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Multi Store Management

Manage multiple retail locations, franchises, or branches from a single BrandCast account.

Overview

Multi-store management allows you to:

  • Manage unlimited store locations from one account
  • Share content across all locations
  • Create location-specific content
  • Control user access per store
  • Set timezone and location settings for each store
  • Centralize brand consistency while allowing local customization

Creating Stores

Adding a New Store

  1. Navigate to Stores in the main menu
  2. Click Add Store
  3. Enter store information:
    • Name: Store name or identifier
    • Code: Unique code for this location
    • Address: Full physical address
    • City, State, ZIP: Location details
    • Timezone: Local timezone for this store
    • Phone: Store contact number
    • Email: Store contact email
  4. Click Create Store

Your new store is now available in the store selector.

Store Codes

Each store requires a unique code (e.g., "NYC01", "DOWNTOWN", "MAIN"):

Recommendations:

  • Keep it short (4-10 characters)
  • Use consistent format across all stores
  • Include location identifier
  • Use uppercase for consistency

Examples:

  • Geographic: NYC-01, LA-WEST, CHI-LOOP
  • Numeric: STORE-001, LOC-042
  • Regional: EAST-01, CENTRAL-05
  • Franchise: SMITH-MAIN, JONES-01

Store Settings

Configure each store individually:

Location Information:

  • Physical address (for directions, local weather)
  • Phone and email (for customer contact)
  • Timezone (affects schedules and time-based content)

Operational Settings:

  • Business hours
  • Store hours display
  • Special closures
  • Holiday schedules

Technical Settings:

  • Google Cloud Storage bucket (optional, for isolation)
  • Metadata (custom fields for your needs)

Managing Multiple Stores

Viewing All Stores

  1. Go to Stores
  2. See list of all stores with:
    • Store name and code
    • Location (city, state)
    • Active/inactive status
    • Number of displays
    • User count
    • Created date

Switching Between Stores

Store Selector:

  • Located in top navigation
  • Click to see all stores
  • Select store to view/manage
  • Recently viewed stores appear first

Keyboard Shortcut:

  • Press Ctrl+K (Windows/Linux) or Cmd+K (Mac)
  • Type store name or code
  • Press Enter to switch

Filtering and Searching

Filter stores by:

  • Status (Active/Inactive)
  • Region or state
  • Number of displays
  • Creation date

Search:

  • Search by store name
  • Search by store code
  • Search by city or address

Store-Specific vs. Shared Content

Shared Content

Content available to all stores in your account:

What can be shared:

  • Brand assets (logos, colors, fonts)
  • Corporate messaging
  • Universal promotions
  • Template layouts
  • Standard media library items

Benefits:

  • Centralized brand control
  • Consistent messaging across locations
  • Efficient content management
  • Single update affects all stores

Creating Shared Content:

  1. When uploading media or creating layouts
  2. Set Source Type to "Shared"
  3. Content appears in all stores
  4. Managed centrally

Store-Specific Content

Content only available to specific store(s):

What can be store-specific:

  • Local promotions
  • Location-specific media
  • Store manager photos
  • Regional campaigns
  • Local event announcements

Benefits:

  • Local customization
  • Relevant messaging per location
  • Regional marketing flexibility
  • Store autonomy

Creating Store-Specific Content:

  1. Switch to the target store
  2. Upload media or create layout
  3. Set Source Type to "Store Specific"
  4. Content only visible in that store

Content Strategy

Recommended Mix:

Corporate-Controlled (Shared):

  • 60-70% of content
  • Brand assets and standards
  • National promotions
  • Core messaging

Store-Controlled (Store-Specific):

  • 30-40% of content
  • Local events
  • Store-specific promotions
  • Community involvement
  • Staff recognition

User Access Across Stores

Assigning Users to Stores

Users can have different access levels for different stores:

Scenarios:

Regional Manager:

  • Admin access to stores in their region
  • Viewer access to other regions
  • Account-level access for reporting

Store Manager:

  • Admin access to their store only
  • No access to other stores
  • Focused on their location

Corporate Marketing:

  • Manager access to all stores
  • Create shared content
  • Cannot modify store settings

Configuration:

  1. Go to SettingsUsers
  2. Click on user
  3. Under Store Access, add stores:
    • Select store
    • Choose role for that store
    • Click Add
  4. Repeat for each store

See User Management for detailed role information.

