Franchise sales can be seasonal, with some seasons like spring driving a lot of new interest. It is essential your franchise sales staff, franchise marketing materials, and your franchise sales process are aligned to deliver an accurate, consistent understanding of your franchise. If your franchise company does not have the necessary skills in-house to create marketing materials or a comprehensive sales process consider engaging a franchise consulting firm to assist with developing your materials, process, and providing training for your franchise sales staff.

Spring is a great time of year. Nice weather often leads to positive thoughts and as flowers bloom, so do the thoughts of franchise prospects. Coming from the winter thaw, getting outside, and giving a big yawn and stretch, franchise prospects prepare for the search of a new franchise business. So, the franchise portals, franchise trade shows, and web searches see large increases in traffic like the blooming of new flowers in spring.

With the extended daylight and renewed energy, franchise prospects dive into franchise materials searching for the best match for their entrepreneurial spirit. With all the renewed interest in franchises, franchisors need to take a hard look at their franchise collateral, (Franchise Sales Training | Hire an Outsourced Franchise Sales / Salesperson (upsidefranchiseconsulting.com), sales process and their lead generation systems. Franchise Lead Generation & Development | High Quality Franchise Sales Leads (upsidefranchiseconsulting.com)

Your franchise lead generation process has a bigger impact on your franchisee’s long-term success than many may think. After all, different lead generation sources attract unique sets of franchise buyers, and each franchisor has a specific set of criteria that matches their system and culture. By defining the exact type of individual you want to attract and then determining which lead sources are trafficked most by those types of individuals, you will lower your lead generation expense. More importantly you should find better-matched candidates that in the long run will fit your system and culture, and in turn be more prosperous franchisees.

Now that you are advertising in the right places it is paramount your franchise marketing materials are sending the right message and setting important expectations. By doing so, you not only attract and sell more units, but you do it the “right” way. The right way means setting clear expectations and making sure candidates understand all the costs, lifestyle, and relationship between the franchisor and franchisee, and the important steps necessary to run a successful franchise in your system. You should convey consistent messages with your printed materials, information on your website, photos, copy, in-person meetings, as well as phone conversations. All these items need to be regularly reviewed and updated to ensure they accurately representing your brand. If you are not skilled in creating these types of materials there are qualified franchise consultants who should be able to review your system and create the necessary materials to represent your brand.

When you are advertising correctly and have created accurate, engaging materials, it is important to make sure your franchise sales staff is representing the same important expectations. Ensure you have created a process that engages candidates and allows them to gather information while not inundating them with long phone calls and lengthy paperwork to read. Remember with the spring thaw prospects are looking at many different brands. While you feel it is only a few hours a week you are requiring, that same prospect is trying to carve out a few hours for many different brands as they perform their due diligence. So, you want to create an engaging, accurate, detailed process that is divided into digest-able chunks that a candidate can move through without feeling overwhelmed. There are a lot of moving parts in a quality franchise sales process, so if you are not comfortable creating one yourself there are qualified franchise consultants who are available to help you create a process that will benefit you and your franchise prospects.

While you’re cleaning behind your dresser and under your bed for those dust bunnies, don’t forget to dust off your franchise lead generation strategy, marketing materials, and sales process.

By: Doug Newman

Starting a business is a serious endeavor but it can be fun as well. It is exhilarating to control you destiny and to research various franchises narrowing them until you find the perfect match. In this blog post we discuss using the concept of an elimination tournament to find the right business.

As March Madness looms and the excitement starts to mount, we all turn to our brackets of 64 and begin filling them out in hopes of winning the office pool our bragging rights in the neighborhood. But what does college basketball have to do with how to pick a franchise to buy? As a franchise consultant for nearly 15-years I am often asked, what is the best franchise to buy? What good brands are out there? And of course the answer is subjective. There is no one single answer for which franchise is the best. Much of the criteria has to do with the prospective franchisees’ skill set, their investment level, the type of hours they would like to work, and the activities they would enjoy performing while running their new franchise business. So, how do you decide what is the best franchise business for you?

