What You'll Learn | Palm Beach Atlantic University

Not to be missed! The Selling Franchises Summit!

The two-day Summit reveals the systems, methodologies, skills, and practices of the leading marketing and sales professionals in the franchise community. If your goal is to sell franchises or sell more franchises, the Summit provides insightful, valuable information covering every aspect of a successful franchise development program while also demonstrating how to create an action plan that will consistently produce franchise sales for viable brands. The Summit faculty includes career franchise executives who have consistently delivered and usually exceeded their companies’ marketing and sales goals!

The Summit will help attendees better understand their own selling style and discuss how to adapt that style to effectively sell franchises — not every buyer receives information the same way!

This is an opportunity to meet and learn from seasoned franchise professionals—the campus venue provides the perfect environment for meaningful networking. Many new relationships are solidified at our events. Whether you’re an emerging or established franchisor, you’ll benefit long-term from the relationships you develop at the Selling Franchises Summit.

In two info-packed days, Titus Center for Franchising’s Selling Franchises Summit provides more franchise marketing and sales intelligence than you’re used to getting in a month! The Summit includes:

Conference materials
Networking opportunities
Summit reception
Lunch both days
An experienced faculty of presenters eager to meet you, speak with you, and help you sell more franchises!

Check back later for more information on registering for the 2025 Summit!

Graduates of the Selling Franchises Summit take away ideas, strategies, and plans to sell more franchises. Plus, you will:

Benefit long-term from the instruction, recommendations, and ideas revealed by successful, career franchise marketing and sales executives.
Understand the process for recruiting, training, equipping, supporting, and compensating sales professionals, as well as how to work successfully with franchise brokers.
Appreciate the franchisor’s ongoing financial commitment to successfully develop a franchise marketing and sales program that identifies quality leads and results in franchise sales.
Appreciate the value of the skills and tools that leading franchise brands incorporate to consistently produce their development outcomes.
Gain real-world experience and knowledge leading to more franchise sales both domestically and internationally.
Get an overview of the sales process and how to accurately and properly make franchise sales in legal compliance.
Better understand how to use specific sections of your FDD to sell more franchises.
Using Storytelling to cut through the noise.
Articulate responsibility in franchising.
Build an intentional culture.
Plot your franchise development plan for greater success in 2024 and beyond.

Carey Gille, CEO & Co-Founder, Franchise FastLane, morning keynote speaker Jan. 18:

The Key to Accelerated Growth with the Right Zees
How to use clear, concise Storytelling to cut through the noise
Your role in the Hero-Guide journey and how to get really good at it
Breaking down the legalese of the Franchise Disclosure Document – from
overwhelming to practical summary of brand history, leadership, fees, financials,
contracts and more

View or download Carey’s presentation:
pt. 1, pt. 2, pt. 3

Jeff Dudan, Chairman & CEO, Homefront Brands, morning keynote Jan. 19, 2024:

Articulating responsibility in franchising
Candidate leadership fundamentals
Building an intentional culture
Excellence in execution
Value alignment
Stories

View or download Jeff’s presentation

Brent Dowling, CEO & Co-Founder, Raintree, luncheon keynote Jan. 18:

Digital Lead Generation for Franchise Recruitment:

What’s working, what’s not in recruiting franchise owners via organic marketing strategies?

Content Marketing
SEM/PPC
Social
Programmatic
AI

All educational sessions will occur on the campus of Palm Beach Atlantic University in Weyenberg Center, 2nd floor of the Lassiter Student Center.

The Networking Party, taking place Jan. 18, 6:30–8:30 pm, will take place at Drive Shack, 1710 Belvedere Road, West Palm Beach, Florida 33406.

January 18

7:30 a.m. Registration in Weyenberg Center.

Thank you to our Registration Table Sponsors:

8:30 a.m. Morning Keynote: Carey Gille, CEO & Co-Founder, Franchise FastLane.

Building a StoryBrand: Clarify Your Message so Customers Will Listen (by Donald Miller)—Approach for Proven Brand Positioning

9:30 a.m. Franchisee Stories: The most powerful and least utilized sales tool

Franchising boasts a treasure trove of compelling stories from franchisees who personify the American Dream, yet many franchisors choose to keep these aspirational beacons in the shadows. Discover the often-untapped potential of franchisee narratives as we delve into the immense power of storytelling in franchise development. Join us to hear from some of franchising’s finest about:

Why franchisee stories may resonate better with prospects than even your best salesperson’s strongest pitch

When, where, and how to appropriately incorporate franchisee stories into your marketing materials and sales process

