for the entire company.
Without proper training, even the most well-intentioned franchisee might unintentionally stray from brand standards, leading to inconsistencies that can dilute the brand’s overall impact. This makes onboarding and continuous brand training essential in maintaining a cohesive and recognizable brand identity.
Effective brand training ensures that every franchisee fully understands the brand’s core values, visual identity, tone of voice, and operational standards.
Additionally, continuity helps franchisees internalize what the brand stands for, how to translate that into every aspect of the business, and reignites excitement and passion for brand loyalty.
To keep brand standards top of mind, regular training programs and workshops are essential. These sessions provide ongoing opportunities to reinforce brand guidelines, introduce updates, and address any challenges franchisees may face in maintaining brand consistency.
Let’s take a look at some ways to continuously support your franchisees and further hone their understanding of your brand.
1. Comprehensive Onboarding Programs
Initial Training: Start with an intensive onboarding program for new franchisees that covers all aspects of your brand. Use real-world examples and interactive activities to help franchisees fully grasp how to apply these principles in their own location.
This should include detailed sessions on the brand’s history, mission, values, visual identity and communication style. It’s one thing to know that or how certain things are done, but it’s another to understand why. Understanding the brand’s why fosters a deeper connection to the brand.
2. Mentorship and Support: Pair new franchisees with experienced mentors who can provide guidance and answer questions as they begin implementing the brand standards. This peer-to-peer learning approach can be highly effective in reinforcing brand consistency.
3. Regular Brand Workshops:
Annual or Semi-Annual Workshops: Hold brand workshops at least once or twice a year to refresh franchisees on key brand principles and introduce any updates or changes. These workshops can also serve as a forum for franchisees to share their experiences, discuss challenges, and learn from one another.
Specialized Sessions: Offer specialized training sessions on specific aspects of the brand, such as social media marketing, customer service, or interior design. This allows franchisees to deepen their knowledge in areas that are particularly relevant to maintaining brand consistency.
4. Online Training Modules
On-Demand Learning: Provide online training modules that franchisees can access at their convenience. These can include video tutorials, quizzes, and interactive exercises that cover various aspects of the brand. Online modules are particularly useful for ensuring that training is consistent and accessible, regardless of a franchisee’s location. They’re also great to get new hires up to speed quickly.
Continuous Updates: Keep the online training platform updated with new content and resources. This ensures that franchisees are always informed about the latest brand standards and best practices.
5. Performance Reviews and Feedback Forums
Regular Reviews: Conduct regular performance reviews that include an assessment of how well franchisees are adhering to brand guidelines. Use these reviews to identify areas where additional training or support may be needed.
Feedback Mechanisms: Create a feedback system where franchisees can share their insights and challenges related to brand implementation. This feedback can inform future training programs and help refine brand guidelines to better support franchisees.
Brand training and onboarding are not one-time events, but ongoing processes. As the coworking industry evolves and the brand adapts to new trends and market demands, continuous learning becomes essential to maintaining brand consistency.
Regular training programs and workshops help franchisees stay aligned with the brand’s vision and standards, ensuring that every location delivers a consistent and high-quality experience to their members.
While comprehensive brand training is crucial for maintaining brand consistency across coworking space franchises, it’s equally important to implement regular brand audits to ensure branding efforts are ongoing and always top of mind.
Brand audits serve as routine checks to ensure that franchisees are adhering to the established brand guidelines and that your brand’s identity remains consistent across all locations.
By conducting brand audits, you can identify potential inconsistencies and take corrective actions before they impact the overall brand perception.
Brand audits are systematic evaluations of how well franchise locations are aligning with the brand’s standards.
They help ensure that every franchisee is accurately representing the brand in terms of visual identity, messaging, customer experience, and operational practices.
These audits not only protect the brand’s reputation but also provide valuable insights into areas where additional training or support may be needed.
Conducting regular brand audits can also help identify trends or common issues across multiple locations, allowing the franchisor to address these proactively.
