How FranFunnel helps franchise brands respond to leads in under 60 seconds. Generating franchise leads has never been easier. Converting those leads into franchise owners is another story. Many franchise brands invest heavily in portals, digital advertising, brokers, and marketing campaigns to generate inquiries. But once a prospective franchisee fills out a form, what happens next often determines whether that lead turns into a franchise owner or quietly moves on to a competing brand. The biggest obstacle to conversion, more often than not, is response time. According to FranFunnel's Franchise Lead Response Time Study, which analyzed more than 500 franchise brands across 14 industries, 35% of franchise brands never respond to a lead inquiry at all. Even more surprising, 73% never send a single text message, despite SMS being one of the fastest and highest-engagement communication channels available. Across the industry, the average SMS response time is 20.7 hours. Why Response Time is so important in franchise development. Prospective franchisees often research multiple franchise opportunities at the same time. The first brand to respond has an opportunity to begin building trust while interest is at its highest. Waiting hours or even days to follow up increases the likelihood that candidates move on or engage more deeply with another opportunity. Fast, consistent communication doesn't replace a strong franchise development team. It gives that team a better chance to connect with qualified candidates before momentum is lost. That's the challenge FranFunnel was built to solve. What is FranFunnel? FranFunnel is a franchise lead management platform designed specifically for franchise development teams. Rather than replacing your existing franchise CRM, FranFunnel integrates with it, allowing development teams to automate candidate engagement while continuing to use the systems they already know. Within 60 seconds of a candidate submitting an inquiry, regardless of the time of day, FranFunnel sends a personalized text message. The platform then continues engaging prospects throughout the franchise development process by qualifying leads, booking meetings, sending reminders, and nurturing candidates until they're ready for the next step. Franchise Lead management beyond the first text. Responding quickly is only the beginning. FranFunnel supports franchise development teams throughout the entire sales funnel with automated workflows that keep candidates engaged from initial inquiry through discovery and beyond. Key capabilities include: * Personalized SMS responses in under 60 seconds * Automated lead qualification * Meeting scheduling * Stage-based follow-up campaigns * Re-engagement for inactive leads * Appointment reminders that help improve show rates * Post-handoff nurturing * Two-way CRM synchronization FranFunnel integrates with many of the leading franchise CRM and sales platforms, including FranConnect, HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho, ClientTether, FranchiseSoft, Pipedrive, Close, and GoHighLevel. Simple pricing with significant ROI. FranFunnel was designed to be easy to implement and affordable for franchise brands of all sizes. The platform is live within 48 hours, includes white-glove onboarding, requires no long-term contract, and costs $249 per month. For many organizations, that replaces multiple software subscriptions and outsourced follow-up services costing thousands each month. More importantly, the math is simple: a single franchise sale can generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in franchise fees and future royalty revenue over the life of the agreement. Converting even one additional lead a year, as a result of faster response times and better engagement, can cover the cost of the platform many times over. Why FranFunnel joined Franchise Supplier Network. FranFunnel joined Franchise Supplier Network because of its focus on helping franchise brands connect with trusted suppliers and proven solutions. When asked why they joined Franchise Supplier Network, the FranFunnel team put it simply: "We're not chasing volume. We're looking for relationships with franchise operators who care about pipeline performance as much as we do. FSN attracts exactly that type of partner." Franchisesuppliernetwork is excited to welcome FranFunnel to the network and introduce their platform to franchise brands looking to improve lead engagement and franchise development performance. Interested in learning more about FranFunnel for your franchise brand? Reach out to Zack at [email protected] to get connected with the team. Frequently asked questions. What is franchise lead management? Franchise lead management is the process of capturing, qualifying, nurturing, and converting prospective franchise candidates into franchise owners. Effective lead management combines timely communication, CRM technology, automation, and personalized follow-up to maximize conversion rates. Why is franchise lead response time important? Prospective franchisees often evaluate multiple brands simultaneously. Responding quickly increases the likelihood of engaging candidates while interest is highest and helps development teams build relationships before competitors do. Does FranFunnel replace a franchise CRM? No. FranFunnel integrates with existing CRM platforms, allowing franchise development teams to automate text messaging, follow-up, and lead nurturing without replacing their current technology. What CRMs does FranFunnel integrate with? FranFunnel integrates with leading franchise and sales platforms, including FranConnect, HubSpot, Salesforce, Zoho, ClientTether, FranchiseSoft, Pipedrive, Close, and GoHighLevel.