Debunking myths that cause hesitation to amplify franchisee voices in marketing and sales efforts

How keeping franchisees out of the spotlight may be detrimental to franchising as a whole

Real examples of how franchisee stories were utilized to help move a candidate across the finish line

Moderator: August Johnson, M.A., Vice President of Client Relations, BizCom Associates

Panelists: Scott Sutton, Chief Development Officer, Empower Brands; Tony Padulo, Chief Development Officer, School of Rock; Jennifer LoBianco, Chief Marketing Officer, Best Life Brands

10:30 a.m. Coffee Break

Thank you to our Coffee Sponsor and to Happy and Healthy for their Fruitfull bars:

10:45 a.m. Working with Sales Accelerators – Franchise Consultants and FSOs

Are you ready for accelerated growth? Sounds good but fast growth is also a serious challenge. Hear the good, the bad and the ugly when it comes to working with sales accelerators.

Learn more about the advantages and pitfalls of engaging with sales accelerators

Find out what it takes to be ready to engage in an accelerated development program

Hear real stories from folks who have “been there, done that” and have the scars to prove it

Moderator: Rick Bisio, Author & Franchise Coach

Panelists: Trent Halvorson, FranChoice; Scott Marr, Empower Brands; Alex Gingold, Founder, DonutNV

11:45 a.m. Lunch

Thank you to our Lunch Sponsor:

12:45 p.m. Afternoon Keynote: Brent Dowling, CEO & Co-Founder, Raintree

Digital Lead Generation for Franchise Recruitment: What’s working, what’s not in recruiting franchise owners via organic marketing strategies?

1:45 p.m. Pitch Perfect: Defining, Optimizing, and Streamlining Your Franchise Discovery Process

A clearly defined franchise discovery process propels the success of the franchisor’s development program. Explore ways to define and improve your sales process with the help of successful franchise development veterans.

Understand which steps are required and which are optional

Clearly identify your process

See examples of successful discovery processes

Learn the typical time frames of each step

Understand what should happen during and after each step

Moderator: Red Boswell, President, IFPG

Panelists: Ron Bender, VP Franchise Development, Threshold Brands; Stephen Schiller, Chief Growth Officer, EverSmith Brands; Albert Hermans, VP Franchise Development, Floor Coverings Intl

2:45 p.m. Using AI to Close More Franchise Sales

Explore the rapid growth of AI tools

Learn the best practices for franchise development professionals

Find more candidates and close more deals

Moderator: Jack Monson, CEO, Brand J

Panelists: Patti Rother, President, Stay in Your Lane; Tim Tang, Director, Hughes

3:45 p.m. Coffee Break

Thank you to our Coffee Sponsors and to Happy and Healthy for their Fruitfull bars:

4:00 p.m. Franchisee Success Unveiled: Navigating Capitalization, Interest Rates, and Risk Mitigation

Critical factors that will make/break your emerging franchise start-up

Why your first 20 franchisees must be sufficiently capitalized

Deal breakers for obtaining funding

The impact of rising interest rates on franchise start-ups

Moderator: Sherri Seiber, President, FranFund, Inc.

Panelists: Rocco Fiorentino, Vice Chairman & CEO, Benetrends Financial; Jesse Hudson, VP, Carpool (a division of Franchise Fastlane); Jason Barclay, Partner, BrandONE Franchise Development; Shay Kleinschmidt, VP of Lending, FranFund

5:00 p.m. How To Create a Winning Digital Marketing & Content Strategy

Here’s your opportunity to get the latest information about digital marketing, data, conversions, etc., as well as tips for improving your lead generation efforts.

How to measure the effectiveness of video ads

What makes an ad “high converting”?

What do you do with the non-converting clicks?

Ways to leverage data for digital marketing

Using different types of data

Understanding custom audiences, retargeting, CRM data, and more

Moderator: Joseph Mohay, President, IDS

Panelists: John Lincoln, CEO, Ignite Visibility; Omar Mo, Founder, Nomads Cast; Nick Ridway, Director of Franchise Development, Pirtek USA; Victor Daher, VP of Franchise Development, Batteries Plus

6:30–8:00 pm Networking Party

The Networking Party will take place approximately ten minutes from PBA at Drive Shack, 1710 Belvedere Road, West Palm Beach, Florida 33406. The party will conclude at 8:30 p.m.

