When shopping for a new business, lots of first-timers choose a franchise for its many benefits, from a well-tested brand name and marketing program, as well as lots of back room support and training to help new business owners succeed.

But you have to do your due diligence to make sure you select the company that best matches your goals. When it comes to preparation, there are no short cuts. You have to read the fine print before signing any contracts.

The good news is that Federal Trade Commission requires franchise companies to disclose a great deal of information to help prospective franchisees learn everything they need to know to make a good choice.

You want to get a copy of the Franchise Disclosure Document for each franchise you’re seriously considering. Franchisors are required by law to provide you a copy at least 14 days before you’re asked to sign a contract or pay any money. You can ask for the document in any format convenient for you.

A franchise coach can help you through the nitty gritty of this process. As you begin your preliminary research, here’s what you should look for:

Franchisor’s Background

You want to know how long the franchisor has been in business. What’s the competition like? Pay close attention to the general business backgrounds of the company executives and how long they’ve been with the company.

Litigation history

Has the franchisor been involved in any litigation with their franchisees? Have any of its executives been convicted of fraud or other violations of franchise law? Have franchisees filed claims against the franchisor? You will also want to watch for any prior bankruptcies among the executives’ histories. These would all be red flags to further investigate.

Initial and Ongoing Costs

This is critical information since you never want to find yourself short on funds for matters that were clearly part of the cost of operating your business. Costs will include continuing royalty payments, advertising, business promotions, operating licenses, supply costs, cost to purchase discretionary equipment, cost of compliance with local municipal ordinances, and insurance, among others.

Only by estimating your costs can you realistically compare franchise operations to see if you might be able to earn more profit with another company.

Restrictions

Franchisors may restrict from whom you may order supplies, what you may offer for sale and where you can sell. Each franchisor will have different ways of determining a territory, which is meant to protect current franchisees but may not be satisfactory to you. For example, Dunkin’ Donuts has territorial restrictions limiting some franchisees from also offering 31 Flavors ice cream.

Training

While franchisors offer training, you need to know who is eligible for training and who pays. Are new employees eligible? Are support staff available for ongoing support? Again, make sure you know all the costs.

Advertising

Franchises often are asked to contribute a portion of their earnings for advertising. Get the details on what the franchisor requires. What percentage of the advertising budget is spent in your area? Will local advertising amount to extra out-of-pocket costs?

Current and Former Franchises

Plan on talking to as many current franchisees as possible. Ask them what you will need to do to succeed. Also talk to former franchisees to learn what went wrong for them. Make sure you also ask financial questions, such as their total investment, including unexpected costs and how long it took them to cover their initial investment and earn a reasonable income. What are their earnings? Franchisees’ income might vary quite a bit, depending on geographic area and other factors.

Financial History

You want to make sure the franchise company is financially stable since you certainly don’t want the company to go out of business just after you invested your money. You also want to ensure the franchisor has sufficient money to supporting its franchise system.

With a thorough due diligence, you can feel confident your new business will succeed for the long term.

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true?

Get your free evaluation today!

Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a franchise coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484) 278-4589.

© Dan Citrenbaum 2023

Franchisees are by far your best resource about a franchise. I would go so far as to say you should not consider buying a franchise without talking to at least a few of the franchisees first. I know I wouldn’t. You need to get a real sense of how the franchise’s promises pan out in the field. And franchisees are uniquely placed to give you the best answer to that question. Over the years as a franchise coach I have encountered various levels of commitment to the research I recommend. You need to cast as wide a net as possible to get a true representation of the folks operating this business. Franchisees are a diverse bunch, and you may find you don’t have a lot in common with the most successful of the franchisees in a system. This in and of itself is an important discovery. Maybe this franchise is not the right match for you. And if you can’t get many franchisees to talk to you, that’s another red flag. As they have once been in your shoes, franchisees generally are willing to share their experiences with you. Of course, they tend to be a busy group, so you may have to try a few times to get an appointment for a conversation that best suits their schedule. Here is what you want to learn from a franchisee:

9 Critical Questions To Ask Franchisees

1. Are you satisfied with the support you have received from the franchisor?

Franchisors offer various levels of ongoing support, which is particularly important for new owners to get the hang of the franchisor’s system. Has this been sufficient?

