A group of diverse people at a busy conference or trade show, with two smiling men in the foreground giving a thumbs-up gesture. Many attendees are seen mingling and exploring booths, some wearing badges.
A sign with the text "FRANCHISE UPDATE MEDIA" in bold black capital letters on a white background.

Franchise Update Media

Overview

Franchise Update Media is a leading franchise media organization delivering education, business opportunities, and peer-driven inspiration across conferences, publications, and digital platforms. As of July 2025, the International Franchise Association finalized its acquisition of Franchise Update Media, uniting two of franchising's most influential organizations to expand advocacy, content, and industry reach. As Creative Director, I owned all creative responsibilities across conferences, magazines, website, and email, ensuring cohesive, high-quality output across every touchpoint. I built and managed the full creative team, defining roles, interviewing, hiring, training, and overseeing designers, photographers, videographers, and producers across both full-time and contract capacities. I collaborated cross-functionally with other departments to ensure their content needs were met with quality and consistency, and played a key role in the IFA acquisition transition, helping integrate workflows seamlessly between both organizations.

Exhibition booth with signs displaying 'Franchise Update Media' and messages like 'Grow with us', 'Your next connection', 'Your next big move', and 'Your next inspiration'; people are seated and walking around in a large conference hall.
Line drawing of a trade show booth with large corner display structures, seating areas, and side counters. The booth is designed with curved lines and open space for visitors.
A trade show booth with banners reading 'Franchise Update Media' and slogans 'Grow with Us' and 'Your Next Big Move' and 'Your Next Inspiration'. There are chairs and small tables inside the booth.
Inside a large conference or exhibition hall with various booths and attendees. Prominent signs include 'Franchise Update Media,' 'Northern Bank,' and 'Shelby’s.' There are tables with chairs and flower arrangements, and attendees are engaging in conversations. The hall has high ceilings with modern lighting.
Crowd of people attending a trade show or conference in a large indoor hall with booths and displays.

Digital

Franchising.com is the franchise industry's premier digital destination, offering a comprehensive library of articles, news, guides, webinars, and franchise opportunities across topics ranging from growth and operations to marketing, technology, and leadership. The platform is supported by a robust suite of newsletters delivering targeted franchise content to readers throughout the week. As Creative Director, I was responsible for the layout design of the website and all newsletter communications, collaborating closely with the web development team to ensure every digital touchpoint remained cohesive and on brand with Franchise Update Media's visual standards.

Collaborators

Benjamin Foley, Director, Technology
Matt Wing, Senior Manager, Web Developer

Screenshot of a website page related to franchising, showcasing franchise opportunities, guides, stories, and opportunities in various sectors.
Screenshot of a webpage titled 'Multi-Unit Franchisee Newsletter and Sponsored Content,' discussing franchise marketing strategies and featuring multiple newsletter templates and statistics.
Screenshot of a webpage for Franchise Update Media, promoting advertising with franchise media kits, with a headline in bold blue text and a triangular diagram showing connection between magazines, digital media, conferences, and franchise prospects.

Annual Report Deck

The Annual Franchise Development Report (AFDR) is the franchise industry's definitive benchmarking resource, delivering data-driven insights on franchise development practices, recruitment budgets, sales performance, and emerging trends in online and mobile recruitment. As Creative Director, I hired and collaborated with a contract graphic designer to produce the report, overseeing the full production process to ensure a polished, high-quality final deliverable.

Collaborators

Val Esparza, Designer

Cover of a 2026 Annual Franchise Development Report with a dark blue background and a colorful circular design.
Cover of a 2026 Annual Franchise Development Report with a dark blue background and a colorful circular design.
Cover page of a report titled 'Inside the Business of Growth' with colorful abstract shapes in blue, orange, yellow, pink, and purple on a blue background. The report is written by Helen Bond.
Graph illustrating franchise recruitment budgets from 2021 to 2025, with the 2026 projection median at $225,000 and average at $277,778.
A bar chart titled 'Other Successful Recruitment Programs' showing percentages for various recruitment strategies, including direct marketing, local events, community outreach, involvement in associations, sponsored content, text messaging, and other
A page from a report with text, a pie chart, and data boxes. The pie chart shows 30% in dark blue labeled 'Higher' and 70% in light blue labeled 'Lower'. The data boxes at the bottom display '$343' and '$13,332' with orange borders, labeled 'Cost Per
Cover page of a report titled 'Topline Report' with a subtitle '2026 AFDR SURVEY,' featuring a blue background with abstract geometric shapes. An orange banner highlights the year and survey name, and at the bottom, there are sections labeled 'Toplin
Bar chart showing percentage of development team roles, including Franchise Sales, Franchise Sales Marketing, Lead Qualifiers, Franchise Administration, and Other, with data labels and different colored bars.
A bar chart illustrating the percentage of leads from various sources, including digital advertising, print advertising, referrals, trade shows, public relations, brokers, email marketing, direct mail, broadcast, franchise opportunity sites, and othe
Cover page of a report titled 'General Business Category' for the AFDR Survey 2026, with orange background and purple geometric design, and a footer with navigation links.
Bar chart showing the percentage of different franchise categories. Blue bars for Food, Retail Food, Yellow bars for Retail non-food, orange bars for Service brick & mortar, and pink bars for Service territory or population based, with the highest pe
A bar chart showing franchise sales goals and development budget for 2026 with categories: Food, Retail Food, Retail (non-food), Service (brick & mortar), and Service (territory, population based, no brick & mortar).
Bright pink cover slide titled "Investment Level" with dark purple abstract circular graphics and smaller text indicating "AFDR Survey 2026".
A bar chart comparing investment levels in franchise organizations based on revenue categories, with color-coded bars for less than $25,000 to over $1,000,000.
Bar chart showing different investment levels for various franchise development roles, with percentages listed above each bar. The investment levels range from "$25,000 - $50,000" to "Over $1,000,000."
Bar chart comparing different income ranges with percentages for answering 'Yes' or 'No' to conducting Candidate or Meet the Team Days, with various colors representing income brackets.
A graph with a purple background displaying the title "Number of Franchise Units" and an orange label "AFDR Survey 2026."
Bar chart showing percentage distribution of different roles in a development team, with categories like Franchise Sales, Franchise Sales Marketing, Lead Qualifiers, Franchise Administration, and Other, each represented by color-coded bars indicating
Cover page of a report titled 'Franchise Brands Using Brokers: Deals vs. No Deals' with colorful geometric design in shades of blue, and a subtitle indicating it's an AFDR Survey 2026.
Bar graph showing the percentage of respondents who have established franchise sales goals and development budgets for 2026, with responses 'Yes' at 48% and 25%, and 'No' at 52% and 75%. Title asks about establishing sales goals and budgets for 2026.
Bar chart showing the percentage of people who use brokers versus those who do not, with categories for Revenue, Expenses, Profitability, Entire P&L, and Other.
A digital graphic with a dark blue background and various shapes in blue and yellow. The text 'THANK YOU' is prominently displayed in white, large letters. In the top left corner, there's a blue box with the text 'FRANCHISE UPDATE MEDIA' and a taglin
Kari
Magazines