Thank you to our Networking Party Sponsors:

January 19

8:00 a.m. Networking Breakfast

Thank you to our sponsors:

9:00 a.m. Morning Keynote: Jeff Dudan, Chairman & CEO, Homefront Brands

Leading Your Candidate

10:15 a.m. Coffee Break

Thank you to our Coffee Sponsor and to Happy and Healthy for their Fruitfull bars:

10:30 a.m. Recruiting & Retaining Your Sales Force

Learn how to attract top franchise development talent and how to keep them. Hiring the right franchise development team is pivotal for your brand and not all reps are created equal! Panelists will discuss details about compensation, equity splits, and strategies to attract and retain talented sales teams!

Moderator: Dan Claps, CFE, CEO, VODA Cleaning & Restoration; Founder, Franchise Playbook

Panelists: Steve Miller, VP of Franchise Development, Voda Cleaning & Restoration; Chris Brown, VP of Franchise Development, Pinnacle Franchise Development; Ellen Rohr, President, Zoom Drain

11:30 a.m. Using Your FDD to Attract Franchisees

It’s sometimes a controversial topic, but legitimately attracting franchisees with your FDD is responsible franchising.

Moderator: Lane Fisher, Partner, Fisher Zucker

Panelists: Marci Kleinsasser, VP Marketing, Franchise Development, HFC; Jim Butler, Director of Sales, United Franchise Group Food Division; Steve Lieber, Vice President, Burger Fi and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza

12:30 p.m. Lunch

Thank you to our Lunch Sponsors:

1:30 p.m. Content Marketing: The Key that Unlocks Leads

To generate leads, franchisors must use engaging content, but it’s estimated that most franchisors do not even have a content marketing strategy! Our panel of experts will show you not only the importance of content but how to organize your plan to attract and engaged qualified leads.

What is engaging content?

How do you measure the results of your content?

How are content producers using AI?

What types of content attract more qualified leads?

Moderator: Madalina Iordache, CEO, Bright Pink Agency

Panelists: Jill Abrahamsen, Editor-in-Chief, FranchiseWire; Taylor Gregory, Director of Marketing, UFG; Danielle Wright, Chief Development Officer, Amazing Franchise Brands; and Matt Ritter, Vice President, Fish Consulting

2:30 p.m. Coffee Break

Thank you to our Coffee Sponsors and to Happy and Healthy for their Fruitfull bars:

Blue and pink Happy and Healthy Snacks logo on white background

2:45 p.m. Roundtables

Choose from this list the two roundtables you would most like to attend. Each roundtable will last for 45 minutes. Once the first roundtable concludes, switch to another table that interests you!

Using Numbers, Including Item 19 Numbers, to Sell Franchises

Warren Lewis, CFE, Co-Chair, Franchise & Licensing Sector Team, Akerman LLP

Elevating Franchise Development through Thought Leadership

Lauren Moore, Vice President/Director of Digital BizCom

Global Trends and Their Impact on Franchising
William Edwards, CEO, Edwards Global Services, Inc.

FranDev: Best Practices
Red Boswell, President, IFPG

Getting Information from Franchisees to Help Them Prosper AND Help You Sell More Franchises
Matthew Gourgeot, Head of Corporate & Business Development, Thryv

Attracting Your Ideal Franchise Buyers
Joseph Mohay, CRO and Co-Founder, Integrated Digital Strategies

Maximizing Lead Generation from Your Website
Thomas Scott, President, Brand Journalists; and Home Run Franchises.

What Do You Say When Your Prospect Says, “With Inflation and Royalties, a Franchisee Can’t Make Any Money!”?

Kristin Selmeczy, CEO & Co-Founder, Pillars of Franchising; multi-unit franchisee

4:30 p.m. End of Summit

Look at what our previous attendees said:

“The training was TERRIFIC! A convenient location in a great neighborhood. The panels and keynote speakers were engaging, passionate, and knowledgeable. Bravo Titus Center!”
—Sam Spector, Business Advisory

“Had an excellent experience at this boot camp. Spent some really important time with colleagues in the field learning about what’s evolving in the franchise space, about opportunities for us to continue to grow our businesses, and what’s working and not working in selling franchises these days. I highly recommend this conference!”
—Martha Flynn, Senior Director, Global Franchises Services at Dunkin Brands

“My name is Eric Stehle and I work for Shine Franchise Group. I attended your franchise boot camp with our CEO, Chris Fisher, and loved it. Thank you so much for putting this event on. It was very inspiring and educational and we will attend again.”
—Eric Stehle, VP of Development, Shine Franchise Group

“I enjoyed networking and meeting high powered individuals from the franchise development sector.”
—Jules Pierre-Louis, Cruise Planners

“Well worth the money and time. When you come to these events you realize there is so much more to learn. The only real competitive advantage is the speed at which you learn.”
—Mike Sowers, CRI