2. What type of training did you receive prior to opening?

Find out what the franchisor did to prepare the new franchisee for his or her new business. This would include training on equipment, technology, hiring, employee relations, and so on.

3. What was your background?

Was this a business in which the new owner had any experience? Get a feel for what it takes to run this business.

4. Why did you choose this franchise?

Did the franchisee go through an elaborate search process first? Or did they know someone who recommended it? You will learn how much research the franchisee did ahead of time so you can correlate this with how it’s worked out.

5. What do you like best about the franchise? Least?

Answers to these questions will give you a feel for some of what an owner does day to day. And how it’s working out.

6. How long have you been in business?

The longer the person has been in business, the more accurate read you can get on the learning curve of the franchisee. As a new business gets up and running, new owners generally take awhile before they get the hang of everything.

7. Have your earnings been what you expected?

Some franchisees may be reluctant to get into specifics on this point, but you should use sensitivity and try. Is there six figure potential with this business?

8. How long did it take you to reach break-even?

This is one of the most important pieces of information because you need to know how much money you need to set aside to pay your bills until your business starts to generate profits.

9. Knowing what you now know, would you buy this franchise again?

If the answer is no, it doesn’t mean you want to walk away. It depends what a representative sampling of other franchisees say. Not all franchisees are created equal. Some may not have been up to the task.

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true? Get your free evaluation today! Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a business coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484) 278-4589.

When looking to buy a new business, one of the most important steps is doing a thorough due diligence. The big question for many: How do you know you’ve done enough? One thing’s almost certain, if you think you’re done, you’ve probably only just begun. As a franchise coach, we always give our clients a great deal of assistance in this area, suggesting what to read, who to talk to and questions to ask. Ease of research and availability of information is precisely why we often steer folks to a franchise. With a franchise, you can get all the information you need in the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD), which federal law requires all franchise companies make available to prospective new franchisees. With a little digging, you can learn if you’ve got what it takes — from the money, experience and skills — to succeed with this particular purchase. By far the most important part of the process is talking to franchisees to learn how the system works. You can find their contact information in the FDD. You want to find out: Are they making any money? Would they make the purchase again, knowing what they know now? This critical step separates the truly serious would-be entrepreneurs from those only dabbling — because if you can place calls to strangers to learn the ins and outs of a business, you pass the first hurdle toward succeeding with your own business. Using myself as an example, when I was researching the franchise I eventually bought, I called every one of the 42 franchisees then part of the system. Of course, not all of them called me right back — but that’s because they’re a busy bunch.

Patience And Perseverance

When reaching out to franchise owners you don’t know, a little patience goes a long way. Since you want as many perspectives on the business as you can get, it’s certainly worth your while to try a couple of times to connect. Don’t take it personally if a business owner fails to call you back in a timely manner. The call likely slipped to the bottom of their to-do list. But even the most successful, intimidating franchisees once stood in your shoes, and many will happily set an appointment to speak to you about their experiences, either on the phone or in person. The franchise business that I spent months researching, eventually interviewing 20 franchisees, now provides the lion’s share of my income. And it got there faster than I had projected. Putting the time and energy in upfront is like money in the bank. Its value accrues with time as you gain greater knowledge and intelligence to help your business thrive for the long term. 

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true? Get your free evaluation today! Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a business coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484) 278-4589.