Close has launched Chloe, an AI sales agent integrated directly into its CRM platform, now available on all plans for US and Canadian customers. The AI agent calls leads, qualifies prospects, books meetings, handles follow-ups and updates the CRM automatically. During beta testing, 306 businesses used Chloe to make over 818,000 calls, reaching nearly 112,000 prospects and completing more than 6,400 hours of conversations. One beta customer reported booking 30 meetings in the first week, increasing total meetings by over 50%. Unlike standalone AI tools requiring separate integrations, Chloe works directly within Close's CRM, accessing customer history, previous conversations and deal context. The company plans to expand Chloe with multilingual support and native email and SMS capabilities. Close currently serves more than 11,500 businesses.

Close launches Chloe, an AI sales agent built directly into the CRM. GlobeNewswire | Close Today at 2:27pm PDT SAN FRANCISCO, June 09, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - After helping 306 businesses make more than 818,000 calls during beta, Close today announced the general availability of Chloe, an AI sales agent built directly into the CRM, now available on all plans for customers in the U.S. and Canada. For more than a decade, Close has helped sales teams engage leads and move deals forward with built-in calling, SMS, email, and automation. Now, Close is taking the next step with Chloe. Chloe calls leads, qualifies prospects, books meetings, follows up automatically, and keeps the CRM updated. Because Chloe works directly inside Close, it has access to customer history, previous conversations, deal context, and workflow automation - helping teams take action without adding another tool or integration. Most CRMs are systems of record. Close has always been a system of action. Tested Across 306 Businesses Before general availability, 306 businesses used Chloe to make more than 818,000 calls, reaching 111,915 prospects and customers and completing more than 6,400 hours of conversations. "The biggest opportunity with AI is not replacing salespeople. It is giving small businesses leverage they could not afford before. For most of the last twenty years, if you wanted faster lead response, more follow-up, or more sales activity, you hired more people. AI changes that. Small businesses can now operate with a level of speed and consistency that previously required much larger teams." - Steli Efti, Founder and CEO, Close Beta customers used Chloe to qualify inbound leads, re-engage old opportunities, follow up with prospects, and schedule meetings automatically. "Chloe is the first AI calling agent I tried that actually fits the way a sales team works. It handles repetitive phone work, navigates real-world call scenarios, and gets the conversation to the right human at the right time." - Pedro Ponciano, CEO & Founder, Close Accelerate "In our first week with Chloe, we booked 30 meetings and increased total meetings booked by more than 50%." - Ben Pace, Founder, ClientMatchmaking.com While many customers first encounter Chloe through voice, Chloe also supports account research, lead enrichment, CRM updates, and conversational assistance through Chloe Chat. Close plans to expand Chloe with multilingual support as well as native email and SMS conversations. Built for Small Business More than 11,500 businesses use Close today. Unlike standalone AI tools that require additional integrations and setup, Chloe works directly inside the CRM. Businesses can get started in minutes with customer data, workflows, and communication history already connected. The goal is simple: help small teams move faster, stay lean, and compete above their weight class. Availability Chloe is now available on all Close plans for U.S. and Canada customers. Additional capabilities, languages, and markets are coming soon. Pricing details are available at close.com/pricing. New customers can try Close and Chloe free at close.com/chloe Media Contact Close Communications Team [email protected] close.com To schedule an interview with Steli Efti or a beta customer, contact [email protected]. About Close Close is the CRM built for founders, owners, and small sales teams. Operated by Elastic, Inc., Close combines CRM, calling, email, SMS, automation, and AI into a single platform designed to help businesses communicate with more leads, close more deals, and spend less time managing software. More than 11,500 businesses use Close to run their sales process from first contact through a closed deal. This is a paid placement. For further inquiries, please contact GlobeNewswire directly.