BeTheBoss.ca: What’s the story behind GetintheLoop?
Matt Crowell: GetintheLoop started out as a project to help connect golf courses to local golfers in Kelowna through their mobile phones via text message. We soon built GetintheLoop into an IOS and Android app, added a variety of industries like restaurants, activities, and home & auto, and started to grow across Western Canada.
We realized that small businesses had a real hard time finding simple, efficient, and effective means to grow their business and measure their marketing spend. Newspapers, radio, and other local channels have low engagement, high cost to advertise, and zero measurement for a small business owner- this needed to change. It has been our mission to help small businesses better market through mobile technology ever since.
Today GetintheLoop has helped over one thousand small businesses grow, and connects hundreds of thousands of app users to their favorite hot spots across Canada.
BeTheBoss.ca: What made you decide to create this franchise?
Matt Crowell: We have had a very entrepreneurial spirit in our company from the beginning. Our growth across Western Canada has taught us how important it is to have someone on the ground working with small businesses and helping to grow an engaged local user base in each market.
More importantly, there is tremendous value in finding great people who are committed to their community and GetintheLoop. We've found that franchising has created a win/win opportunity. We bring a proven mobile marketing platform and system to the franchise, and GetintheLoop gets a focused and dedicated entrepreneur to help make each market or region successful. The big learning for us has been around how many great entrepreneurs were out there looking for an opportunity like ours. We could have never hired as many great people as quickly as entrepreneurs have found us. It solved two problems, feet on the street and finding hustlers in every market across North America.
BeTheBoss.ca: What was your background prior to forming the company?
Matt Crowell: I played professional hockey for two seasons in Holland, as well as worked one year as a commercial lender at Business Development Bank of Canada where I learned a lot about the challenges that small businesses face including time and resource constraints when it comes to marketing.
BeTheBoss.ca: Can you tell us about the mobile marketing industry?
Matt Crowell: GetintheLoop is a local advertising solution for small businesses. Our industry is in a state of significant disruption with the digital movement, in particular how mobile technology is changing the landscape for traditional media companies.
As a start-up technology company that leverages the latest in geo and mobile technology, we are very excited about the growth and opportunity that lies ahead of us but realize we are competing with long-standing traditional media relationships and advertising options like Facebook and Google. Our differentiating factor is local ownership combined with a platform that provides a simple and affordable return on marketing investment for small businesses. That’s something no one else in our space is offering.
BeTheBoss.ca: Could you describe your corporate culture?
Matt Crowell: Culture is very important at GetintheLoop. Its something we believe makes a big difference in our success and it’s something we focus on every day. Our Head of Culture, Paige Roguski, does a fabulous job of making sure our culture is based on a few key values. We believe in big audacious goals, working harder than anyone else to get there, enjoying the journey and effort it takes to succeed, being a good person and truly caring about our colleagues, customers, and the outcome. I am very proud of the culture our team has built.
BeTheBoss.ca: Who or what has been your greatest inspiration?
Matt Crowell: My mom was my greatest inspiration from a very young age. She used to wake up at 4:30 am to take me to hockey, dedicated her weekends and evenings to my sister and I, and at times was working 3 jobs to keep our family moving in the right direction. I saw the effort she put in from a young age and I have brought that same work ethic and commitment to everything I do in life.
BeTheBoss.ca: What are the advantages of being a GetintheLoop franchisee?
Matt Crowell: It's really a new age franchise opportunity. As Chrissie Rozak, one of our franchise owners in Alberta says, 'it's a fast-forward opportunity'. Times have changed and so has the ability to build a significant wealth while becoming a franchise owner. Our big advantages focus on ease to get started, high return on investment and the lifestyle of operating your business.
You can start your business in a matter of weeks once you attend Loop University. It will not take months to get your lease, equipment, and shop set up and you can run your whole business from your phone.
We have franchisees who have already paid off their whole investment in the first 90 days of owning a franchise. We have created an opportunity to earn hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, and to do so quite quickly.
You are in control of your day in a way that gives you the flexibility to operate your business from a coffee shop, your home office, or once you get everything set up, the lake. While every business requires due care and attention, it is a business that allows for day to day flexibility unlike most other opportunities.
BeTheBoss.ca: What differentiates GetintheLoop from its competitors?
Matt Crowell: In terms of other franchise opportunities, we don’t have any competitors. We are the first software as a service franchise opportunity available in Canada, and we believe all of North America. Our software is proprietary, our go-to-market model is unique, our pricing was developed strategically to allow us to find the best franchise owners and not the wealthiest. We feel very fortunate about the position we are in at this time.
BeTheBoss.ca: What advice do you have for someone looking to acquire a franchise?
Matt Crowell: Make sure you understand the long game with every business or franchise you look at. It's important to understand what your life will look like 90 days after you buy, 1 year after you buy and 5 years after you own a franchise. Make sure your hopes and dreams are aligned to what owning that franchise and running it successfully will require. I think it’s really important to wake up every day excited about your role, your company, and the impact you make. If all of this is aligned you will be successful at whatever opportunity you tackle. Don’t wake up 3 years from now and ask “why am I serving sandwiches today?” or “why am I going to the barbershop?” Own a business you will enjoy day-in and day-out!
BeTheBoss.ca: In your opinion, why do you think that GetintheLoop would be a great opportunity for someone?
Matt Crowell: We have written a lot of articles on GetintheLoopLocal.com about this but I truly believe this is the future of franchise and business opportunities. Imagine if you could have the local rights to Facebook, Twitter, or Linkedin! This is the first time that a digital platform has been made into a business opportunity for entrepreneurs that have the work ethic and willingness to go for it.
Our team looks at every franchise owner like a member of our team and will support you every step of the way as you build your business. I don’t think you will find a franchisor that cares as much as our group does. We are all shareholders in GetintheLoop and everyone truly cares.
To learn more about the GetintheLoop franchise concept, visit their page here at BeTheBoss.ca.