You may want to use the NCAA bracket system as a guide! The NCAA tournament starts out with 64 teams who play round after round until there is one team crowned champion. First to get into the tournament you have to meet certain criteria. It is based on wins and losses, and strength of schedule, among other things. There are some teams who get in through automatic bid based on winning their conference tournament.

Creating your franchise bracket

For your franchise tournament consider making criteria such as financial strength of the franchise, type of daily schedule you as an owner will have, investment level, industry, and other items to determine who makes the field of 64. You may even have a few automatic bids for brands you always liked and had dreams of owning. Once you have your brackets set start to weigh the benefits of each brand against your wants and needs list, without making too many compromises, and push forward the brands that most closely match your list. Then as you move deeper into the brackets use items like the FDD, phone calls with the franchisor and marketing materials to differentiate between the franchises and move your favorites forward. When you reach the final four, consider attending a day at the corporate office to meet the staff, get to know the culture, and solidify your understanding of the business. Once you have all your information you should be able to narrow your choices to the championship game. With only two remaining- ask your final questions, double check your lists and criteria, talk to your partners and loved ones, and don’t forget about listening to your gut. And once the answer is clear, crown the championship team – sign the franchise agreement, pay the franchise fee, and move ahead.

Certainly, buying a franchise isn’t a game, but it can be fun, and by using a detailed process you should find a great franchise brand that fits you while also enjoying the journey along the way!

By: Susan Jones

The phone is a key aspect of any franchise sales process. It is imperative your franchise sales staff understands all aspects of a successful phone interaction.

I have been a Director of Sales Support for a long while and have been in the franchising world since 1993. My experience has been in management, marketing, sales and regional franchise development and operations. I have also managed profit and loss operations, negotiated leases, coordinated construction of new franchise sites, and lead franchise shows. And it is with pleasure I will share bits and pieces of my experience with each blog post. I will focus on bringing you some insight into the art of phone-lead-management. Let’s start with “Tone”.

Tone:
Today everyone is busier than ever and we are receiving more calls than ever. This is why salespeople must keep every aspect of their calls in mind, and one of the most important is “Tone”. Yes, every salesperson must have exceptional skills to get customers on the phone, gather information, build rapport, generate excitement, and advance the call. And tone is a key factor in these processes. Keep in mind that most everyone is turned off by an in-your-face approach. Using personality matching and a consultative selling approach are the ways to become the type of salesperson that can identify a customer’s personality type and match their rhythm, tone, and style.

When you sell in person it allows the use of many means to create an impression. Such as clothing, hair style, handshake, walk, and posture. Just the physical proximity makes the job of establishing rapport easier. Phone selling requires a skillful analysis of the customer’s voice, tone, words, and inflection as well as being aware of your own. You can’t read someone’s enthusiasm or reluctance in their face or body language, so on the phone, you need to be able to interpret the subtle meaning of every variation of tempo, volume, and energy level as well as the content of their words. Even the pauses have importance.

Do not pick up the phone until you can sound upbeat and happy. While on any call you need to sound competent and positive. Sit straight or if you think better on your feet then use a wireless headset, so you can stand and move around. Actually moving helps stimulate blood flow to your brain and your vocal chords sound stronger and friendlier. Your voice needs to resonate well. Pay close attention to diction, clear professional speech is important to communicate clearly. Don’t use sarcasm in your tone. Have fun in the call, if your customers are laughing, they are more likely to buy from you.

And remember to “Smile” when making calls; it always makes you sound better and conveys warmth and enthusiasm.

Good luck on your calls and creating rapport with your potential new franchise team members!

All expanding franchises need high-quality, professionally trained franchise development staff to engage with prospects.

Many franchisors begin their franchise journey as the owner, salesperson, operations director, trainer, and chief bottle washer; but as a franchise operation grows it becomes impossible and ill advised to continue this path. This fork in the franchise road leaves you with two choices; outsource your franchise sales development or hire your own franchise sales team. No matter which road you choose to travel, it is still wise to engage professional franchise help from franchise sales experts.

The current landscape of franchising has placed a premium on quality franchise sales personnel. The franchise industry continues to expand while the training ground and educational sources for true franchise sales expertise remains limited. Hiring professionals to help allows quality franchisors to step back from the day-to-day selling of their franchise while still remaining informed and continuing the development of their franchise sales team.

