Having worked in the Franchising sector with a good client, I’ve learnt a few things along the way about what to do or not to in the realm of Franchising. Everyone that is an Entrepreneur whether new or old, wants to hopefully launch their brand and make it more popular by the means of franchising. What they don’t realize is that, it’s not as easy as you may think.
What does Franchising your Business take? Let’s see…
- Firstly, your Brand Presence should be strong enough before you take this lunge. Ask yourself questions such as: do people know what my Brand is? Is there enough Brand Awareness?
- Can your Brand be Franchised? Does it have the cookie cutter setup? – Basically, when one wants or hopes to Franchise their Business, they must know that their business MUST have the capability to be able to replicate itself.
- Is there a need for your business in the neighbouring territories? – when franchising, you should be aware of your neighbouring territories and their demographics, ask yourself, can this business sustain in ABC Territory? Can this business be workable in another area?
- Is the territory that you wish to franchise in, too close to where you live and will it dip into your profits? If so, then you may want to re-think this idea or find territories in another region.
- Do you have the training capabilities to train another Franchisee? Remember, this can be a demanding job!
So now that some of you have sold your first, second or third Franchise, what sorts of issues are you dealing with now? Most Franchisors at some point or another will feel this way:
- Maybe this person isn’t the right candidate for my Franchise
- You feel that you are basically running two businesses now
- The Franchisee is complaining about their sales or they aren’t satisfied with the returns on this investment
- Franchisee refuses to pay the Monthly Marketing Fee
- Franchisee is not following the guidelines
- Franchisee has created their own rules for the business and has hired a cheap Marketing firm to market… This disregards your Franchise Agreement
- You created yourself too much work by selling these franchises
- You need to hire a Franchise consultant to handle your Franchisees – you didn’t budget for that!
Franchising isn’t easy business and many Franchises come and go but sustaining your Brand Name and Franchising it correctly is the key to being successful in this field. It takes diligent effort and planning and most of the times, guidance from an expert.
Good Luck!
Paarull JS Bakshi, BBA, CAPM – Small Business Consultant
If you have a question about your Small Business or would like some Marketing help or even looking into Franchising, please feel free to contact me at 604-318-4913 or at paarullb@gmail.com