This continuous monitoring and evaluation process is key to sustaining brand consistency and ensuring that all franchise locations are contributing to the brand’s overall success.
Audits can seem daunting at first glance, so we’ve broken it down for you. Here are some fool-proof tools and methods to use that will help make the process painless:
1. Checklists and Evaluation Forms:
Customizable Checklists: Develop detailed checklists based on your brand guidelines to use during audits. These checklists should cover all aspects of the brand, from logo, color schemes, and typography, to tone of voice and customer service standards. Checklists allow you to tailor the audit process to specific franchise locations, ensuring a thorough evaluation. Have them saved on file so they’re easy to grab when it’s time to conduct one.
Evaluation Forms: In addition to checklists, use standardized evaluation forms to document findings during the audit. These forms should include both quantitative ratings and qualitative observations, providing a comprehensive overview of each location’s adherence to brand standards.
2. Mystery Shopping:
Anonymous Audits: As a way to keep franchisees on their toes and always anticipating, you might consider using mystery shoppers to anonymously evaluate each franchise location. Mystery shoppers can provide an unbiased perspective on how well the brand is being represented in day-to-day operations, from member interactions to the overall ambiance of the space. This also gives a more accurate depiction of what members see and experience on the daily.
Detailed Reports: After each mystery shopping visit, review detailed reports that highlight strengths and areas for improvement. These insights can inform future training initiatives and corrective actions.
3. Digital Monitoring Tools:
Social Media and Website Monitoring: Utilize digital tools to monitor how franchisees are representing the brand online. This includes reviewing social media posts, website content, and online reviews. Ensure that the digital presence of each location aligns with the brand’s guidelines and overall strategy.
Brand Consistency Software: Invest in software like BrandQuantum, designed to create and manage consistent customer experiences. These tools can automate the audit process, providing real-time insights into how well franchisees are adhering to brand standards.
4. Regular On-Site Visits:
In-Person Inspections: Whenever possible, it’s always best to conduct these audits in person. Schedule regular on-site visits to franchise locations for a more comprehensive audit. These visits allow you to assess the physical environment, observe member interactions, and have direct discussions with franchisees about any challenges they may be facing in regards to branding.
Collaborative Reviews: During on-site visits, engage franchisees in the audit process by conducting collaborative reviews. Discuss the findings together and develop action plans to address any discrepancies. This approach fosters a sense of partnership and shared responsibility for upholding the brand.
Brand audits are an essential tool for maintaining the integrity and consistency of your coworking space franchise.
By regularly evaluating how franchisees are implementing brand guidelines and addressing any issues that arise, you can ensure that every location reflects the brand’s identity and values. This not only strengthens brand recognition and loyalty but also contributes to the overall success and growth of the franchise.
Whether we want to admit it or not, we live in a digital age where technology is just part of our DNA.
Technology is a powerful force and, when used correctly, can really make our lives easier. When it comes to maintaining brand consistency across coworking space franchises, there are different tools and platforms that can streamline branding efforts, ensure uniformity, and empower franchise owners to deliver a cohesive brand experience across all locations.
Let’s dive in.
Centralized marketing platforms are the backbone of a consistent branding strategy for coworking franchises. These platforms enable franchisors to manage and distribute brand materials, automate marketing processes, and monitor brand compliance across all locations.
A Digital Asset Management (DAM) system is the driving force behind any centralized marketing platform, offering a powerful solution for storing, managing, and distributing brand materials.
DAM systems provide a centralized repository where all brand assets – logos, color palettes, fonts and typography, images, videos, marketing templates, etc. – are stored. This centralized access ensures that all franchisees have the latest approved versions of brand assets at their fingertips.
Here are the key benefits of DAM Systems:
Automation is another vital feature of a centralized marketing platform that helps ensure uniformity in branding.
By automating key marketing processes, franchisors can maintain control over how the brand is represented while reducing the manual effort required to manage marketing activities.
