Boldly. Professionally. Thunderly. - Thunderly Marketing
I’ve spent more than three decades in franchise marketing. In that time, I’ve had a front-row seat to thousands of stories that don’t get told often enough and are often the best part of the business.
The veteran who came home from serving overseas and turned military discipline into a thriving service business. The corporate executive who walked away from a title and a corner office because she wanted to build something that was actually hers. The first-generation American in a small rural town who opened a franchise location and became the largest employer in the area.
The common thread: they each started in a different place, but they all got to where they are today through franchising. And that’s a story that a logo or press release can’t tell alone.
Who Is Buying Franchises
When people think of franchising, they often think of the brand, flashy advertising campaigns, and high-profile corporate executives. Rarely do they think about the people on the front lines driving the brand's success: the franchisee. And their stories often have no resemblance to that perception of a franchise brand.
We work with franchise systems across dozens of categories, and the owners coming into those systems span the gamut of backgrounds – teachers who wanted more control over their financial future, immigrants who saw franchise ownership as a direct path to economic independence, and couples in their 50s who decided that now was the time to build something for their family. Some had never run a business before. Some had run several. It didn't matter either way.
The thread that runs through all of them isn’t a credential or a background. It’s a decision to grow something that is their own.
Seeing Yourself in Someone Else's Story
While a lot of franchise conversation and growth centers on the hot new suburbs or major metro markets, some of the most impactful and inspiring franchise stories come from smaller markets — communities that didn’t have the services, the jobs, or the economic activity that a successful franchise location can bring.
A franchise owner in a rural county isn’t just building a business. They’re often creating the first reliable employment in their area for a particular type of work, or bringing a service that residents previously had to drive an hour to access. That kind of impact doesn’t make headlines very often.
Every one of those stories deserves to be told. Not because they make for good marketing, but because they change what people believe is possible for themselves. It’s inspiring and affirming to see someone who looks like you, who came from where you came from, and has already done the thing you're considering sharing their success story.
Celebrating the Moments That Matter Most
This year, as the United States celebrates 250 years, there’s a lot of conversation about what the American Dream means and whether it’s still accessible. I’m not going to pretend that question is simple to answer. But I will say that every day in the franchising world, I watch people gain access to it through franchising.
That’s why at Thunderly we have launched American Dreamers: The Stories of Franchising©. It’s a year-long campaign that will spotlight franchisees across various brands, backgrounds, and markets. We want to showcase the diversity of those who are building businesses and livelihoods through franchising.
We are doing it not to make a political point or sell something. We’re doing it because these stories deserve to be told on video. It’s the best way for any person considering franchise ownership to see themselves reflected in the people already doing it.
Telling the Story, Not Just the Stat
A press release can tell you a franchise grew from one location to five, but it doesn’t show you the moment they hired their first employee, what their storefront looks like on a Saturday morning, or give first-hand testimony.
Text and images can only carry a story so far. Video does something different. It builds recognition and makes a brand feel like it belongs to a real person, not just a logo. More people are watching video today on their social feeds before they read anything else. For many, it’s become the first place they go to get a feel for a brand. Through these videos, consumers learn more about the brand, explore what it stands for, and decide whether they trust it and will share the information with their friends.
That's the thinking behind how we approach American Dreamers. Each year our in-house team sits down with dozens of franchise owners at their locations to capture their unique story. Our production team then turns that interview into inspiring stories of ordinary people, no different than you or me, who believed in themselves, saw an opportunity, and built something of their own through franchising.
Of course, franchising has been creating economic mobility for people from every walk of life for decades. While owners' backgrounds, paths, and outcomes vary, the opportunity is consistent. If you’re willing to commit to a system and put in the work, there’s a franchise model out there that can work for you. And that’s a story worth telling again and again and again.
Scott White is Co-Founder and CEO of Thunderly, a franchise marketing agency that has connected aspiring business owners with franchise systems for more than 25 years. Learn more about the American Dreamers: The Stories of Franchising© campaign at thunderlymarketing.com/american-dreamers.