Once you’ve decided you want to start a business of your own with a franchise, the question becomes: How do I choose the best franchise for me? Related: Everything You Need To Know To Succeed In Business Your investigation of the wide world of franchising, in which a variety of businesses offer various levels of brand identity, support, and training, is the most important part of your purchase. Only with real knowledge can you get beyond the superficial and learn about enterprises that offer the best opportunities to suit your own particular set of skills and interests. The fact is not all franchises are created equal, and some have far better training and support services that can make the difference between success and failure. To ensure you make the most educated selection, your evaluation of the quality of the franchises that most interest you is paramount. (See Part I on Making the Right Choice)

5 Steps To Selecting A Quality Franchise

1. Consult a franchise coach.

You can benefit from the expertise of these professionals who have vetted thousands of franchises, eliminating those that are not first-tier, so they can recommend franchises with the greatest chances for success. While you should conduct your own research as well, you should use every resource available to you, and a good franchise coach can save you a lot of time and headaches later on. Best of all, this resource is free.

2. Conduct a review of franchise types.

You will find a list of the 75 industries represented in the huge world of franchising at the International Franchise Association website at www.franchise.org. Keep your mind open as you review various franchise types that include tutoring centers, an array of B2B services, fitness centers, storage facilities, as well as the most well-known restaurants and more. You will find opportunities that allow you to work largely on your own, part time or build a multi-franchise operation.

3. Read the Franchise Disclosure Document.

All franchises are required by federal law to disclose certain aspects of their businesses. These documents, written in everyday English, can be obtained from the franchises that most interest you. You should zero in on some key nuggets:

• The business history — How long has the franchise been in operation?
• Litigation history — A record of lawsuits would be a red flag.
• Any earnings claims? — though this is an optional item
• Financial statements of the franchisor – Are they solvent?
• A full accounting of your costs, including outlays necessary to set up the business
• A list of franchisees.

4. Interview franchisees.

Once you have the list from the FDD, you should start calling franchisees. You can learn from no better source how good the franchisor’s system works. Is their support and training excellent, merely sufficient or inadequate. Would they purchase the franchise again? You should also make a point to talk to franchisees who have not been successful. Find out what went wrong. Remember, sometimes people choose franchises that don’t suit their expertise, interests or personality, and this can cause failure as much as problems stemming from the franchisor.

5. Talk to and meet representatives from the franchisor.

As part of your preparation, you will talk to representatives from the franchise. If you’ve moved farther along the process, franchisors will provide written materials to help educate you about their system, as well as one-on-one meetings with executives, either on the phone or in person. This process culminates in Franchise Discovery Day, where you visit a franchise, meet the support staff and make your final decision on whether this franchise is for you. All along the way, you will have ample opportunity to reassess and decide that this franchise isn’t for you, either because you don’t connect to the business or its executives. This in-depth process ideally will lead you to the business of your dreams. But before you sign on any dotted line, you should also consult a franchise attorney and accountant. While a franchise offers many great benefits, you have to make the right match to make it work for you. 

About the author

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true? Get your free evaluation today! Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a business coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484) 278-4589.  

You’ve made the decision to buy a franchise. The key question then becomes which one of the 3,000 franchises in the marketplace is right for you. The choice will make all the difference on whether your new business limps along or flourishes. You can maximize your chance for success by using two critical criteria.

• Determine whether the role of the owner in the business suits your particular strengths and
• Assess the quality of the franchise.

The beginning of your process will consist of exploring franchise types (there are more than you think), assessing your own strengths, and developing a list of possible options to investigate further. One of the key things you need to find out is what exactly are the owner’s job responsibilities for each franchise.

The Role Of The Franchise Owner

What the owner does may be drastically different from what you may think. For example, maybe you’ve been thinking how you might like to open a little bakery or a little cafe because you love to bake and would love to have all your friends drop by for socializing and tea. But once you look more closely at what the owner of such a franchise does, you’ll find the owner is mainly responsible for managing employees and marketing, focusing on building a customer base to grow revenue. Generally, the number one goal of the owner is to build the business, which allows you to earn a good income, have happy, productive employees and an ever-expanding customer base. On the flip side, you may find yourself veering away from types of businesses that at first sound unappealing, such as cleaning services — since you don’t want to spend your days scrubbing and polishing — but the owners of firms like this should not be doing the cleaning work. Your job is to hire good, reliable employees and create a solid customer base for repeat business. Franchise companies will tell you upfront what the role of the owner is in the franchise. And you can further assess this by interviewing franchisees, both successful and unsuccessful ones, to learn about what their day-to-day responsibilities are. Bottom line: Don’t make your choice based on preconceived notions about the business.

