AI in 2027: What Franchise Marketers Need to Stop, Start, and Fix

Well, let's jump right in with our icebreaker.

So as we mentioned, today's topic is all about AI and what we need to be prepared for with AI in 2027.

So I'm going to put our guests on the spot.

If you are pitching your franchise brand's leadership team on AI investment in 2027, you get one sentence.

What do you lead with? Efficiency, revenue, or competitive survival? Will, I'll put you on the spot first.

Yeah, this is a really good question.

I always like leading with revenue because I think the reason it's very tangible with our franchisees and our leadership.

So I would say that we would want to make sure that we're leaning into AI because it's going to help grow revenue by way of uncovering or making more efficient or effective every aspect of the business because AI is a tool that can be applied in multiple different areas of the business.

But I'd lead with revenue because we all know that that's what's gonna drive.

Yeah, I think this was a trick question.

Kim, what

would you say? Actually, I'm gonna lead with efficiency because efficiency actually drives revenue.

So

in your case, Will, you had said that AI can be applied to different disciplines, different applications, right? So as brand people, as marketing people, We know the core of the

business, depending on what industry you're in, really doesn't matter.

But the core of the business, most everything funnels through the heartbeat of brand and marketing, right? So if we are the, If we are the heartbeat, the soul, the living entity in this entity, then we have to be efficiency across all platforms, whether that is in data and analytics, whether that's in revenue driving models, or whether that's in advertising, creative, et cetera.

You have to be more efficient to actually begin to make money.

So if your teams are more efficient, your teams are working smarter, not harder, which theoretically that brings us to revenue driving systems or a better model, a better widget.

Well, and over the last two years, right? So we've heard the word AI in every conversation that we've had as marketers.

We've heard AI essentially take over the conferences that we're going to and all of the continued education that we put ourselves through.

And for a while, it was really nebulous.

And it was like, everybody needs to be using AI.

And it was like, well, how and what? And what exactly is AI? And I feel like that's...

trying to clear a little bit nowadays you know obviously we all know the llms and we're all using that for day-to-day day-to-day life but and i think we are also understanding more around um how AI is integrating on the back end on a lot of the platforms that we've been using.

But I'm curious, as you guys have kind of witnessed and lived the last 18 to 24 months when AI has kind of taken over everything, where do you see it settling? I guess my question is, What is the most effective use of AI that you've seen it settle into right now? And Kim, I'll start with you because I think you made some really good points around efficiencies and how you're using AI to drive efficiencies, which isn't necessarily the whiz-bang, flashy, you know, headlines that we've been talking about.

Well, let's jump right in with our icebreaker.

So as we mentioned, today's topic is all about AI and what we need to be prepared for with AI in 2027.

So I'm going to put our guests on the spot.

If you are pitching your franchise brand's leadership team on AI investment in 2027, you get one sentence.

What do you lead with? Efficiency, revenue, or competitive survival? Will, I'll put you on the spot first.

Yeah, this is a really good question.

I always like leading with revenue because I think the reason it's very tangible with our franchisees and our leadership.

So I would say that we would want to make sure that we're leaning into AI because it's going to help grow revenue by way of uncovering or making more efficient or effective every aspect of the business because AI is a tool that can be applied in multiple different areas of the business.

But I'd lead with revenue because we all know that that's what's gonna drive.

Yeah, I think this was a trick question.

Kim, what

would you say? Actually, I'm gonna lead with efficiency because efficiency actually drives revenue.

So

in your case, Will, you had said that AI can be applied to different disciplines, different applications, right? So as brand people, as marketing people, We know the core of the

business, depending on what industry you're in, really doesn't matter.

But the core of the business, most everything funnels through the heartbeat of brand and marketing, right? So if we are the, If we are the heartbeat, the soul, the living entity in this entity, then we have to be efficiency across all platforms, whether that is in data and analytics, whether that's in revenue driving models, or whether that's in advertising, creative, et cetera.

You have to be more efficient to actually begin to make money.

So if your teams are more efficient, your teams are working smarter, not harder, which theoretically that brings us to revenue driving systems or a better model, a better widget.

Well, and over the last two years, right? So we've heard the word AI in every conversation that we've had as marketers.

We've heard AI essentially take over the conferences that we're going to and all of the continued education that we put ourselves through.

And for a while, it was really nebulous.

And it was like, everybody needs to be using AI.

And it was like, well, how and what? And what exactly is AI? And I feel like that's...

trying to clear a little bit nowadays you know obviously we all know the llms and we're all using that for day-to-day day-to-day life but and i think we are also understanding more around um how AI is integrating on the back end on a lot of the platforms that we've been using.

But I'm curious, as you guys have kind of witnessed and lived the last 18 to 24 months when AI has kind of taken over everything, where do you see it settling? I guess my question is, What is the most effective use of AI that you've seen it settle into right now? And Kim, I'll start with you because I think you made some really good points around efficiencies and how you're using AI to drive efficiencies, which isn't necessarily the whiz-bang, flashy, you know, headlines that we've been talking about.