more successful than others?
Part of it comes down to choosing an established company with a proven track record and a good business reputation. It is also important that the franchise is a member of the International Franchise Association (IFA) and runs its business in accordance with the best practices laid down by the IFA and other administrations. However, once you have chosen the right company- what do you need to do to make it a success?
1. Establish Good Working Relationships
Firstly you should establish from the outset a good working relationship with your franchisor. Your franchisor will be able to assist you when you want queries answered. A franchisor will have the experience and past knowledge of working with the franchise system and franchisees, so it is vital you listen to their advice…
2. Monitor Cash Flow
The next important thing to watch out for is your business cash flow. Keep looking back at your business plan and assess your initial financial forecasts and projections made. These forecasts are an excellent indicator of your financial situation and you should keep as close to the financial statements made as possible. Careful planning and monitoring of business cash flow in the early days of the business will ensure your long term success…
3. Recognize Your Strengths & Weaknesses
It is important that your recognize your own strengths and weaknesses and to use them to your advantage. If you lack certain skills that are required to operate the business successfully, for example, accountancy, you should employ someone else to take care of aspects of the business you are not 100% confident with.
Delegating responsibility can be one of the most difficult tasks to undertake in a new start up business, but it may be a vital task to delegate if you are struggling on your own skills and experience…
4. Market Your Franchise Business
You invested in this franchise business because you are passionate about the business model, its products or services? Right? Well then you are the best person to market your business. There is no more effective way to attract customers to a business than someone’s passionate interest or belief in the product or service it provides. Utilize this passion and interest to the advantage of your franchise and make it work for you…
5. Networking
Establishing effective networks with the franchisor and existing franchisees will be crucial to your long term success. Regular phone calls, meetings, coffee lunches and annual conventions with your franchise network will not only motivate you, but these events will give you the opportunity to discuss any problems or positives you have about the franchise opportunity. Building a strong support network is an excellent way of increasing the success of a business…
These five points are some of the main characteristics that you should focus on when you are setting up and growing your franchise business. But remember the reasons why you decided to invest in a franchise in the first place as this will motivate you when times get tough.
And most importantly, HAVE FUN- you are the creator of your own destiny…
Franchise Reporter - April 25, 2008
Service Franchises Offer Comfort in Tough Economic Times
Based on an article by LIZ WIEDEMANN - 3/31/2008 A period of economic
uncertainty...may be the perfect time to consider owning a
service franchise,according to San Diego-based franchise consultant Cheri
Carroll. One factor in franchise choices is home equity — how many new franchisees financed their businesses in the past, she says. “Since
equity loans aren’t as available or as generous as they once were,
service businesses with their much lower entry costs offer a path that
many are taking to beat the economic blues,” said Carroll. “While
a franchised sandwich shop may cost $120,000 or more for the build-out
and equipment, or $300,000 for a retail shop, a service business can
cost as little as $20,000 to get started, with almost no overhead,” she
said. Some
growing service businesses are senior home care and consulting services. The Numbers - 3,000 companies, $1 Trillion to the Economy! More
than 3,000 companies are franchising nationally, and franchise
businesses account for more than 50 percent of total retail revenue,
according to the report, which was released in March. High-level
executives are saying they don’t want to go through layoffs again, so,
ready to leave the corporate world, they’re using severance packages to
start a business. Former business executives are ideal candidates for
franchising because they can apply their existing skill sets in a
white-collar environment, while investing between $80,000 and $100,000
in office-based types of franchises such as executive coaching,
financial consulting and information technology businesses, as opposed
to a storefront business that costs a minimum of twice the money. Proceed With Caution Ruben
Garcia, district director of SBA’s San Diego office, says that he
cautions potential business owners to be ready for the challenge. “Only a small percentage of business owners are franchisees,” he said. “The
tried-and-true format and trademark you’ll use as a franchisee is
certainly the benefit, but those same regulations are going to limit
the leverage, the freedom that you may have considered a benefit to
owning a business,” Garcia said. He
says that some executives coming out of corporate America like the
strategic action plan franchising offers because it mimics the business
world with which they are familiar. “It’s
not just about having the capital; it’s energy, skills, time and the
capability to put up with all the nuances of starting a business,” he
said. The No.
1 tip for budding franchisees is to know and love the product,
according to Carroll. “If you’re considering a high sales business, but
you hate sales, choose something else — no matter how much money other
people are making in that business,” Carroll said. Because
of the night-and-day effort required at the beginning of opening a
franchise, Carroll says that passion for the mundane tasks at hand is
the biggest factor in choosing the right business.
San Diego Business Journal Staff
Franchise
businesses now make up $1 trillion in U.S. direct economic output,
according to an International Franchise Association report sponsored by
the U.S. Small Business Administration.