Automated marketing processes include:
OfficeRnD Flex’s Member Experience Apps are designed to enhance the member and visitor experience while reinforcing brand consistency across coworking franchise locations.
These apps allow you to extend your brand’s reach into the digital realm, ensuring that members interact with your brand consistently, whether in person or online.
Key Features of OfficeRnD Flex’s Member Experience Apps:
Effective communication is another essential element for maintaining brand consistency across coworking space franchises, especially when managing multiple locations – the best way to equip your team is to make yourself accessible to them.
Tools like Slack, Asana, Trello, and other collaboration platforms can be game-changers when it comes to ensuring franchisees stay aligned with brand standards.
These platforms provide owners with direct access to corporate teams, enabling them to receive updates, ask questions, and share feedback in a timely manner. They can also serve as hubs where standardized documents are stored and are regularly discussed and reinforced.
Here are the key features of communication and collaboration tools:
One of the most valuable aspects of these tools is their ability to enable real-time communication, which is critical in a fast-paced franchise environment.
Ensuring that corporate teams and franchisees can communicate seamlessly is key to maintaining uniform branding across all locations.
Real-Time Communication Features:
To make the most of these platforms, coworking franchises should implement best practices that encourage active participation and ensure seamless communication, like:
There are several other tools on the market that provide similar functionality as well. While it may take some trial and error to find the right tool for your business model and needs, it is important to at least start with something.
While consistency is crucial for building a strong brand across coworking space franchises, encouraging local adaptation is just as important.
Coworking spaces thrive by fostering local community connections, and tailoring certain aspects of the brand to fit regional preferences can help franchisees better engage with their markets.
The challenge lies in finding a balance between local customization and maintaining the integrity of your core brand values.
Coworking space franchises often operate in diverse regions, where customer demographics, business cultures, and local trends can vary significantly.
To stay relevant, franchisees may need to adapt marketing strategies, event programming, or even design elements to suit their particular audience.
However, it’s important to have clear guidelines on how these adaptations can be made without diluting the overall brand.
When coworking space franchises aim to balance local customization with overall brand integrity, they need to carefully navigate the waters of allowing creative freedom while simultaneously preserving core brand values. Here are some essential guidelines to help achieve this balance.
Establish Clear Core Brand Standards: Define the non-negotiables. Clearly outline the elements of your brand that must remain consistent across all locations. This includes your logo, color schemes, typography, core messaging, and fundamental values.
Providing a detailed brand manual that specifies what can and cannot be altered helps to regiment those core brand standards. A documented explanation of brand standards that is accessible to franchise owners at any given time ensures they understand the boundaries within which they can customize.
Allow Controlled Flexibility: Create a customizable marketing toolkit. Offer customizable templates for marketing materials like posters, social media, and other promotional materials. These should allow for a local twist while still maintaining the core brand elements like colors, logos, and fonts.
Permit franchisees to adjust messaging to reflect local idioms, cultural references, or regional events, provided the changes align with the brand’s tone of voice.
Embrace Cultural Sensitivity: Franchisees should be encouraged to host events, market their space, and reach a broader audience in a way that resonates with the local culture and trends, without compromising brand values.
For instance, a coworking space in a bustling metropolitan area may emphasize speed and convenience in their messaging and host hackathons or coding workshops, while a creative district could focus on art shows or design sprints, and a more laid-back, suburban location could highlight community and work-life balance.
Provide clear guidelines on what types of local changes require approval and which are pre-approved to streamline the process.
Be mindful of cultural sensitivities to avoid offending local customs or norms.
One of the most successful coworking franchises as it relates to adapting to local cultures while remaining consistent with overall branding is Vast Coworking Group.
Under the Vast umbrella that boasts over 200 flex spaces spanning across 9 countries, lies Venture X, Office Evolution, and Intelligent Office.
Looking to emulate the franchise model of hotel champion, Marriott, Vast tailors their coworking spaces to meet a wide variety of needs.