Because some franchisors prefer in-house salespeople, a complete outsourcing solution may not be the answer, so partial sales management solution may be the perfect fit.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself when deciding to outsource your sales process or to pay for franchise sales training for inside sales staff. Are your franchise salespeople losing quality prospects by inadequate handling of objections, or, unable to close deals in an acceptable amount of time? Do you end up with issues post sale? Do some sales take a month while others take 6-months?

No matter if you’re selling automotive repair franchises or the next, great fast food franchise, franchise sales people handle many of the same objections and sales problems. A quality outsourced sales team should be comprised of experts with extensive knowledge on exactly how to handle candidates reluctant to pay royalties, prospects feeling confined by territory limitations, and any other of sales’ many curveballs. They should also spend time getting to know the intricacies of your brand and your competition.

If you choose to hire a sales group to train your existing staff they should have franchise sales skills but also experience in training which is a different discipline. A good franchise development training group will develop a step-by-step process for your sales staff to follow addressing, initial contact, follow up materials, additional phone calls, discovery days, candidate qualification, closing, fee collection, and hand off to operations.

Quality franchise sales and management groups will provide:

• Management of your sales team
• Weekly team coaching
• One-on-one personal interaction with each sales person
• Objection handling
• Profile gathering
• Lead qualification
• Handling FAQs
• How to close in fewer calls
• Sales compliance

Quality group will wrap all these management services with comprehensive reporting back to the franchisor, so you have accurate forecasting and a clear window in to your franchise sales organizations activities and development.

Whether you hire a professional 3^rd party sale team as a seamless part of your sales organization, or utilize professionals to train your franchise sales employees to secure success- the team approach between a quality outside group and your firm will result in quality growth.

By: MJ Alto

This blog examines earnings claims, options for disclosing, and consideration for earnings claims for selling franchises.

By: MJ Alto

In a job interview, would you ask how much the pay is before learning whether the position is suited for you? Would you make an offer on a house before a comprehensive walk through and learning about the building’s history? And you wouldn’t guarantee the buyer of your car that they will get another 100,000 miles out of the old’ girl without ever getting behind the wheel with them, would you? For anyone with an ounce of common sense and business savvy, “Of course not,” is the obvious answer to all of these questions. Yet when it comes to the sales of franchise business units and the disclosure of earnings claims information, the thinking is exactly the opposite: more often than not the franchisee who’s in the market to buy will prematurely ask for the information and the franchisor, anxious to advance the courtship, will eagerly oblige.

Should earnings claims be presented by a franchisor trying to sell to a hot lead and should a franchisee even ask for the information to begin with? Today, this is the question that is debated more than any other topic in the franchise industry, as franchisors who are frustrated with sales and legal challenges—or anything they don’t have a clear answer to—immediately reach for what they think is the silver bullet: earnings claims that will sell more units. Earnings claims have a legitimate purpose in the sales process, but it is important to remember that they are only one piece of the bigger sales puzzle used to connect with the next piece, and they should not be relied on as the be all and end all of selling. While earnings claims alone may—luckily or incidentally—prove to be effective from time to time, for every franchisor that narrowly escapes the legal ramifications of this decision, there are increasing numbers of others who will end up on the wrong side of the law because they provided information that was unfounded or loosely open to interpretation.

An earnings claim is any information a prospective franchisee receives which allows them to attempt to predict a range or level of potential sales, costs, income, or profits. Franchising exploded in the 1950s, growing from less than 100 companies that had employed franchising in their market operations to more than 900 companies that involved 200,000 franchise outlets in 1960. By the late 1960s, McDonald’s, Holiday Inn and Kentucky Fried Chicken were all approaching or surpassing their 1,000-unit mark and 100,000 new franchise businesses started. With this frenzy came fraudulent franchise sales and franchisees started to complain. As investor losses mounted, lawmakers enacted consumer protection statutes to regulate the offer and sale of franchises and contribute to a more responsible industry. Then, in 1979, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) adopted regulations that addressed pre-sale disclosures to administer federal franchise law, requiring franchisors selling to provide a disclosure document to all potential franchisees. Formerly known as the Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (U.F.O.C.)—currently being replaced with the new Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD)—it requires that the document be presented to potential franchisees when the purchase of a franchise is discussed or 10 days before the franchisor receives the first payment from the franchisee.

