How to Franchise
-
If you are ready to start developing your franchise, getting in touch with a FranChampion consultant can make this journey much easier. Not only will we show you how to franchise your business, we will provide support along every step of the way, from the moment you start developing your franchise structure, to considering long-term legal concerns, further expansion in the future, and adaptability for a changing marketplace. If you are starting the franchise process, here is how to franchise your business:
Before you start developing your franchise, the very first action you should take is to determine whether or not your business has the ability to be franchised. Not every business is viable. Many businesses are, but many are not. By speaking with a FranChampion consultant, you can assess its viability to be franchised.
Again, many businesses can benefit from being franchised, while others will not. Franchising comes along with a number of benefits, including rapid expansion, widened revenue streams, greater market penetration, and more. You will want to carefully examine your business to determine whether or not franchising will benefit you specifically.
Choosing a solid date to start your franchise gives you a definite beginning point. This will be the day that you meet with a franchise consultant, start gathering your franchising materials, decide how much of the development you can handle, and what will be delegated to professionals. Developing a successful franchise will take time and capital—pick a day to start devoting time and capital towards this endeavor, and start realizing your dream.
You have probably already spent some time looking at your business as you were determining whether or not a franchise would be viable for your business. One of the criteria of a successful franchise is the ability to transfer your brand’s image, operational system, and operational style to someone who has purchased a franchise. In order to do this, you will need to analyze every component of your business, from the finances to the legal matters to marketing. Take a look at these components and start documenting their essence.
These are not just the legal documents that grant you the rights to conduct a business, these are documents that detail everything from training new employees for a franchise store to how to market that store to very specific details about the products or services that your franchises are going to offer. This set of documents is how someone who buys a franchise is going to be able to recreate your business in a new location, which should be the goal of franchising your business.
Here at FranChampion, we won’t just tell you whether or not your business can be franchised. We have a huge range of services, including franchise development and implementation. If you have never franchised before, it is important to get the support of those who know the process and how to create a successful franchise. FranChampion will help you find the right track and assist you in finding the resources that you need. We will also help you become familiar with franchising legal and regulatory requirements.
Developing this organization is determined by how you want your franchise to look. Some aspects of your organization should be:
a. How much a franchise owner will pay in fees
b. The percentage of royalties you will receive
c. How much territory each franchise will be awarded
d. Where in the world you want to franchise
e. The kind of training that you want to offer to franchisees and to their employees
f. Restrictions on where franchisees can get their products and equipment
g. Purchasing and operational costs of each individual franchise
h. How franchises will be marketed
i. The structure of your franchise – single store owners, multiple store owners or area representatives.Your decisions will dictate how the resulting organization looks, how attractive it is to prospects, and, in the end, whether or not your franchising endeavor will succeed. Discussing some or all of these components with a FranChampion consultant can help ensure that you build an organization that is attractive and structurally sound.
Many business owners make the mistake of assuming that they can simply repurpose the people that are already a part of their business when they decide to franchise. Franchising a business has a very specific set of needs, all of which should be handled by those who have experience in this area. Again, FranChampion can be a good fit, allowing you access to some of the human capital that you need, without having to hire on an entirely new team to handle the development of your franchise.
This might not be a necessary step for every business, but for those that want tangible proof for potential prospects, it is a great option. In many cases, this can be your existing business, reformatted to match the structure of your future franchises. Why bother with this step? This step will ensure that anyone considering purchasing a franchise from you has very real, physical proof that your model works. In the future, this store can also act as testing grounds for any changes or developments you want to make to your business at large.
Before you start selling any franchises, you want to make sure that the entire structure is in place. This is the documentation that you will provide to those who want to buy a franchise from you, as well a system for developing leads and selling your franchises. In short, make sure that your organization is structurally sound, it can support franchisees and it has a method for finding those franchisees. Also, make sure it has all of the proper legal paperwork, insurance, and documentation. If you are unsure, this is another area in which FranChampion can help.
Once your franchise organization is finalized, it’s time to actually start selling to potential franchisees. There are several ways to generate interest in your franchise. Even, if your brand already has a strong profile and is very recognizable, you may still need to implement marketing strategies in order to find people who want to buy a franchise. All beginning franchises will need a strong marketing plan and effective salespeople in order to find prospects and then convert those prospects into franchise owners. Advertising and marketing can be one of the biggest stumbling blocks for businesses, even those that have successfully marketed to consumers in the past. FranChampion can analyze your offer and show you where to market and what message to portray which will help you reach out to high-quality leads.
Proper training, across managers, owners, and staff will be extremely important, and will require some proactivity on your part. FranChampion will train you on how to provide world class support to your franchise system.
If you look at the websites of successful franchises, you will probably see an entire page dedicated to explaining their franchise opportunity. You may even find a banner running along the bottom of each page on the website, encouraging visitors to consider opening a franchise. The important thing to remember is that successful and happy franchisees are your greatest marketing tool. It is critical that you provide the necessary support and training for them, so that they will continue to be ambassadors and champions for your brand.
Though franchising has a number of benefits over other avenues of business expansion, developing a franchise and implementing it takes significant work. While the rewards are definitely worth the time and capital investment, a successfully franchised business requires strong and knowledgeable management. Developing a franchise structure that is right for your business necessitates a very individualized approach. These general steps can get you started, but for more detailed, effective support, enlist FranChampion’s expert franchise consulting services.