In an interview with Commercial Property Executive, Jason Anderson, President of Vast Coworking Group, was asked how they ensure branding stays consistent across all locations given the expansive portfolio. Anderson explained,
Ensuring branding consistency across our portfolio becomes easier as we expand. With a franchise model, success drives adherence to branding standards. When locations thrive, there’s strong alignment with brand guidelines.” He went on to say, “Balancing consistency with localized customization is akin to the approach taken by well-known brands. While customers expect a certain level of consistency, variations exist to accommodate diverse market needs.
In the same interview, Anderson was asked if it is difficult to balance between maintaining brand consistency and allowing for localized customization to meet the unique needs of different markets, to which he responded,
We also allow for creative flair and customization by franchisees, as those have the flexibility to personalize aspects of their spaces, such as interior design, within the parameters set by our brand standards. This approach ensures that while there’s consistency in quality and brand identity, each location can reflect its unique market and clientele.
One of the most effective ways to maintain brand consistency while allowing local flexibility is by fostering a collaborative relationship with franchisees.
Franchise owners are on the front lines, interacting with local members and gaining insights into the preferences of their specific markets.
Creating a feedback loop where franchisees can share these insights and suggest adjustments is invaluable for keeping the brand both consistent and locally relevant.
While anyone can simply ask for feedback, there is an art to retrieving this information in a way that allows providers to speak openly and honestly.
There is also an added level of follow-up required that will help contributors feel their feedback is being taken seriously. Here are few things to consider to create a successful feedback loop:
Celebrating local success stories is a great way to unify the brand while giving franchisees the autonomy to shine in their respective markets.
By sharing these stories across all locations, you can inspire other franchisees and demonstrate how local adaptation can lead to success. Some ways to implement this include:
Encouraging local adaptation while maintaining core brand values is essential for coworking space franchises looking to thrive in diverse markets. By balancing local customization with brand integrity and fostering feedback and collaboration from franchisees, you can ensure that your brand remains strong and relevant across all locations.
Ensuring brand consistency across coworking space franchises isn’t just about setting and forgetting guidelines – it also requires regular monitoring and measuring of how well those standards are upheld.
By tracking key performance indicators and addressing inconsistencies swiftly, coworking franchises can maintain a strong, unified brand presence that resonates with customers across all locations.
To effectively measure brand consistency, it is absolutely essential to establish clear KPIs that assess how well the brand is being represented across all franchise locations.
These KPIs provide a data-driven approach to understanding how the brand is perceived by customers and the overall market. The top KPIs to consider when evaluating brand consistency include:
Even with well-established brand guidelines, inconsistencies may occur as franchises adapt to local market needs or face operational challenges. Identifying and addressing these issues quickly is crucial to maintaining a unified brand image.
Routine brand audits are essential for identifying inconsistencies in how the brand is presented across franchise locations.
These audits can include physical site inspections, reviewing marketing materials, and monitoring customer feedback to detect deviations from brand standards.
Leveraging tools like mystery shopper programs or conducting regular site visits can also help spot inconsistencies in customer experience or operational branding.
Once inconsistencies are identified, it’s important to act swiftly. Develop a corrective action plan that provides franchisees with clear steps on how to bring their operations or marketing efforts back in line with brand standards. This could include:
Maintaining brand consistency requires ongoing support for franchisees. Ensure they have easy access to the tools, resources, and assistance they’ll need to uphold brand standards.
Though we’ve discussed many offerings that are beneficial to providing your franchisees throughout this blog post, the top three include:
In supporting your workforce, they’ll be better equipped to support staff at the local level, thus driving success in their own spaces.
At the end of the day, brand consistency is a vital pillar for long-term coworking space franchise success. It fosters customer loyalty, enhances brand recognition, and drives community across all locations. Maintaining this consistency, however, requires a thoughtful, multi-layered approach.
So, take the first step towards solidifying your brand presence – evaluate your current systems, refine your brand standards, and empower your franchisees to uphold your brand’s integrity. With the right strategy in place, your coworking franchise can maintain the consistency that customers trust and value.