Training & Support
Wild Birds Unlimited has a team of more than 45 professionals at our Franchise Support Center, dedicated to help you reach your business goals. We encourage every franchise store owner to utilize our 35+ years of expertise in running their business. With Wild Birds Unlimited best practices and brand standards, you have a proven system of operations, training, and support to help you achieve that goal.
Wild Birds Unlimited Support
Finance
You’ll learn to use the Wild Birds Unlimited Financial and Accounting Tools to plan for and understand profitability and cash flow in your store. You will also gain insight into financial procedures by reviewing case studies of actual store operations.
Nature & Hobby Education
You don’t need to be a bird expert to operate a Wild Birds Unlimited store, but you should enjoy birds and nature. From hands-on product training to ongoing hobby education, you’ll have the resources you need to become your community’s backyard bird feeding expert.
Marketing
Our marketing support is designed to attract new customers and to keep existing customers coming back. We provide you with a yearly Marketing Plan which incorporates direct mail, email marketing, a store web site, educational outreach, public relations and other advertising to create a comprehensive strategy. We will guide you through the process of creating a marketing budget to maximize the resources within your local market, including a complete opening and grand opening plan.
Merchandising & Purchasing
You will benefit from a wide array of Wild Birds Unlimited private label merchandise, including our custom seed blends, exclusive and private labeled feeders, our exclusive hardware system, and much more that will set you apart from your competition. You will also learn how to buy, price and sell our products.
Human Resources
You’ll learn how to recruit, train and retain excellent employees. You will also learn to use our specially developed training programs to improve your staff’s effectiveness. These programs will help you motivate your staff to understand and follow your store’s mission through customer service and salesmanship standards.
Information Systems
You’ll learn how to use our custom computer tools to track important business measurements. You will also learn to use this information to make informed decisions about marketing, labor, scheduling, product assortment, inventory levels and other operating expenses.
Franchise Support Center
From the very first contact, we lay a strong foundation for the long-term relationship we have with our franchise store owners. Our Franchise Support Center in Carmel, Indiana is staffed by a team of more than 45 professionals who equip you with tools and best practices for operating your store. Each member of the team brings a wealth of knowledge and years of experience to their area of expertise.
Business Coaches
For your first year of operations, you will work with our New Owner Development Team. This cross-departmental team is focused on helping new owners get off to a strong start in owning a store. After that first year of operations, you will work with a designated Business Coach to put systems in place and implement WBU best practices.
Technical Support
Let’s face it, you can’t run a business these days without computer tools. Whether it’s operating the Point of Sale system or running reports to analyze business performance, technology plays an important role in day-to-day operations. As a franchise store owner, you will have access to training resources as well as toll-free phone support to help you keep things running smoothly.
Franchise Store Owner Community
Connect with other Wild Birds Unlimited franchise store owners through the WBU Intranet, over the phone and in person. Whether you need a specific product that you don’t want to order from a supplier, or you simply want opinions or advice from a colleague, other store owners are there to help.