Locals Love Us (LLU) is a marketing and advertising franchise that publishes community-focused print and online directories featuring the most-loved local businesses in each market.

The directory highlights popular companies across categories such as restaurants, retail, home services, and professional providers. Each listing is based on real consumer votes, making the guides trusted resources for residents.

Locals Love Us was founded in 2005 and began building its reputation through its local voting structure and community-driven branding. The company is headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where it continues to manage brand standards and national support systems.

The franchise program officially launched in 2014, allowing entrepreneurs to operate their own Locals Love Us territory. The franchise sells advertising placements in its local print guides and digital directories.

Franchisees run annual voting campaigns, engage with local businesses, and publish the results to create a curated list of the top-voted companies in their area. The business model combines community engagement, advertising sales, and recurring publication cycles.

Training

Locals Love Us provides a detailed and multi-day training program to prepare franchisees and their team members for business operations. The initial training program typically takes about five full days and is mandatory for the franchisee or their designated Principal Operator. Here are the key training components:

1. Initial Training Program
   Conducted within three months of signing the Franchise Agreement, the training is held at the franchisor’s office in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, or another designated location. It includes classroom sessions and practical instruction using the official Manual and other training materials.
2. Sales-Specific Training
   Employees who will serve in a sales capacity receive an abbreviated two-day program focused solely on sales-related subjects. This helps streamline their onboarding while targeting their functional area.
3. Additional Training
   If the franchisee hires more employees or requests extra training, the franchisor may charge up to $2,000 per week for each additional participant. The franchisor also reserves the right to require up to five days of additional training annually at a designated location.

Territory Protection

Locals Love Us offers territory protection to its franchisees under a "Market" designation, within which no other franchise or company-owned location will be permitted—provided the franchisee meets specific performance criteria.

This protection is conditional on remaining compliant with the franchise agreement, including achieving set annual gross revenue thresholds, starting at $200,000 in Year 1 and rising to $475,000 by Year 5. If a franchisee fails to meet these revenue benchmarks, the franchisor may revoke the territorial protection and allow others to operate within that same Market.

The franchisee is required to focus operations within their assigned Market and must obtain written consent for any marketing efforts outside that territory. While this framework provides a measure of operational security, it is not an exclusive territory in the strictest sense—franchisees may still face indirect competition through other distribution channels or from other Locals Love Us outlets if performance standards are not met.