Primary Store

Each user has one primary store (default view on login):

Setting Primary Store:

  1. Go to user profile
  2. Find Store Access section
  3. Click Set as Primary next to desired store

Users automatically see their primary store when logging in.

Layouts and Templates

Sharing Layouts Across Stores

Method 1: Duplicate Layout

  1. Create layout in one store
  2. Click Duplicate to Stores
  3. Select target stores
  4. Layouts copied with all settings

Method 2: Save as Template

  1. Create layout in any store
  2. Click Save as Template
  3. Mark as "Shared"
  4. Other stores can use template
  5. Each store customizes as needed

Method 3: Account-Level Templates

  1. Create layouts with shared content only
  2. Make available account-wide
  3. Stores apply and customize
  4. Central updates don't override local changes

Store-Specific Layouts

Some layouts should remain unique to each store:

Examples:

  • Store hours display (different per location)
  • Local employee schedules
  • Store-specific promotions
  • Regional weather
  • Local events calendar

Best Practice:

  • Start with shared template
  • Customize for store
  • Mark as store-specific
  • Prevents accidental overwrite from central updates

Displays Across Stores

Display Management

Each store manages its own displays:

Centralized View:

  1. Go to DisplaysAll Stores
  2. See all displays across all locations
  3. Filter by store
  4. See online/offline status
  5. Monitor display health

Per-Store View:

  1. Switch to specific store
  2. Go to Displays
  3. See only that store's displays
  4. Manage registrations
  5. Assign layouts

Display Naming Convention

Use consistent naming across stores:

Recommended Format:

[STORE-CODE]-[LOCATION]-[PURPOSE]

Examples:

  • NYC01-FRONT-CUSTOMER - Front counter customer display
  • NYC01-BREAK-EMPLOYEE - Break room employee display
  • LA-WEST-CHECKOUT-01 - Checkout display #1
  • CHI-LOOP-LOBBY-MAIN - Main lobby display

Benefits:

  • Easy identification in central dashboard
  • Clear purpose
  • Scalable naming system
  • Searchable by store code

Integrations Per Store

Store-Level Integrations

Some integrations are specific to each store:

Location-Specific:

  • Weather (different location per store)
  • ZoomShift schedules (per-location staffing)
  • Local calendars (store events)
  • Regional RSS feeds

Setup:

  1. Switch to store
  2. Go to Content SourcesAdd Integration
  3. Configure for that store
  4. Integration only affects that store

Shared Integrations

Some integrations can be shared:

Account-Level:

  • Stock market data (same for all)
  • Corporate calendar (company events)
  • Brand news RSS feeds
  • Inspirational quotes

Setup:

  1. Create integration in any store
  2. Set as "Shared"
  3. Available to all stores
  4. Centrally managed

Schedules and Playlists

Store-Specific Schedules

Each store can have unique operating schedules:

Why:

  • Different business hours per location
  • Regional holidays
  • Store-specific events
  • Time zone differences

Setup:

  1. Switch to store
  2. Create schedule
  3. Set time rules (adjusted for store timezone)
  4. Assign to store displays

Example:

  • NYC Store: 9 AM - 9 PM ET (promotional content during hours)
  • LA Store: 9 AM - 9 PM PT (same content, different timezone)
  • TX Store: 10 AM - 8 PM CT (different hours, different schedule)

Shared Playlists

Create once, deploy everywhere:

  1. Create playlist with shared layouts
  2. Make available to all stores
  3. Each store can:
    • Use as-is
    • Customize with local content
    • Adjust timing/duration
    • Add store-specific layouts

Multi-Store Workflows

Corporate to Store Communication

Scenario: Push new promotional campaign to all stores

Workflow:

  1. Corporate creates new promotional layout
  2. Save as shared template
  3. Add to shared playlist
  4. Notify store managers
  5. Stores deploy to their displays
  6. Track adoption across stores

Store to Corporate Reporting

Scenario: Store manager requests new content

Workflow:

  1. Store manager identifies need
  2. Submits request via internal process
  3. Corporate creates shared content
  4. Makes available to requesting store(s)
  5. Store manager deploys

Regional Campaigns

Scenario: Run promotion in specific region only

Workflow:

  1. Identify stores in region
  2. Create shared content for region
  3. Assign to regional stores only
  4. Use store-specific source type
  5. Deploy to region displays
  6. Track performance per store

Best Practices

Organizational Structure

Franchise Model:

  • Corporate: Account Admin, manages shared assets
  • Franchisees: Admin for their store(s) only
  • Regional Managers: Admin for multiple stores in region
  • Corporate Marketing: Marketing role across all stores

