Franchise Update Magazine Issue IV, 2016 | Page 17
ANATOMY OF A BRAND
veloped an innovative and environmentally
friendly carpet cleaning system that uses
green solutions, leaves no sticky residue,
and is safe for children and pets. Perhaps
its biggest selling point, though, was that
it dried fast. Unlike old-fashioned methods that used 40 to 50 gallons of water per
home, our oxygen-based system needed only
2 gallons per home. That cut down the old
12- to 24-hour dry time to about 1 hour.
In 2006, I launched this system with just
one location in Denver, but by the end of
that first year, we already had 17 franchises in
5 states. I gave the first five franchises away
free, including one to my mother who quickly
made it into a top-performing location.
The following year, we had a total of
85 franchises in 23 states. Next year? One
hundred and thirty franchises in 38 states,
a remarkable accomplishment when you
consider that less than 700 of the nearly
3,800 active franchise systems in the U.S.
have more than 100 units, and less than 90
of those reached the 100-unit mark in under 10 years. We reached that milestone in
less than three years.
Needless to say, we were very busy as
more and more entrepreneurs joined the
Oxi Fresh family. In the years since then
we’ve continued to grow and develop. We’ve
expanded our service portfolio to include
upholstery, wood floor, and tile and grout
cleaning. We got the mark for “The World’s
Greenest Carpet Cleaner.” We built custom
software for our franchisees.
Yet that’s just a fraction of what we’ve
done to make Oxi Fresh a major player in
the industry. With every project we complete
and feature we add, our goal is to provide
our franchisees with the best support systems and tools possible so they can achieve
their financial dreams and goals.
Centralized, superior support
“Speed through systems.” That mantra has
been key to Oxi Fresh’s growth. I am always
looking for ways to automate support systems for our franchisees so they can grow
their business instead of just working in it.
The Scheduling Center is the most notable example. We’re one of the only carpet
cleaning franchises to have a centralized call
center answering consumer phone calls,
scheduling appointments, maintaining a
customer database, and serving as the face
of the business. With our franchisees free
from the phones, they can focus on business development instead of getting lost in
day-to-day details.
Powering the Scheduling Center. which
currently handles approximately 2,500 calls
every day, is our FAST software. This custom-built program is a live, online platform
that allows franchisees to easily manage
their business.
Of course, we have even more support
systems and automated marketing tools for
our franchisees, and all of these programs
are a major part of our success.
Giving back
But business can be about more than systems and money and plans. Entrepreneurship enables philanthropy, and a business
that gives back sends a powerful message.
When a company donates to a worthy cause,
it says, “We aren’t just an earnings machine.
We are a partner with you. We are in it with
you. We care.”
That’s why last year we started focusing
on more than selling franchises and cleaning
carpets and began supporting Water.org.
This nonprofit organization, co-founded
by Gary White and actor Matt Damon, is
working to fight the global water crisis that
affects 1 in 10 people around the world.
Water.org helps communities get access
to sustainable solutions to their water and
sanitation needs. To support their efforts,
we donate $2 every time a customer books a
job online through www.oxifresh.com, and
we continually encourage our customers to
book online.
So far, we’ve booked more than 15,000
jobs online and donated more than $30,000 to
the cause. Water.org has used these funds to
help more than 1,000 people, and I couldn’t
be more proud of that fact.
Looking ahead
In 10 short years, Oxi Fresh has expanded
to more than 300 locations across the U.S.
and Canada, more than one-third of which
have opened in the last three years alone.
With our innovative and environmentally
friendly carpet cleaning method, we’ve
completed more than 700,000 jobs and
have conserved 30 million gallons of water.
Still, just like back in college, I want to
do more. Our goal is to reward franchise
opportunities to qualified leads in even more
locations, 50 a year if possible. We want to
add more features and support systems for
our franchisees. We want to introduce the
world to our sister brands, Midtown Chimney
Sweeps and Elephant in the Room Men’s
Grooming Lounges, two amazing concepts
that could revolutionize their markets.
I want to make Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning the #1 cleaner in the world and for it to
become a household name.
Hopefully, this should keep me nice
and busy. n
Jonathan Barnett is the founder and CEO
of Oxi Fresh Carpet Cleaning.
Franchiseupdate I S S U E I V, 2016
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