Running a franchise is a big job. Especially when you have multiple locations. From managing online listings to keeping up with customer reviews, there’s a lot to juggle. Thankfully, there are tools built just for this. Let’s dive into four of the best local marketing tools that make life easier for franchises.

TLDR:

Managing many franchise locations online is tricky, but there are tools that make it simple. Yext, BrightLocal, Moz Local, and strong SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) can help you manage listings, respond to reviews, and run local ads at scale. These tools save time, keep your info accurate, and boost your visibility. They’re like your digital marketing dream team.

1. Yext – The Listings Powerhouse

Let’s kick things off with Yext. It’s probably the most well-known of the local marketing tools. And for good reason—it’s super strong when it comes to managing listings and data.

Franchise owners love Yext because it centralizes everything. That means no more logging into 20 different directories to update your hours or phone number. Do it once in Yext, and boom—it’s updated everywhere from Yelp to Google.

• Update info in real-time: One change syncs across 70+ platforms
• Monitor reviews: Yext pulls reviews from major sources
• Custom fields for franchises: Add location-level details like manager name or regional offers

Yext can also help with local SEO. That means your stores show up higher in online searches—just where you want them.

But it’s not just about listings. Yext now includes tools for review monitoring, analytics, FAQs, and even a website chat feature. A real all-rounder.

2. BrightLocal – The Review Guru

BrightLocal focuses on local SEO and reputation management. It’s perfect if reviews are a big part of your business. (And let’s be real—they definitely are.)

Franchises use BrightLocal to track reviews from multiple platforms and respond from a single dashboard. It saves tons of time. Plus, the reports are well-designed, easy to understand, and customizable.

• Gather instant feedback from buyers
• See how each location is doing with location-based reporting
• Create white-label reports for your brand or stakeholders

Another fan favorite is their citation tracker. BrightLocal tells you where your business is listed and if those listings are correct. You’ll know if your info is missing or inconsistent across the web.

One of the best features? You can set up scheduled audits so you always know how you’re doing.

3. Moz Local – The Set-It-And-Forget-It Tool

If you’re looking for a tool that’s simple and low-maintenance, Moz Local is for you. Especially if you’ve used Moz’s SEO tools before—you’ll feel right at home.

Moz Local focuses on the essentials. It’s built to help make sure your business info is accurate across the internet. If it’s wrong, you could be losing customers. Moz helps avoid that by automatically syncing your data across top directories.

• Affordable and easy to use
• Automatic re-syncing of listings (in case something changes)
• Score tracking to measure listing performance

What makes it shine for multi-location businesses is the simple setup. Feed your data in, and let Moz Local do its thing. No constant monitoring or complex settings.

Want some insights too? Moz gives you basic analytics about your listings performance and visibility. Not as deep as Yext or BrightLocal, but just enough for focused franchise teams.

4. SOPs – The Secret Sauce

This one’s not a software, but every great franchise needs it: Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

Imagine trying to manage hundreds of reviews across 30 locations. Now imagine you’re doing it without a clear process. Chaos, right?

SOPs are the glue that holds your local marketing together. Tools like Yext, BrightLocal, and Moz are powerful—but only if people know how, when, and why to use them.

Franchises with strong SOPs can:

• Assign roles and responsibilities for marketing tasks
• Ensure consistency across locations, from tone of voice to timing
• Make onboarding easier for new staff or franchisees

Here’s what a good local marketing SOP might include:

• Weekly process to check and respond to reviews
• Monthly checks on listing accuracy
• Guidelines for writing ad copy or posting updates
• Criteria for flagging and reporting fake reviews

Many franchises document their SOPs in a shared Google Doc, project management tool (like Notion or Asana), or internal wiki. The key is: make it easy to access, follow, and update.

Choosing the Right Combo

Each of these tools has its own superpower. Here’s a quick recap to help you choose:

• Yext: Best for complete listings control, multi-channel presence, and central dashboard access.
• BrightLocal: Master of reviews, local SEO reporting, and citation audits.
• Moz Local: Simple, effective solution for syncing accurate listings with little hassle.
• SOPs: The underrated hero that brings it all together with process and people.

The smartest franchises don’t just pick one tool. They mix and match. For example:

• Use Yext for listing management
• Use BrightLocal for reputation management and SEO tracking
• Back it all up with clear internal SOPs

Final Thoughts

Local marketing is the heartbeat of a franchise’s success. Each location has its own customer base, its own online presence, and its own reviews. Trying to manage that by hand? Not possible.

But with tools like Yext, BrightLocal, Moz Local, and strong SOPs, you create a system that scales. One that works whether you’ve got 5 stores or 500.

So if your franchise is growing—and we hope it is—these are the tools you’ll need to grow smarter, not just bigger.

Now go out there and give your local presence some love!