Is a Belocal franchisee required to participate in an advertising fund?
Belocal Franchise · 2025 FDDAnswer from 2025 FDD Document
You are not required to participate in any national, regional, or local advertising programs we manage or in any local or regional advertising cooperatives. You are not required to participate in an advertising fund. We do not have an advertising council.
We are not required to spend any money to advertise your Franchised Business, the Publication, or the BELOCAL brand generally. We are not required to spend any money for advertising in your Territory. If we choose to conduct any advertising related to the Franchised Business, the Publication, or the BELOCAL brand generally, we may use any media we choose, any source we choose (an in-house team, or local, regional, or national companies) and have total discretion to select the coverage (local, regional, or national).
You must obtain our prior approval for all advertising and promotional plans and materials that you desire to use to promote your Franchised Business and that we have not prepared or previously approved. You may only use advertising materials that you create, or have created for you, if we determine that these materials and the proposed use of these materials meet our standards. We reserve the right to disapprove at
Source: Item 11 — FRANCHISOR'S ASSISTANCE, ADVERTISING, COMPUTER SYSTEMS, AND TRAINING (FDD pages 37–42)
What This Means (2025 FDD)
According to Belocal's 2025 Franchise Disclosure Document, franchisees are not required to participate in any advertising programs or funds. Specifically, Belocal does not mandate participation in national, regional, or local advertising programs managed by them, nor in any local or regional advertising cooperatives. Furthermore, Belocal does not have an advertising council. This provides franchisees with significant autonomy over their advertising strategies.
Belocal is also not obligated to spend any money to advertise a franchisee's business, the publication, or the Belocal brand in general, including within a franchisee's specific territory. If Belocal chooses to conduct advertising, they have total discretion over the media, sources (in-house or external), and coverage area (local, regional, or national).
However, franchisees must obtain Belocal's prior approval for all advertising and promotional materials they create themselves. Belocal retains the right to disapprove any advertising plans or materials, even those previously approved, and franchisees must immediately stop using such materials upon notice. This highlights the importance of aligning advertising efforts with Belocal's standards and maintaining open communication regarding promotional activities.