One of the 23 items of disclosure the UFOC/FDD requires is earnings claims, which states: if a franchisor makes earnings claims, whether historical or forecasted, they must have a reasonable basis, and prescribed substantiating disclosures must be given to a potential investor in writing at the same time as the basic disclosures (Parts 436.1(b)-(d)). In the UFOC/FDD, a legal earnings claim, if made available, will be in Item 19 of the document, which is based completely on historical data from the company’s units and may include information such as: various costs, ranges of sales at actual locations, statistical data about operations, and any other pertinent financial information. Item 19 is legitimate because it is a formal, written, historical earnings claim. However, earnings claims that are not historical, written, or formally filed with the state, are not legal and cannot be accepted as legitimate. Under the New FTC Rule on Franchising, effective July 2008, it is even easier to make a legally compliant earnings claim. It expressly permits an earnings claim based on all of the system’s existing outlets or limited to only a subset of outlets that share a particular set of characteristics. As long as your claim has a reasonable basis, adequately discloses all material data assumptions, and you have written substantiation for the representation at the time it is made, it is legally compliant.

Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

What does it say about a franchisee who is only concerned with the profit margin and what does it say about a franchisor who relies on the earnings claim card to make a sale? Many prospective franchisees are too infatuated with the notion that if they ask franchisors how much money they will make from the unit that all of the uncertainties of going into business will disappear. Publishing an earnings claims statement is at the sole discretion of franchisors. Although it is a very common and legal question, it is one best left unasked and unanswered because salespeople and franchisors cannot legally answer it, whether they jot down a number on a cocktail napkin, or casually reference a range of numbers in a conversation. Besides being illegal, the information would not be reliable. The only legal form of an earnings claim is found in the UFOC/FDD in Item 19 and it simply tells how well the franchise units performed in the past.

Does any relationship that is based on only money work? Earnings claims should be used as only one more piece of information that is considered when deciding whether to buy. The franchisee who puts emphasis first on the financial aspects of the opportunity ultimately will not be a happy franchise owner because they are not putting enough importance on the entire business by asking themselves how it gels with their personal and professional goals, how hard they want to work to promote the business, and if they have the skills and disposition to own and operate the enterprise while also looking to the future. For the franchisee who wants the most return for the least commitment and may think they have stumbled across a get-rich-quick scheme, once the blush of young love wears off—-even if the earnings claims information is accurate—so will the interest, commitment and all likelihood of success. Earnings claims are not a guarantee, they are an indicator. When a franchisor is shoved into the earnings claims corner, he should ask himself: what does this say about the investor? Earnings claims are only one small part of the decision-making process and a solid investor will first investigate the prospect by thoroughly researching the company, spending time at the business, asking present and former franchisees questions and having their concerns addressed so they feel confident that they are comfortable with the business model, the value of the franchise and how it fits with their objectives and abilities. Only then is a prospect in a position to understand the numbers and able to decide for themselves if the purchase is a sound investment for them.

It is illegal and impossible for anyone during the buying process to tell a prospective buyer that they will earn as much as the company’s leading franchisee. Brokers or franchisors who try and use the earnings claims angle to induce the buyer into signing are relying on this false crutch because they do not have the franchise knowledge and expertise to methodically build the value of the franchise brand and systems, and earnings claims always seems like a simple answer for improving what is actually a flawed sales process that focuses only on the numbers—not whether the franchisee will be good at running the business.

