The Franchise Marketer Podcast

In this episode, I talk about how to build your own AI CMO.

To see the video of this, make sure you join my Franchise Marketer newsletter - https://franchisemarketer.beehiiv.com/

I sat down with Laura Ridley from The Checklist Group. She’s helped franchises like Success Tutoring explode from a handful of sites to more than 160 territories.

We talked about why pre-sales matter, why most franchise owners lose momentum the moment they open the doors, and why lead addiction is killing growth.

Laura broke down Meta ads, UGC, avatar-specific campaigns and the massive gap in franchising; no one nurtures their leads properly.

We also dug into founder brands and why your old grainy testimonial video is probably hurting more than helping.

If you’re a franchisor trying to grow or just want your franchisees to stop flatlining, this episode will give you a few uncomfortable truths. The useful kind.

In this crossover episode, I join Glenn Walford on The Franchise Everything Podcast to unpack how Jim’s Group built one of Australia’s biggest franchise networks fuelled almost entirely by video marketing.

I share how he started with one videographer and turned Jim’s Group into a daily content machine.

He explains the mechanics behind founder branding, long-form storytelling, and how YouTube became the “trust engine” that drives franchise recruitment.

They dig into:• Building credibility with consistent content• Why “testimonial videos” are dead• How to turn negative comments into marketing gold• What franchisors can learn from influencer culture• The future of personal branding in franchising

This one’s packed with real examples, a few hard truths, and plenty of ideas you can steal.

Timestamps

00:00 – Introduction: The Franchise Everything Podcast crossover02:00 – The origins of Jim’s Group video strategy05:00 – Scaling content across 50 divisions07:30 – When the results started to show09:00 – Founder branding: bringing Jim Penman to life online12:00 – Why Australians struggle with self-promotion13:30 – How to make it easy for busy founders to show up on camera15:00 – The “post more” rule: eight times a day and why it works17:30 – Turning criticism into creative fuel20:00 – The problem with testimonials (and what works better)22:00 – How content qualifies the right franchise leads24:00 – YouTube as the franchise world’s “trust engine”25:00 – Final takeaways for franchisors

Former BFT growth leader Jason Clark reveals how he helped scale Body Fit Training from 12 studios to 300+ locations across 13 countries.

He shares the franchise sales systems, Meta ad strategies, and content approach that built a global brand.

A must-listen for franchisors and marketers who want to grow faster and smarter.

Contact Jason Via LinkedIn for a chat about Franchise Growth.

At just 17, Michael Black launched a tutoring business from his parents’ spare room.

Less than a decade later, he’s built Success Tutoring into a fast-growing franchise with 45 locations across Australia and New Zealand. In this episode, Michael shares how word of mouth fueled his early growth, why content is now his strongest marketing tool, and how he uses personal branding to drive franchise recruitment.

He also breaks down his approach to supporting young franchisees, scaling sustainably, and staying ahead with AI.

If you want real lessons on building a franchise brand from scratch, this is an episode worth your time.Learn more about Michael on his website.

In this episode of the Franchise Marketer Podcast, I chat with David List, founder of Trade Magnet and a former tradie turned automation specialist. David shares how he went from being a sparky to building advanced automation systems for trades and home service businesses.

We cover:

If you’re a franchisor, franchisee, or service business owner who wants to cut through the noise and see what’s really possible with automation, this episode is packed with practical insights.

Check out David’s work at trademagnet.com.au and his demos on TikTok.

In this episode of the Franchise Marketer Podcast, I recount how we expanded our franchise network from 2000 to 5700 franchisees across Australia, New Zealand, and Canada within six years.

I share my career transition from law and compliance to digital marketing, inspired by Gary Vaynerchuk's 'Crushing It.' I detail the impact of a viral video in 2019 and the inception of our 'Ask Jim' live Q&A sessions, which humanised our brand and significantly boosted franchise sales.

I discuss the immense power of live video in enhancing transparency and engagement, which is crucial to our growth.

Tune in to learn valuable insights and strategies for scaling your own franchise brand.

Ready to grow your franchise like we did? Here's how I can help:

📧 Get my FREE Franchise Growth Playbook - The exact strategies I used to grow Jim's Group by 2,000 franchisees: ⁠⁠⁠https://franchisemarketer.beehiiv.com/⁠⁠⁠

Once you join my newsletter list, you can contact me via that.

Don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this with other franchise professionals who need to hear this!

In this episode of the Franchise Marketer Podcast, I, Joel Kleber, CMO of Australia's largest franchise, The Jim's Group, dive into the concept of Franchisee-Generated Content (FGC).

I discuss effective strategies for leveraging FGC, including offering incentives, providing training, minimising barriers, and offering editing services.

I share real-world examples from The Jim's Group, showcasing how FGC can significantly enhance engagement and reach.

Tune in to discover how empowering franchisees with the tools and freedom to create content can revolutionise your franchise's marketing efforts.

Grab my Franchise Growth Playbook.

Want to crack the LinkedIn algorithm and create viral content? Discover the exact AI-powered system I used to grow Jim Penman (CEO of Jim's Group) from zero to 30,000 followers and LinkedIn Top Voice status in just 6 weeks.

In this episode, you'll learn:

✔️ The Kleo extension hack for analysing viral posts from top creators

✔️ How to use ChatGPT to reverse-engineer successful LinkedIn content

✔️ The project file system that keeps content authentic while scaling

✔️ Scripe.io - the AI tool that writes in your voice automatically

✔️ Why story-based posts outperform everything else on LinkedIn

✔️ The photo + question formula for maximum engagement

Plus: Get the exact prompts and frameworks I uses to create viral LinkedIn posts that actually convert franchise leads.

Perfect for franchise professionals, marketers, and anyone wanting to build authority on LinkedIn without spending hours writing posts.

Key Timestamps:

Ready to grow your franchise like we did? Here's how I can help:

📧 Get my FREE Franchise Growth Playbook - The exact strategies I used to grow Jim's Group by 2,000 franchisees: https://franchisemarketer.beehiiv.com/

Don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this with other franchise professionals who need to hear this!

With AI search taking over and everyone panicking about the future of SEO, I sat down with Dean Gravina, former Head of SEO at King Kong and Megaphone, to get the real story. What he told me might surprise you.

In this episode, Dean reveals:

✔️ Why he thinks "SEO is dead" panic is just noise (and what's actually changing)

✔️ The 3 SEO fundamentals that work in both Google AND ChatGPT

✔️ When he tells clients to abandon SEO completely (real case study)

✔️ His "CEO email outreach" strategy that's beating traditional link building

✔️ Why local SEO is becoming impossible for small businesses

✔️ The truth about WordPress vs custom sites (controversial take)

✔️ Why most "AI SEO" and "LLM optimisation" terms are marketing BS

Perfect for business owners spending money on SEO and wondering if they're wasting their budget in the AI era.

Dean shares brutal honesty about when SEO works, when it doesn't, and why he sometimes recommends Google Ads over SEO, even as an SEO expert. Plus, real examples from his client work with major Australian brands.

Ready to grow your franchise like we did? Here's how I can help:

📧 Get my FREE Franchise Growth Playbook - The exact strategies I used to grow Jim's Group by 2,000 franchisees: ⁠https://franchisemarketer.beehiiv.com/⁠

Once you join my newsletter list, you can contact me via that.

Don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, and share this with other franchise professionals who need to hear this!