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Kiosks Offer Advantages in Owning a Franchise

Written by: Michael Hemenway

Article Overview: Kiosk franchises can offer a great low-cost way to launch a business and in fact, many owners will leap in with multiple locations. With a low start-up cost and low overhead, kiosks have terrific margins. Add in that the location practically forces a customer to interact and you have a winning business combination.

Kiosks Offer Advantages in Owning a Franchise

It makes sense, really: the economy is helping many entrepreneurs to make the leap from corporate life into owning their own business. However, the ongoing credit crunch and uncertainty over the economy is driving them to look more intently at low-cost franchises.

Not all low-cost franchises are created equally, though. Many still require time, effort and energy to build the business and name recognition. But what if 550 potential customers walked past your business every single hour? How many of those could you convert to a sale?

That's the power of mall kiosks, which deliver foot traffic practically at your door step. According to the researchers Envirosell, some 20 percent of those walking by a kiosk notice it - that's 110 people an hour.

An added benefit is that, unlike a traditional mall store, the potential customer doesn't have to make a choice to enter. Kiosks are often located right in the traffic path, meaning a customer passes by. It's up to the kiosk owner to entice them to stop, but the right smell or site can often do the trick.

A mall kiosk - turn key - can be had for as little as $45,000 for a single unit. The kiosk's low cost can also offer an opportunity to purchase multiple locations in large malls, doubling the potential customer base and capturing variances in traffic flow. A kiosk's small size also typically means that fewer employees are needed to manage it, keeping the operating costs low as well.

Kiosks also offer an excellent opportunity for area developers, who commit to opening a larger number of franchises within a set period of time. Some franchisors require the area developer to open and operate at least one unit himself or herself.

There are a number of intriguing kiosks franchises out there, and even more on the horizon. See how a kiosk can offer a great way to own your own business.

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Article Tags: added benefit, credit crunch, customer base, customer doesn, foot traffic, franchisors, horizon, leap, low cost franchises, mall kiosk, mall kiosks, malls, own business, period of time, single unit, time effort, traffic flow, turn key, uncertainty, variances



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