What FranFunnel does

FranFunnel is a vertical SaaS platform purpose-built for franchise development teams. The product delivers text-first lead engagement: when a franchise candidate submits an inquiry, the platform sends a personalized SMS within 60 seconds and engages the lead via AI conversation agents that qualify the candidate, answer questions, and offer three available calendar slots for in-thread meeting booking. The system spans the full franchise pipeline, with stage-specific agents for intro call, application, FDD, and Discovery Day phases, plus cold lead re-engagement campaigns, meeting reminders, and post-handoff follow-up. Bidirectional sync with FranConnect, GHL (GoHighLevel), and Salesforce keeps the customer's CRM as the system of record while FranFunnel owns the engagement layer. Human handoff is instant — any manual rep message automatically suppresses the AI agent for that stage.

The company sells per-seat subscriptions at $249 per month with month-to-month terms and white-glove onboarding (typical go-live in 48 hours). FranFunnel targets three customer segments: in-house franchise development teams at multi-unit brands, individual franchise consultants and brokers, and franchise sales organizations (FSOs) that handle leads across multiple client brands. Named customers include Great Clips, Sport Clips, Smoothie King, School of Rock, Pet Supplies Plus, Xponential Fitness, Chicken Salad Chick, Potbelly, Christian Brothers Automotive, FirstLight Home Care, Great Harvest Bread, Oakscale, and Tutor Doctor; the platform has processed 3M+ leads and served 800+ brands and consultants since inception.

FranFunnel was founded by Metric Collective in 2018 and acquired in 2025 by Apex Point Equity, a micro private equity firm that invests in vertical SaaS businesses. The company is structured as Apex Point Equity, LLC d/b/a FranFunnel, incorporated in New York, and operates as a fully remote team of 1–10 employees led by Managing Partners Eric Spielman (Revenue, Strategy & Operations) and Alen Durbuzovic (Product, Engineering & Infrastructure). The current platform iteration, FranFunnel 2.0, was released in September 2025.

Name

FranFunnel

Legal name

Apex Point Equity, LLC d/b/a FranFunnel

Website

https://franfunnel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

FranFunnel is a vertical SaaS platform that sends personalized SMS to franchise leads within 60 seconds and uses AI conversation agents to qualify candidates and book meetings in-thread, serving in-house franchise development teams, franchise consultants/brokers, and franchise sales organizations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Franchise Lead Engagement Software

NAICS

Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Customer Journey Orchestration & Campaign Management (BPAFAFAF)

Keywords

• Franchise lead engagement
• SMS automation platform
• Franchise development software
• Lead response automation
• AI conversation agents

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Operations

Revenue model

1. SaaS Subscription (Per Seat): Monthly subscription model at $249/month per seat. Includes full platform access with all features: instant text response, AI conversation agents, stage-based automation, CRM sync, meeting booking, re-engagement campaigns, and reminders. No additional per-feature charges.
2. Subscription Term: Standard subscription term is one month, automatically renewing monthly unless terminated. No long-term contracts required. Month-to-month flexibility with 30-day termination notice.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

FranFunnel is a text-first franchise lead engagement SaaS platform that automatically sends personalized SMS messages to new franchise leads within 60 seconds of form submission, 24/7. The platform uses AI conversation agents to answer candidate questions and book discovery meetings directly inside the text thread, applies stage-specific automation across the full franchise sales pipeline (intro call through Discovery Day), and syncs bidirectionally with existing CRMs such as GHL, FranConnect, and Salesforce. It is delivered as a $249 per-seat monthly subscription with month-to-month terms and white-glove setup included.