Corporate Retail:

  • Corporate HQ: Account Admin
  • Regional VPs: Admin for their region
  • Store Managers: Manager for their store
  • Staff: Display Operator for their location

Multi-Brand:

  • Parent Company: Account Admin
  • Brand Managers: Admin for their brand's stores
  • Store Managers: Manager for individual stores
  • Shared Services: Viewer across all brands

Content Management

Corporate Content (Shared):

  • Brand guidelines and assets
  • National promotions
  • Corporate messaging
  • Standard templates
  • Training materials

Store Content (Store-Specific):

  • Local promotions
  • Employee spotlights
  • Community events
  • Regional partnerships
  • Store-specific pricing

Naming Conventions

Standardize naming across all stores:

Stores:

  • Use consistent format (e.g., REGION-NUMBER)
  • Include location identifier
  • Keep codes short and meaningful

Displays:

  • Include store code prefix
  • Describe location and purpose
  • Use consistent separator (dash or underscore)

Layouts:

  • Include version numbers for updates
  • Indicate shared vs. store-specific
  • Use descriptive names

Media:

  • Include store code if store-specific
  • Tag for easy searching
  • Use consistent file naming

Store Onboarding Checklist

When adding a new store:

  1. ✅ Create store record with all details
  2. ✅ Set timezone correctly
  3. ✅ Add store manager as Admin for store
  4. ✅ Copy shared layouts/templates to store
  5. ✅ Set up store-specific integrations (weather, calendar)
  6. ✅ Configure displays and registration codes
  7. ✅ Upload store-specific media
  8. ✅ Test displays and content
  9. ✅ Train store manager on system
  10. ✅ Document store-specific settings

Store Offboarding

When closing a store:

  1. ✅ Archive store (don't delete immediately)
  2. ✅ Deactivate all store displays
  3. ✅ Remove user access to store
  4. ✅ Export store content for records
  5. ✅ Move shared content to archive
  6. ✅ Document closure date and reason
  7. ✅ Preserve audit logs
  8. ✅ Update billing (reduce seat count if applicable)

Monitoring and Analytics

Cross-Store Analytics

Track performance across all locations:

Metrics to Monitor:

  • Display uptime per store
  • Content freshness
  • User activity per location
  • Integration health
  • Media library usage

Accessing Analytics:

  1. Go to AnalyticsMulti-Store View
  2. Compare stores side-by-side
  3. Filter by date range
  4. Export reports

Store Performance

Compare store performance:

Key Indicators:

  • Display online percentage
  • Average content age
  • User engagement
  • Support ticket volume
  • Content update frequency

Best Performers:

  • Identify top-performing stores
  • Share best practices
  • Recognize effective managers

Underperformers:

  • Identify stores needing support
  • Provide additional training
  • Address technical issues

Troubleshooting

Content Not Showing in Store

Check:

  1. Is content set as "Shared" or assigned to that store?
  2. User has access to view that store?
  3. Content source is active?
  4. Store settings correct?

Solutions:

  • Change source type to Shared
  • Add store to content permissions
  • Verify user store access
  • Check store configuration

User Can't See Certain Stores

Check:

  1. User's store access list
  2. User's role (account-level vs. store-level)
  3. Store status (active/inactive)
  4. User's primary store setting

Solutions:

  • Add user to missing stores
  • Update user role
  • Activate store
  • Set correct primary store

Displays Showing Wrong Timezone

Check:

  1. Store timezone setting
  2. Display location
  3. Browser timezone
  4. Scheduled content timing

Solutions:

  • Update store timezone
  • Verify physical location
  • Clear browser cache
  • Adjust schedule rules

Store Code Already Exists

Problem: Trying to use duplicate store code

Solution:

  • Use unique code for each store
  • Check existing store codes first
  • Follow consistent naming convention
  • Consider using sequential numbers

Advanced: Store Groups

Available in Enterprise plans

Group stores by region, district, or other criteria:

Creating Store Groups:

  1. Go to StoresGroups
  2. Click Create Group
  3. Name group (e.g., "East Region", "Franchise A")
  4. Add stores to group
  5. Assign permissions to group

Benefits:

  • Bulk operations on grouped stores
  • Group-specific content
  • Regional reporting
  • Simplified management

Use Cases:

  • Regional marketing campaigns
  • District manager oversight
  • Franchise management
  • Brand segmentation

Next Steps