What Information Franchisees Want About Me and Why?
When you request more information on a franchise, or meet with a franchise consultant they will generally all want a great deal of information about you. Half of it can seem like a job application and the other half more like a bank loan, but try not to let it worry you as it's something we all have to do and for the most part, you will be dealing with professionals who respect your privacy.
Why does a franchise need all this information about me?
Easy. Not all franchises are for all people. In fact, owning a franchise period is not for everyone. All franchises are different and require different types of people to run them. Different personalities, skill sets, experience, goals and of course financial positions. Finding the right owners and operators is just as critical to a franchisor as choosing the right franchise is to you. Both parties are facing significant risks with each new franchise.
"But I'm the only one investing any money so I'm the only one taking a risk" - Not true!
While franchises do incur significant costs with each new franchise developed it is true that you the investor is the one that actually lays out most of the cash for your franchise but the success or failure of your franchise will have an impact on every other sister franchise across the country. With each transaction you are not only representing yourself and your franchise, but the entire brand and all it's franchises. If you receive bad service from a business that happens to be a franchise you generally assume that all of those franchises give the same level of service.
To this day there is a certain fast food restaurant that I won't set foot in based on 1 single experience from 1 meal in 1 single franchise. Because 1 of thousands of franchises failed to maintain a certain standard it has damaged the reputation of everyone of it's locations. Now that's a pretty strong example, but it demonstrates the point.
In addition to a customer's point of view, your success or failure with a given franchise will impact the overall perception of that franchise as a business opportunity. A franchise with many success stories sounds like a better investment than one with many stories of failure. It's important that franchises find people who resemble the types of people behind their successes.
So - when you start your franchise information research and quickly learn that most want as much information about you as you do they - don't be surprised and don't take it offensively. They just want to make sure they have the right fit and that you are someone who could potentially succeed with their particular unique system. When you do finally find your perfect franchise opportunity you will be grateful that they use the same scrutiny in developing future franchises to protect what is now, partly your brand.
What Information Franchises Want About Me and Why - To learn more about this author, visit Ken Hollowell's Website.
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