Product overview

FranFunnel is a single, unified text-first franchise lead engagement platform purpose-built for franchise development teams, consultants, and franchise sales organizations. The product is not modular in a traditional sense but is delivered as a full-stack platform with multiple functional layers that work together: the Speed-to-Lead Automation module fires personalized SMS outreach within 60 seconds of any lead submission; the AI Conversation Agent (In-Thread Booking) engages candidates, qualifies them, and books discovery calls directly in the text thread; Stage-Specific AI Agents handle each pipeline stage with tailored sequences triggered by CRM changes; Cold Lead Re-Engagement and Meeting Reminder modules cover post-initial-contact gaps; and CRM Sync & Routing ensures all activity is logged and leads are routed to the right rep. FranFunnel 2.0, launched September 2025, represents the latest major version iteration of the platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• FranFunnel Core Platform Text-first franchise lead engagement SaaS platform that sends personalized SMS to new franchise leads within 60 seconds of form submission, qualifies leads and books meetings via AI conversation agents, runs stage-specific automation across the franchise sales pipeline, and syncs bidirectionally with existing CRMs. Sold to franchise brands, consultants, and FSOs at $249 per seat per month with month-to-month terms.
• FranFunnel 2.0 Comprehensive product rebuild of the FranFunnel platform launched in September 2025, featuring a refreshed user interface, enhanced automation capabilities, and rebuilt architecture.

Quantifiable outcome

• Average 40% improvement in meeting rates vs baseline for customers using automated 60-second response vs manual follow-up
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability6 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• GHL (GoHighLevel)coreTechnology or IntegrationCRM integration partner. FranFunnel works with GHL and other CRMs that franchise development teams already use. Bidirectional sync keeps GHL as system of record while FranFunnel handles engagement layer.
• FranConnectcoreTechnology or IntegrationCRM integration partner. FranConnect users can add SMS outreach without changing their CRM. FranFunnel adds instant lead response to FranConnect's pipeline management.
• SalesforcecoreTechnology or IntegrationCRM integration partner. Stage-specific automation available in Salesforce. Bidirectional sync enables Salesforce to remain system of record while FranFunnel handles engagement.
• Metric CollectiveminorOthersOriginal parent company that founded FranFunnel in 2018. Metric Collective built FranFunnel from scratch specifically for franchise development teams, not adapted from generic sales tool.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Podium: Podium is a leading text-first customer engagement and lead response platform for local businesses, including franchises. It overlaps directly with FranFunnel's core use case of automated SMS outreach, review generation, and lead conversion for multi-location brands.
• FranConnect: FranConnect is the dominant franchise-specific CRM and operating system for franchise brands. It is both a direct integration partner and a potential competitor, as it manages the franchise development pipeline that FranFunnel enhances with SMS engagement.
• Birdeye: Birdeye is a customer experience and messaging platform that helps multi-location businesses convert leads via SMS, webchat, and reviews. It directly overlaps with FranFunnel's automated lead engagement and review-driving workflows.
• Text Request: Text Request is a business texting platform focused on lead response, mass texting, and customer conversations for SMBs. It targets the same speed-to-lead use case as FranFunnel and serves franchised and multi-location businesses.
• LeadSimple: LeadSimple is a vertical SaaS CRM and lead management platform originally built for property management but expanding into service businesses. It shares FranFunnel's playbook of automating lead pipelines for a specific vertical with stage-based workflows.
• Hatch (by SMS): Hatch is a messaging platform focused on franchise and multi-location customer conversations, including SMS, webchat, and AI-assisted replies. It directly competes in FranFunnel's core franchise lead engagement market.

Broad incumbents

• GoHighLevel (GHL): GoHighLevel is an all-in-one CRM and marketing automation platform widely used by franchise development teams and agencies. It is both a key integration partner for FranFunnel and a competitive incumbent with native SMS, workflows, and AI features.
• Salesforce Sales Cloud: Salesforce is the enterprise CRM incumbent used by many large franchise brands. It is a core integration partner for FranFunnel but also a strategic threat as it layers in AI-driven SMS and lead-response automation natively.
• HubSpot: HubSpot is a leading CRM and marketing automation platform with built-in SMS, conversation routing, and AI features. It serves a similar mid-market buyer and increasingly competes with vertical lead engagement tools like FranFunnel.
• ServiceTitan: ServiceTitan is a vertical SaaS platform for home and commercial service franchises, with built-in marketing automation, call tracking, and lead response features. It illustrates the adjacent vertical pattern that FranFunnel could follow into trades and home services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FranFunnel