Written by Scott White
Key Takeaways:
- New leadership hire — Emily brings 17 years of franchise experience across services, brand partnerships, HR, recruitment, and client coordination.
- Deep industry credentials — A Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) with a Franchise Management Bootcamp Certificate from the University of Louisville, Emily previously held roles at the International Franchise Association (IFA), Franchise Business Review, RevLocal, and KTA Financial Services.
- Community involvement — She co-chairs the Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter of the IFA’s Women’s Franchise Network.
- People-first philosophy — Emily emphasizes that franchising succeeds through relationships, and sees her role as strengthening partnerships between Thunderly, its clients, and their teams.
- Strategic growth signal — The hire builds on Thunderly’s momentum following last year’s launch of our proprietary AIM Model©, reinforcing our drive to lead franchise marketing innovation amid the rise of AI-driven search.
Bringing a Wealth of Franchise Experience to Thunderly’s Client Services Team
As we continue to enhance our position at the forefront of the evolving franchise marketing landscape, we are excited to welcome well-known franchise veteran Emily George as our new Vice President of Client Services.
Emily brings a wealth of franchise experience to Thunderly. Her diverse 17-year background spans areas such as franchise services, brand partnerships, human resources, recruitment, and client coordination.
She served as Director of Member Recruitment & Retention with the International Franchise Association (IFA), Senior Client Coordinator at Franchise Business Review, Senior Manager of Brand Partnerships at RevLocal, and most recently Director of Strategic Partnerships at KTA Financial Services, a FinTech startup providing bookkeeping and accounting services for franchising.
A Certified Franchise Executive (CFE), Emily holds a Franchise Management Bootcamp Certificate from the University of Louisville and serves as co-chair of the Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter of the IFA’s Women’s Franchise Network.
Emily understands franchising from the inside out, but just as importantly, she understands people. She has spent years building relationships across the franchise community and knows the opportunities, challenges, and responsibilities that come with growing a franchise brand.
“Franchising is fundamentally about people and relationships, which is what has kept me passionate about this community throughout my career,” Emily says.
Where the Marketing Industry Is Headed
Thunderly sits at the “front row of the American Dream,” as co-founder and COO Monica Feid often says. And we’ve never been comfortable standing still. The expansion of our Client Services division is just the latest example of our commitment to reinforcing our reputation as a top franchise development marketing agency by leading rather than following changes in how brands market themselves and grow their networks.
Last year’s introduction of our proprietary Thunderly AIM Model© (Amplified Integrated Marketing) was created specifically in response to the rise of AI-generated search and large language models (LLMs). The model helps brands bring every part of their marketing communications into one cohesive strategy, showing how efforts across PR, social media, SEO, content, and beyond can work together to strengthen visibility across traditional channels and emerging AI technologies.
That’s what our clients find when they collaborate with Thunderly: a partner who knows what it takes to secure qualified leads, amplify online visibility, and tap into real growth and tangible results. From video and social media to public relations, digital ads, web content, and more, we have everything in-house to help take your brand to the next level.
“Thunderly has built something special by combining that human element with a fully integrated approach to helping brands grow,” Emily says. “I’m thrilled to work alongside our clients and team to build stronger partnerships, create meaningful impact, and ultimately help more people experience the opportunities franchising can provide.”
Are you ready for marketing that strikes with the precision of a lightning bolt and is amplified with thunderous impact? Reach out here to start the conversation with our team, and we’ll handle the rest.