If You Must Talk Money

Until all contingencies of the contract are complete, it is illegal to talk about earnings claims that are not provided in writing in item 19. When earnings claims are introduced it is imperative that they contain only estimates or historical figures detailing the level of sales, expenses and/or income a prospective franchisee might realize as the owner, and that the franchisor has a “reasonable basis” for the earnings claim at the time the statement is prepared. When used as they were originally intended—to help franchisees set proper expectations for budgeting—earnings claims can be a valuable tool for both the franchisor and the buyer. But, they should never be the lead engine of the sales process. At best, they are one component that should be weighted, positioned and timed so that they are presented in the proper context and as part of a refined sales process that intuitively leads the buyer to make a decision based on critical thinking and closely evaluated goals and objectives. It is important to remember that the oneness for presenting earnings claims accurately and responsibly falls on the shoulders of the franchisor who should rely on legal and accounting experts to put together truthful earnings claims and sign-off forms that cannot be challenged later, thereby unraveling the claim. Even then, a written earnings claim does not lessen liability and is not full proof: there are countless examples of franchisees who later said the written claim was not consistent with what they were told verbally by sales people.

Besides earnings claims, there are also many other options for getting information regarding earnings. The UFOC/FDD explains fees and fee structures in sections 5-6. For information that will help the franchisee project how well their investment will do in their community, item 7 provides specifics on now much needs to be invested to become a franchisee and the investment chart includes information on types of locations, staff size, equipment and inventory. Item 19—the actual earnings claims section—provides a formal, written historical earnings claim, should the franchisor choose to provide this information.  Directly after that, item 20 lists current and former franchisees and their contact information—a priceless research tool for getting factual information about how their unit has performed, based on their customer base and where they are located and what products and services sold the best. Item 21 often includes financial statements regarding unit performance, which when combined with the data from item 20, is indicative of what a franchisee can expect from their investment.

Staying completely away from presenting earnings claims is the safest and most effective way to sell franchise business units. Instead, franchisors should focus on refining their sales team’s skills so that every prospect is given enough information to feel comfortable with their decision and confident that their skill set and professional goals line up with the particular industry and business they are interested in buying. At the same time, replacing the need for earnings claims by building the value of the franchise systems that come with the package, is the best way to help the prospective buyer clearly see for themselves the value of the investment—marketing expertise, management support, accounting systems, information technology resources, buying power and a proven business model are just a few of the benefits of franchising and why they will have an excellent chance of succeeding. This will result in steadfast agreements that result in content franchise owners who will add to the profitability of the brand.

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In this blog post we look at how to develop your criteria when considering a transition into business ownership and franchising. As well as providing some resources for starting your research online.

Tired of sitting on your hands worrying about this economy – so are lots of Americans!  As the New Year begins, many people stop to reflect, evaluating many of their life choices, with the top of their list often being career choices.  When surveyed most individuals are not satisfied with their current work environments – the reasons often vary – lower than expected income, lack of upward mobility, absence of challenge, poor leadership  – but the conclusion is many times the same – staying another year at the dead end job just can’t happen!

With the stench of bad work experience waffling in the air, many turn to the dream of business ownership and the opportunity to cure all the ills they experienced firsthand at their previous workplace; but independent businesses can be a risky proposition.  A franchise might just be the perfect compromise – business ownership with less risk.  A franchise provides entrepreneurs an outlet to own a business while dramatically reducing the trial and error associated with most fledgling opportunities.  So franchising it is…now how to sort through the hundreds if not thousands of different brands.  A good first step is to create criteria based on your personal needs, below are a few to begin with:

• Interests – it’s best to own a business you have a true passion for – with passion comes profits!
• Hours of operations – are you willing to work nights and/or weekends?
• Service based or retail – decide whether you want to be out and about or manage a brick and mortar location.
• Personnel – are you ok with managing larger amounts of employees or do you want just a few?
• Industry – even the best business can be plagued by an industry that is a fad or doesn’t have staying power.
• Total investment – it is important the business fits within your budget.
• ROI – create a conservative plan for both your short and long-term income needs, making sure it meets your lifestyle criteria; understanding results will vary based on your work ethic, commitment and location.

With criteria in place there are some businesses that help coordinate the franchise discovery process such as websites providing brief overviews of franchise opportunities able to be sorted by investment level, industry and geography.

www.franchisegator.com
www.franchising.com
www.franchiseopportunites.com
www.franchisedirect.com

In addition, there are franchise tradeshows that bring the opportunities to you, allowing you to meet franchisors, ask questions and review their offerings all in one convention center in your local area.  You can find a list of some tradeshows at www.mfvexpo.com.