Match the role of the owner with your skills and experience.

So now that you know the owner’s job profile, the question becomes, does this suit you? You want to create a realistic appraisal of your skills and experience so you get into a business where you can enjoy your work and apply your talent and skills for long-term success. Do a quick inventory of your skills and take into account your interests, since when you make a choice to build a business of your own, you want to like going to work! Are you proficient in and do you like:

• Selling, which always includes selling yourself, as well as your products or services?
• Managing people? Do you think you could learn how to do it?
• Working with people or do you prefer working on your own?
• Marketing, which might include advertising as well as making presentations?
• Getting into the details or do you prefer to delegate?
• Networking — creating links with people who can help you grow your business?

Once you get a handle on what types of activities you excel in and enjoy, you will have the information you need to make a good match with a franchise. Your research will tell you which franchises require which areas of expertise from the owner. Remember one of the attributes of a good franchise is its training and ongoing support. So even if you’re not sure you know how to do something, if you have a feeling you could learn — and you might want to ask friends for their views — you might still go ahead. And, of course, you won’t be buying a franchise that you haven’t fully vetted for quality. Stay tuned for Part II on making the right choice.

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true? Get your free evaluation today! Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a business coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484) 278-5489.

When you’re sitting at your desk dreaming of starting your own business, the barriers may seem as daunting as a track of high hurdles. The good news is there’s an efficient way to help you raise your odds for success: a franchise system.

With a great franchise, you gain the collective experiences of many successful business owners who over the years have helped the franchisor perfect a system, the proven procedures that provide a roadmap to long-term success.

The beauty of the system is it’s all of a piece. You follow the franchisor’s guidelines for everything from how to set up your shop, to how to train employees to how much money you should have on hand to get you through the initial startup phase. As you struggle to learn the system, a good franchise will offer lots of training and ongoing support to get you across the finish line.

While, as with everything in life, there are no guarantees, if you do your research and select a franchise that matches your skills and interest, you have a far greater chance of success than with almost any other type of new business.

Much expertise has gone into developing this system, part of the strategic positioning of the brand, but it does no good if the franchisee decides to veer away from it. So while a franchise system is one of the best ways to lower the risk for starting a business, the one rule of thumb is you must be willing and eager to follow the system. Or don’t buy a franchise.

The Beauty of a Franchise System

Upfront training

This can mean more than 50 hours in classroom learning plus more instruction on the job for you and your employees.

Ongoing support

An answer to a question is a mere phone call away. A quality franchise company will have experts to support all of your most crucial needs, whether those are staffing and training, or advertising, or sourcing inventory.

Guidelines for setting up an office/store

The franchisor will have exact specifications for the type of furniture, fixtures and supplies to purchase — as well as the number of employees you will need.

Advertising/Marketing Program

Some franchisors have national ad campaigns for which you will have to contribute, and others will help you run a local marketing program. Either way, you can be sure the franchisor will have established, proven advertising programs for you to use.

Support on leasing

Many franchisors will help you not only choose a location but also negotiate a lease. The franchisor will know what demographics make a superior location. They will share that info with you because they want your business to be in a great location.,

If you think of the system as a set of wings that will enable to you to fly, rather than a set of constraints, you will be on your way to success. But if you’re the type of person who likes to make it up as you go along, you may want to consider an independent business instead. Only then, you’ll have to develop a system of your own.

Ready to make your dream of becoming an entrepreneur come true?

Get your free evaluation today!

Contact Dan Citrenbaum to help you create the career you’ve always wanted. As a franchise coach, Dan brings years of experience helping people select and buy a franchise or existing business. You can reach Dan at [email protected] or at (484)278-4589.

© Dan Citrenbaum 2023