How chains are recognised
Pinweaver groups businesses that are really one organisation:
- Locations that share a website are one brand.
- Businesses listed under one group's site (a pub company, a hotel group, a dental group) are one organisation, even when each has its own name.
- Similar names alone do not merge businesses: in many cities half the dentists are called “Dental Centre” something, and they are separate owners.
A franchise whose locations each run their own website is treated as separate owners, because they usually are.
Three choices on the plan card
- One lead per brand (the default): a chain appears once, its strongest location representing it, with “N locations”.
- Every location: each branch is its own lead.
- Independent only: chains, franchises and groups are left out.
After a hunt, “only independents” hides the chain businesses on screen, free like any other filter.
Who looks for them
- Agencies and freelancers selling to owner-operators.
- Local suppliers whose terms suit small accounts.
- Software for small businesses: booking, payments, accounting.
Sentences to try
Any city, any trade. Type it the way you would say it:
- “independent gyms in Chicago with bad reviews”
- “independent coffee shops in Portland”
- “dentists in Austin, no chains”
Questions
- Will it ever leave out a real independent business?
- Pinweaver is careful in that direction: a name that many businesses in the market share is never treated as a brand. When in doubt it keeps the business as its own lead.
- Can I see which leads belong to a chain?
- Yes. A chain's row says how many locations it has, and the list of scanned businesses says which ones were folded into a brand or left out for being part of one.
- Does it cost more to ask for independents only?
- No. You pay one credit per business delivered, whatever the filters.