So, if you’ve had enough and want to strike out on your own – create your criteria list, do your research, narrow your selections — tell that boss – “see ya!” and buy yourself a franchise.

By: JT Winters

While there are a lot of items possible franchise buyers should consider when purchasing a franchise, we will examine the top 3.

During my travels, when giving seminars or speaking at conferences, people often ask me questions about different franchises and franchising in general. In my nearly thirty years in franchising as an independent business owner, a franchisee and franchisor, some of the most often asked questions from people looking at buying a franchise business include What is the best franchise to buy? What is the hottest industry? Where can I get the best “deal”?, and those who feel they have a concept which will be the next McDonald’s ask; How do I start a franchise?

Let me take a few minutes and offer some insight, ideas, suggestions and maybe even a bit of good advice for those looking to be part of the dream of owning their own business.

There are three things people looking to get into business need to consider.

First, do you really have the desire, passion and resources of time, talent and money required?

Everyone experiences an event which motivates them to begin looking for a business. It could be a loss of a job, desire to change career paths or unfulfilled goals. It could be you have built a degree of wealth and financial security. Maybe you received a buyout offer or a golden parachute which prompts you to think this is the time to go on your own.

It is important that the event which occurs motivates you in the right direction. If you have lost a job and think you can look for a business and a job at the same time ask yourself if you really have the passion and desire to go into business, or are you being motivated by fear. If you want to change careers or have more control of the quality and quantity of your lifestyle, ask yourself if you have the passion, time, and financial resources required to take the steps back necessary to build a better and more successful future for yourself and others in your life. If you have achieved a certain degree of wealth, have received a buy-out offer or golden parachute, ask yourself if you really have the passion and desire to go on your own, or should you stay employed and continue building your wealth through other methods such as stocks or real estate.

Second, do you truly believe franchising is the best way for you to go into business?

This is a very important question. To decide franchising is the way for you to go, involves realizing several things. Most importantly the ability to give up a certain amount of independence and freedom. In addition you must be willing to follow systems and practices which make franchising successful, and be able to do this for the ten, fifteen, twenty or more years the franchise agreements is in effect. For people who have a very difficult time following directions or are always trying to change things or feel they know a better way, franchising is most likely not a good choice. Going on your own, even though the risks can be much higher, may be a better alternative. Franchisors are looking for good people who have a desire to be in business for themselves yet not by themselves. Franchisors look for people who after doing their homework and due diligence are willing to join the franchise, follow the system and become part of the synergy which creates successful franchise owners and franchise companies. They do not want nor need people so independent in their thoughts and actions. They constantly try to change the model, methods and practices which are part of the core values and business strategies of the franchise.

Third, if you have the desire, passion and resources required and you believe franchising is the best way to go into a business, you must take the time required to find the best franchise system for you. You must then channel your passion, focus your belief in franchising and use your resources wisely to achieve the level of personal and financial success you desire.

Having addressed those 3 items, the next question is how do I find the “best” franchise?

With an estimated 1500+ different franchise offerings available, there is no simple or “easy button” answer to this question. There are, however, some guidelines to help the process go a bit smoother. First determine what you absolutely do not want to do. If dealing with a large number of employees or customers is not for you than most likely restaurant, labor intensive or walk in retail franchises are not a good choice. If you are sales adverse then franchises requiring direct selling will probably not interest you.

Once you determine what does not interest you, keep an open mind to other possibilities. In the franchise systems I have worked with, as many as 90% of the franchisees had no background in those industries or had any idea they would ever become franchisees in those systems when they began their search for a franchise. They kept open minds, looked at various industries and offerings until they found the system they felt was the best match.

Next, determine your risk tolerance and look at franchises you feel you can afford. There is no point in getting excited about a franchisee way above your investment level. That being said, always check into what financing or other financial options are available that could make a particular system you like more attainable.

Think of industries you might like, choose two or three franchise companies within those industries. The easiest and often quickest way to do your initial research is on the web, using franchise opportunity portals and keyword searches.  If it is a bricks and mortar franchise visit a location and call owners if a home-based system. Talking with several owners of various lengths of time as franchisees will help you in making decisions on whether to pursue a particular franchise system.

