ADVICE


The legal agreement should be drawn up by a specialist franchise lawyer, with recruitment staff understanding the correct witnessing of signatures.


Timescales When launching a franchise, some companies try to rush things and can be reluctant to go through the necessary work. It can be time consuming to write detailed operations manuals, map out territories, get a tailored franchise agreement from an experienced franchise lawyer and pilot the franchise thoroughly. But if those steps aren’t taken, the chances


of building a successful, long-term franchise are drastically reduced. Not only that, the risk of new franchisees failing is much higher than it should be.


“It is vital that franchisors have a structured process, which ensures that recruitment is carried out ethically and paperwork is properly completed”


Training Initial training is vital for new franchisees and should be tailored to the business as well as the needs of the franchisee. Some businesses are more complex than others, such as regulated sectors that bring their own complexities and requirements. There may be additional training if employing staff and leasing premises, and the franchisor may need to outsource some of the training to specialists depending on the type of support needed.


is carried out ethically and paperwork is properly completed. Franchisors need to know that the incoming franchisee is the right person and not someone who has been swayed by an enthusiastic sales person or who isn’t the right fit for the role in question. Franchisors need to train recruitment staff


thoroughly so they understand that they cannot exaggerate figures or success rates.


Monitoring and control Once a franchisee is trading, good franchisors will want to know exactly what is happening in that new business. This could involve weekly or monthly (or even daily in the case of some of the bigger food and drink brands) data capture, possibly direct from the tills or through accounting software. The best franchisors know what ‘good’


looks like for their franchisees and will benchmark their network to check that franchisees are on the right path. Doing this


ensures that, as soon as a franchisee’s figures deviate from the plan, action can be taken to get them back on track.


Support Support structures can vary widely depending on the type and size of the business, and more staff will be needed to provide that support once the number of franchisees begins to grow. Business planning can be a key way to help


new and existing franchisees to set up and grow their business. This also helps with the monitoring and benchmarking mentioned earlier; if franchisors do not know what they are expecting franchisees to achieve, they can’t provide assistance if things are not going to plan.


Communication This is where the very best franchisors excel – they communicate with their franchisees frequently through a range of methods. These could include intranet and messaging facilities, newsletters, regular emails, annual conferences, web chats, and Skype or FaceTime calls, as well as good old-fashioned face-to-face and telephone chats. Regional support is another way of


ensuring that franchisees are kept informed. Once a network has more than one or two franchisees in an area, it can be useful to organise regular meetings to share best practice, pick up new ideas, find out what the franchisor has planned, and discuss and plan new initiatives.


Look to the future Once franchisees buy into a brand and join a network, they will be busy running their business and building it up. Regulatory threats, changes in customer


behaviour, new technology, rising costs, red tape and other challenges can all cause problems for franchisees. The best franchisors prioritise keeping on top of changes to ensure that their network continues to thrive. n


Cathryn Hayes QFP


Franchise director at Revive! Auto Innovations


cathryn.hayes@revive-uk.com Franchisor News | 35


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53