Mid-2025 Check-In: Are You on Target with Your Franchise Sales Goals?

Cindy Stewart

So, it’s mid-2025, and I have to ask — have you hit your franchise sales goals up to this point? If your answer’s anything less than a confident “Yes, absolutely,” then today’s episode might be just what you need. Because here’s the thing: According to the International Franchise Association, the franchise industry is expected to add over 20,000 new units this year, pushing the U.S. total to more than 851,000 franchised establishments. And — get this — franchising is projected to create 210,000 new jobs in 2025. That’s a 2.4% increase in employment across the sector.

Cindy Stewart

So the market is definitely growing. The question is: Are you growing with it? Joining me to break it all down is Vern Nicholson, VP of Growth & Strategy at Vetro Media — a performance-focused digital partner that’s helping franchise brands accelerate growth using real-time data, AI, and results-driven execution. Vern, welcome back!

Vern Nicholson

Hey Cindy, uh, great to be here — always love our conversations. Thanks for having me.

Cindy Stewart

Let’s dive in. So, some franchise brands are realizing, like right now, that the agency they hired, um, maybe isn’t actually built to sell franchises. What’s, ah, what’s going on behind the scenes?

Vern Nicholson

Yeah, so we’re seeing this a lot, Cindy. Brands are telling us that, um, their marketing partners — the ones that claimed to be franchise experts — have, ah, started to cut corners. We’re talking about dropping client success teams entirely, letting go of creative leeds and, turning writers into editors who just clean up AI-generated blurbs. Like — no original thought, no storytelling, just... editing bots. That’s not a strategy. That’s just, hmm, survival mode disguised as innovation.

Cindy Stewart

So, the support system that was supposed to drive growth just kind of... disappeared?

Vern Nicholson

Exactly. And it’s because, um, some of these agencies treat franchise development like just another service line — not the mission-critical engine that it should be. At Vet-tro, we — well — we built everything around performance. That means using real-time data, predictive and adaptive algorithms, and, yeah, actual humans who still write, design, and think creatively.

Cindy Stewart

So, wait — your system can actually assess leed quality before they hit a brand’s CRM?

Vern Nicholson

Yeah — in real time. We, um, we use AI to assess intent, match behavior patterns, and prioritize the right audience segments. Then we rotate creative and adjust bidding based on what’s working, like, literally every single day. It’s not set-it-and-forget-it. It’s, um, living, learning, and optimizing constantly.

Cindy Stewart

That’s — wow — So, what does that mean for franchisors? What kind of results are we talking about?

Vern Nicholson

We’re seeing, uh, CPLs consistently under $30. Cost per acquisition — $15K to $18K in most cases. And more importantly, these leads convert. We’re talking multi-unit deals, qualified candidates, and, like, real pipeline momentum.

Cindy Stewart

So, you're not just generating traffic — you’re generating traction.

Vern Nicholson

Exactly. It’s not about vanity metrics — it’s about deals getting done.

Cindy Stewart

So, hmm, let’s talk to the folks who are listening right now — and maybe feeling like they’re behind. What can they do?

Vern Nicholson

Yeah, great question. We’re offering a free audit and strategy session — no pressure, just a real breakdown of what’s working, what’s not, and how we can, uh, fix it. We’ll walk through how our AI-driven approach works, where their current campaigns might be underperforming, and, how we can help finish strong this year.

Cindy Stewart

That’s amazing. And look — Q3 and Q4 are where the growth happens. If you’re behind, now is the time to act — not later.

Vern Nicholson

Couldn’t agree more.

Cindy Stewart

Alright — Vern, always a pleasure. I mean it — thanks so much for being here.

Vern Nicholson

Thank you, Cindy. Let’s help these brands grow smarter.