When you narrowed you search to a franchise or two, begin your due diligence by contacting those franchisors directly, obtain their FDD, meet with them, speak with additional owners, and determine if the franchisor is a fit for you and you for them. This will give you confidence in making the decision and the path you take will bring you closer to realizing your dream and obtaining the rewards that come from being part of a successful franchise system.

Lastly, I would like to address the use of franchise brokers or as they are often called consulting networks in helping you find a franchise. Many people say they do not have the time to look at all the different opportunities out there and will sometimes look to the brokers networks for help. Although this can be an effective method, be aware that brokers will usually present you with three franchise opportunities from franchisors they have formal agreements with and are paid a commission only if you enter into a franchise agreement with one of those franchisors. I would encourage you to look at several other franchise opportunities within those industries to ensure you have the information you need to make the best- and well-informed decision possible.

Going into business for yourself is one of, if not the most important personal and financial decisions you will make in your lifetime. You should never delegate those decisions to any individual or group. The ultimate responsibility for your success or lack of it rests with you. Put in the time and effort required before you go into business, and you will have the confidence you made the right decision once in business.

By: JT Winters

I often hear the term “Holiday Cheer”. I believe it refers to the overall rosy glow of the holidays and not actual cheering such as yelling out when your team scores a goal…but maybe we should be cheering.
We have spent so much time speaking about the hard times over the past few years and we can’t seem to avoid thinking about the various speed bumps we might be staring down with the looming election reminding us through debates, talk shows, and commercials. But we do decide our own happiness and I am choosing to cheer or as we might say C H E E R!
When the downturn first hit, as with many businesses we were affected and so were our clients. But we didn’t dwell, we acknowledged the downturn but decided not to fully participate. Of course on some levels we had to participate, lowering costs and extending payment terms, watching expenses and we set aside a few of our more aggressive initiatives. What we did decide to do was utilize our manpower, go guerilla and get aggressive with writing, blogging, appearances, networking, and focusing on working only with the best franchise concepts. That way we could use our time to widen our net; meeting and interacting with the best franchise concepts, attorneys, and other franchise industry professionals to better not only our offering but our overall effectiveness. We committed to education and reviewing all our systems internally, we added key staff with specific, high-level skills sets to prepare us for the next stage of development…and guess what the results were of all this economy forced activity — we grew and so did our clients!
We look at adversity as an opportunity, and sometimes the bigger the adversity the greater the opportunity. So, this holiday season we will be CHEERING another good year and looking forward to 2024 – join us!

Franchise ownership has been lifechanging for many American families and something to give thanks for during the holidays.

As the fall holiday of Thanksgiving approaches there is good reason to give thanks for franchising. Many entrepreneurs have greatly benefitted from their relationships with their franchisors. If you review some of the large franchisors who have been in business for last the few decades you will see a trail of franchisee millionaires in their wake. Some of the older franchise systems have literally created thousands of millionaires who were lucky enough to “get in early” in their development curves; certainly we assume these lucky franchisees are giving thanks this month.

There are many statistics on the success rate of franchises and while they vary slightly depending on the source, there is plenty of concrete data clearly illustrating the high success rate of franchise systems. Franchisees have a far better success rate having joined forces with experienced franchisors compared with the average independent business that forged their entrepreneurial path on their own.

It makes common sense…if a qualified individual brings work ethic, a matching skill set, strong personnel, passion, and a financial injection into a strong franchise system with marketing strategies, detailed training, comprehensive support systems, ongoing research and development, industry experience, and solid vendor relations, wouldn’t the sum of their combined attributes be a winning combination?!

While some of the more established, older franchise systems may not have territories remaining or have prohibitive waiting lists, there are many strong franchise systems that have begun in the last five or ten years and are viable franchise brands with open territories who are currently looking for strong franchise partners.

So, if you are a franchise prospect currently looking for a franchise partner, start with something you have a true passion for and then evaluate if you have the skill set required to be successful in that type of franchise company. If the answers look promising continue with your due diligence until you find the best match and you might be sitting at Thanksgiving dinner next year giving thanks for Franchising!

By: MJ Alto