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Question Your Franchise Decision Making

Written by: Tom Parsley

Article Overview: Deciding on a franchise may be one of the most important decisions you will make in your lifetime. Before rushing right into it out of sheer excitement, please take some time and ask yourself the basics.

Question Your Franchise Decision Making

Deciding on a franchise may be one of the most important decisions you will make in your lifetime. Before rushing right into it out of sheer excitement, please take some time and ask yourself the basics. This franchise opportunity may potentially be your saving grace for a better future, so stop thinking of “dollar signs” and question the smart investment you are about to make. The following is a rambling list of what to consider during the due diligence process.

Q. What are you looking for in a franchisee?
Q. What does a franchise cost?
Q. What are the royalty and marketing fees?
Q. What is included in the franchise fees?
Q. How much capital is required?
Q. Do you do any financing?
Q. What support do you offer for site selection?
Q. What operations assistance do you offer for the opening of this franchise?
Q. What on-going operations support do you offer after the opening?
Q. What kind of marketing support do I get?
Q. How will I get the franchise supplies I need?
Q. Can I acquire the rights to multiple offices?
Q. How long has this franchise been in business?
Q. What are the terms of my franchise agreement?
Q. Does my franchise agreement include a protected territory?
Q. How quickly can I get started?
Q. How long does the application process take?
Q. When can I review the Uniform Franchise Offering (UFOC)?
Q. Is experience in this industry required to become part of this franchise?
Q. Can I sell my Franchise?
Q. Can I acquire multiple units?
Q. Do you offer a training program and how long is it?
Q. Do you hire managers for me?
Q. Do you provide insurance for your franchisees?
Q. Should I buy an existing franchise instead of a new one?

Size yourself up:

Q. Do I have passion for this industry?
Q. Do I have the desire to earn what I am worth?
Q. Do I have good people skills?
Q. Do I have a flair for creativity?
Q. Am I self-motivated and disciplined?
Q. Do I want to own my own business?
Q. Do I want more flexibility and control with my career?
Q. Do I want to be my own boss?
Q. Do I want or can I work from home?
Q. Do I want or will I have enough time for my family?

Related Articles
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  Entrepreneurship and Franchising: Perfect Together
  What is the best Franchise?
  Are You Ready to Start a Franchise?
  Questions to Ask Before Buying a Franchise

Article Tags: application process, better future, creativity, dollar signs, due diligence process, flair, flexibility, franchise agreement, franchise fees, franchise opportunity, franchisee, franchisees, important decisions, own business, royalty, saving grace, sheer excitement, site selection, smart investment, uniform franchise



Related Forum Posts
Re: Essential Leadership skills - Vision Values Mission Strategic Thinking Decision Making Communication Team Bonding People Development Coaching / Mentoring / Guiding / Grooming Presentation Thanks Robert
Re: Enticing Franchises - Top 9 List - All Franchise listed above are in millions of dollars. Do you have the list of Franchise in thousands
Re: Info for would be franchisers... - [quote="Sebastien":1d29sdv1]Like Franchise Times, Franchise Update is a very practical magazine. There is no blah blah, just straight facts that anyone in the franchise community can relate to. I just want to mention that all these magazines are NOT franchisee oriented. I mean these magazines are for franchise professionals. If you're looking to buy a franchise, you won't find much information in there. To answer your question, getting published in Franchise Times was fairly easy. I don't want to brag too much but I think I am known in the franchise industry. I was the marketing guy at Franchise.com for a few years before joining my new company, the World Franchising Network. So people know me and I have a very good relationship with Nancy Weingartner, the Managing Editor at Franchise Times. I was talking with her at the last Franchise Expo South in Miami and she mentioned she'd like me to be profiled. I was like "ok, sure!". I like this franchise executive profile thing in Franchise Times as it is rarely BS. People are usually really natural in there.[/quote:1d29sdv1] Thanks for the follow up Sebastien! And I can't say that I'm surprised that networking with the right people and managing your relationships with them properly are the keys to being published. I guess the old adage holds true of "it's not who you know, but who knows you" that's important.
how much for a franchise fee? - Dear Colleague There is no easy answer to this question. Things to consider: [list=] The sizeof the Franchise Clent base Expected Turnover Intellectual Property costs (recoup) Number of Franchises Number of employees Original Set up costs Franchise admin costs An example: A franchise that I was involved in setting was to a simple "lawn mowing/home repair" franchise. The Franchise included national/local advertising - preparation of client lists - general admin - central accounting etc The Franchise involved 300-500 clients - and an annual turnover of about $300,000 . The annual franchise fee was $30,000. Hope that this gives you some idea Take care Ian[/list]
Re: Franchise Surveys - Another good tool to researching a franchise is to speak with their existing franchisees. This contact information is included in most Franchise Disclosure Documents. In order to get a Franchise Disclosure Document or FDD as it is often referred to, you will have to complete a basic franchise application. The franchisor will then usually provide you with the FDD at that time. Included in that book of information is a list of the existing franchisees, the contract, the investment information etc... This information is required by Federal Law to be disclosed to your prior to making a purchase. So be sure to do your research and start with the Franchise Documents to get the initial information.


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