Isn’t It Time You Started Your Own Business? A Franchise Provides a Proven Business System
One of the key factors to consider when starting a business is the ‘how’; how does this business work and make money? When you invest in a franchise the franchisor provides you with a business system that has been proven to work and provides all the answers to ‘how’.
All franchises will have an established business system in place that you must follow. These systems are designed to improve overall productivity and increase sales of each franchise. Having a proven system already in place eliminates the guesswork and costly errors faced by the typical start-up. As part of the system, franchise companies will have determined the best combinations of products and services for their market.
The franchise company will have typically spent a great deal of time and money developing and perfecting this business system and it is this very system that has enabled what was once a single business to develop into a successful franchise. This perfected business system is what you are paying for when you buy a franchise. When my company is working with clients who want to turn an existing business into a new franchise this is the first question we will ask; how does this business work, what is your business system and can you describe it accurately and succinctly?
Another important piece of research conducted by the franchisor to support the system will be demographic data to determine the most lucrative locations for franchises. These are often described as territories and many franchise companies will be actively recruiting for new franchisees in unoccupied territories. This is a key benefit to franchising that will give the new franchisee yet another competitive edge.
The proven business system approach will lead us to a very important decision point on the road to determining if a franchise is the best way forward for a client. When you buy a franchise you buy a system that you will be expected to follow, if you are not the type of person that likes to follow a system, if you are a ‘go it alone do it my way’ type, then perhaps a franchise is not for you.
If you decide you can comfortably follow the business system and decide to invest in a franchise what can you expect? To get the new franchisee on the road to running a successful business the franchise company will provide a complete detailed system on how to successfully operate the business. They will also provide training, continuous company support, a peer support network and marketing support. Marketing plans for pre-opening as well as ongoing operations are also components of the overall system that is presented to new franchisees. I know of several franchise companies that will provide staff to support your grand opening and help you through your first week to get you up and running more quickly
So what is the benefit of going into business for yourself but not by yourself by investing in a franchise with a proven business system? Research demonstrates that overall franchises have an approximate success rate of over 90% as compared to small businesses started from scratch at only about a 15% success rate.