If you are wondering which franchise is right for you or you are wondering what franchise is going to give you the biggest chance of success then this guide is for you. It's a big task to identify the right franchises to speak to, especially as there are so many available and a lot of factor to consider. This guide will take you step by step through the various processes and task you need to go through on your journey to discovering the right franchise for you!
Either download the guide or read the text only version just below.
Introduction
We hope this guide will provide you with some food for thought and be a useful tool as you decide the next step you are going to take in your career!
Deciding to forge your own path and consider self-employment is a big step. Whilst the prospect may be daunting, it can be hugely rewarding too.
Taking it one step further and exploring self-employment through franchising can be a great way to build a business under a proven model and with ongoing support.
Brought to you by The Franchised, this guide is designed to help you to research the franchised community thoroughly and narrow down your search to find your ideal franchise brand to invest in. Step by step we will walk you through what to consider, what to research and how to eliminate brands that aren’t right for you.
Best of luck!
Get to know yourself Find your Niche
As you already know, you have strengths and you have weaknesses. Everyone does, but identifying exactly what these are will help you to clarify what type of a business you should invest in. It might seem obvious to say, but if you are not good with numbers, you should avoid considering any franchises within the accounting sector.
Do you know your best skills? Have you ever sat down and written a list of your top 5 best strengths? How about your weaknesses?
Leaning into your strengths and avoiding scenarios where your weaknesses can impact your operational effectiveness is a strategy that makes absolute sense. It will give you the best chance of success and ensure that you are not setting yourself up to fail by investing in the wrong business sector.
If you haven’t done so already, write them down. It will force you to think deeply and commit to what you truly believe are your strengths and weaknesses.
Identify your core values
Your core values can also help guide you away from a potentially risky move. If you don’t love what you’re doing or you find it stressful and your day to day work is fighting against your values then you are never going to find success.
To define your personal values you will need to reflect on past experiences. This can help you to know what makes you feel good and make good choices. Here’s some questions you could ask yourself:
What were you doing?
Were you with other people?
Were there any other factors that made you happy?
What makes you proud?
Did other people share your pride?
What motivates you?
What do you desire most? How has this desire been fulfilled in the past?
Again writing this down will force you to make a decision and will be a useful resource for you to refer back to when you get distracted by an exciting looking brand that deep down just isn’t right for you. It will also help you to know what is actually important in your life and therefore can help you to identify the type of work you want to do.
Set your goals
Society has a way of leading us all to believe that success is all about fancy cars, drifting around a mansion sipping champagne and generally living the “Instagram life”. The reality is that success looks very different from person to person.
Having a business that turns over £100,000 might look attractive to some, but to others it’s no where near enough. It may seem like too much to some people, because it signifies the need to work full time.
Beyond financial aspects, you should consider your lifestyle. Some opportunities will see you working long hours or weekends to achieve the financials you need or desire. Some will require long distance travel. travelling across the country to visit industrial estates is as glamorous as it sounds!
Another thought should be understand what you consider to be meaningful work. If you follow your passions and believe in what you are doing, you are more likely to stick at it long term and look forward to each day with gusto!
It’s a cliche question, but where do you want to be in 5 years time?
What revenue will you need to generate to achieve this?
What hours do you want to work?
Where do you want to work from?
Do you want to have creative freedom?
What does meaningful work look like?
Research Where to search for the right brand
Now you have a clear grasp of your capabilities, your values and your desires it’s time to start looking at what options are available to you.
A good starting point is to look at the various franchise directory websites. You can find our one under the “Brands” tab on www.thefranchised.com.
Associations like The British Franchise Association and Quality Franchise Association in the UK are also good sources of information about franchising and also include their own directories.
While on these sites you can usually find a drop down section where you can search for the various industries available. You’ll be surprised at how much variety there is available and that pretty much any business can be franchised!
From here you can contact all of the relevant brands through the various forms, but be aware that if you fill in your details you are likely to then receive a number of marketing emails promoting other brands afterwards.
Instead it may be a good idea to take a note of the brands that you are interested in and research them one by one visiting their websites directly. Also once you have identified a sector that is interesting to you, you could run a google search and perhaps find some that aren’t even on the franchise directories. A search example would be “Children’s Activity Franchise”.
Compare the brands
We won’t go into too much detail here, but this is where you will need to speak with the brands to narrow down your search from whole sectors to a handful of franchises. Here’s some important pieces of information you should strive to obtain:
Earning potential. Look at this on a year by year basis.
Will running the business be full or part time?
The potential market size
What start up and ongoing support is provided?
What reviews can you find on the business?
How well known is the brand?
What do their franchisees say?
What is the day to day role of a franchisee?
What is the success rates of their franchisees
How much are the franchisees earning
What are their plans for the brand?
What skills does the franchisor believe are required to be successful?
Are there documented systems in place?
Operating costs?
How do they make sales?
What tools do they provide including any software?
The list could go on, but the important thing to remember is that your decision to start a business under a franchised brand should not be solely based on your emotions.
They play an important role, but it needs to be in combination with hard facts. You can use the table below to compare brands effectively:
Due Dilligence Don't take a risk
"Due Diligence” is very important and there are many ways to do this, but ultimately it boils down to the following:
Check the contract. We advise you seek expert legal advice with lawyers who specialise in franchising.
Build a business plan. Ask the franchisor to provide the necessary numbers and ask them to check your plan to ensure it is realistic.
Develop an exit strategy. What happens when your license agreement is complete? What if you want to leave before then? The franchisor again can help you to identify what is and isn’t possible.
Research funding options. Most high street banks have franchising divisions that will provide up to 70% funding of the license and first year operating costs, if they trust a franchise brand.
Can you work with the franchisor. You need to get to know who you are going into business with. You don’t have to like them as a friend, but you need to be able to trust them and have faith in their abilities to support you and operate in a fair and ethical way.
If at any stage during this process, something doesn’t feel right, voice your concerns with the Franchisor. If they can’t give a satisfactory answer, walk away.
Buying a franchise license is a big commitment and still too much of a risk to invest just because you "like" the product or service.
Get expert advice Consider speaking with a franchising expert
If you want or need any support in finding the right brand for you there are a number of franchise consultants available that you could contact to provide you with support. Typically they can help you with all aspects of your research and can be a great sounding board for any decisions you need to make.
This service should be free to you, as they will usually receive a fee from the franchisors if they make an introduction that results in a franchise agreement being agreed.
The Franchised offers this service and if you are interested in finding out more, just drop us an email on info@thefranchised.com
Also, as mentioned before, you should also seek franchise focused legal advice. You usual lawyer may not now all of the intricacies of the franchising agreement and this presents another risk.
You may also be able to find the right expert for you by checking out the "Experts" section on our website www.thefranchised.com.
Summary
So there we go, hopefully this has been useful and we wish you all the best in your search.
We hope that this guide has helped you during your initial steps to find and choose the best franchise for you..
Whatever your thoughts are after reading this, don't forget that there are many places you can research the industry and the brands that you may be considering. Take your time and choose wisely.
Even if now isn't the right time for you, or you can't find the right brand, the knowledge that you have gained from this guide will hopefully help you to make good decisions in the future when an exciting opportunity does catch your eye.
Here's one final thought for you to consider...
There are many statistics flying around the internet, each with a different statistics about franchise success rates. Each one though clearly states that franchises succeed over start ups as a general rule, so it's something to bear in mind as you plan your next move.
Good luck!
This guide has been brought to you by The Franchised. If you would like to discuss anything franchising, please don't hesitate to contact us!