Franchise Focus Business News…

This week’s guest blog post is  by Andrew Cutler, Sales & Franchise Director, Card Connection.

Getting your new franchise business – in financial terms - from ‘in the red’ to “in the ‘black’ as quickly as possible must be the aim of every new franchisee.

If you are moving from a regular monthly salary to self employed status through owning a franchise, then getting your new business venture into profit as rapidly as possible is essential for a successful long term outlook.  The challenge is that when you start out there will be an inevitable leaning curve while you get up and running.  So how can you best prepare?

Buying a re-sale franchise is the best way to ensure you will earn money from day one as you will be inheriting customers from the outset which is a great starting point.  Selecting a well known brand with a good reputation will also mean that a large degree of the time consuming marketing effort will have already been done for you, so you can focus on selling to those existing and loyal customers.

Find out if your prospective franchisor has a national account network which will provide you with leads. This can be a great help at the start.  Card Connection’s national account network, which includes retailers such as Costcutter, Londis, Netto, Budgens, Spar and Haldanes for example, offers an opportunity for our franchisees to begin selling to these retailers immediately.

It is also important to choose a franchise with products or services that are popular and almost ‘sell themselves’.  Quality products will always be valued and in demand, so are important for gaining new business and repeat custom.  Question if you would buy the product you are looking at selling on a regular basis?  Card Connection, for example, has more than 1,200 quality greeting card designs distributed in over 16,000 retail outlets across the UK and Ireland, which ensure customers keep coming back for more.

Early focus on building customer relationships is important.  You will be the new person and so you need to create trust and show your client base you are reliable and offer a service which is as good (or better!) than the last franchisee.  Make sure that there is support from the franchisor during the handover process.  Work closely with the outgoing franchisee to meet customers and ensure accounts are all aware of the impending change of ownership, and how well you plan to look after them.  This will make for as smooth a handover as possible.

As well as getting up to speed with existing accounts you will need to devote a proportion of your time to generating new business.  When you start off this will be challenging as you will be less familiar with the product or service than an experienced franchisee.  However, the good news is that you will come to the franchise with a ‘fresh set of eyes’ and so may spot opportunities that have been overlooked in the past.  Use your enthusiasm to your advantage to generate interest in your offering!  Remember, people buy from people.

Finally look to your franchisor for support in the early days.  Take advantage of training and talk to other franchisees to see how they overcome every day challenges.  One of the main advantages of franchising compared with setting up in business alone is that you have the backup of a successful and experienced team behind you so be sure to call on them for help when you need it.

Franchising is an ever increasingly popular way to enjoy the flexibility of self employment.  However, to ensure your franchise starts to be profitable as early as possible, you need to prepare.  Choose a good and reputable re-sale franchise and take advantage of the support that is offered to you.  Be quick to build relationships with existing customers and let your enthusiasm help create new business opportunities in the marketplace, and this will help you move from the red into the black as quickly as possible.

For further information about Card Connection re-sale franchises, visit Card Connection’s franchise profile on Franchise Direct.

If you’re looking to start your own business, there are a lot of factors to be considered. One of them is your local market and if you are living in a rural area or a small town, this can rule out a significant number of businesses such as large scale restaurants which simply will not attract the large customer base it will need to survive. However, with the development of internet services and the manner in which society has changed to embrace the internet as not only an information source, but also as a method of communication and interaction with one another, the ability to work from home online is increasingly easy to achieve.

According to HomeWorking.com, working at home is becoming more popular with an estimated 1.7 million people in the UK working from home at least 1 whole day per week for their employer. Freelance workers working at home represent about 9% of the working population in the UK. Whilst figures for the self-employed at home are difficult to determine, it has been suggested that as many as one in 6 of the working population are working from home running their businesses or enterprises. This all means that starting your own business from home is now a very popular option.

The internet has expanded so much that many businesses are now operating entirely online. So while there are many businesses depending on online traffic to sell their products to, there are also online services helping these online businesses attract the right traffic and also provide the appropriate online experience to their customers. In this regard, home based marketing has really taken off as those running their marketing businesses from home have the unique opportunity to provide a top service to businesses literally anywhere in the world if those businesses are based online. While skills in search engine optimisation and online marketing are important as well as a great internet connection, starting your internet business from home is not too difficult and can be extremely low on overhead costs. With a franchise, you can benefit even more, as the franchise can provide you with all the training and knowledge you will need to provide a top service, as well as ongoing support as your develop and grow your own business from the comfort of your own home.

Let’s take a look at what’s important in starting up your own business from home:

Children

Starting your own business from home is often recommended to women – which us women always think is a bit sexist as nowadays it can apply to both men and women. For women or men who have had children and taken a few years out of the workplace to rear their children, and now are exploring other avenues of working without going back to a full time workplace situation; starting your own business from home can offer you the flexibility and freedom to work how and when you please and to what degree you really want to immerse yourself in working life. However, there are things to consider about being a mum or dad working from home.

Will your children, if they are not of school going age, be ready to give you time alone while you work? One of the biggest complaints from working mums is that they tend to get easily distracted from their children while they are still in the home, and often the devil finds works for idle hands and that report you just printed off could end up as a perfect doodle canvas! Make sure that both you and your children are ready for a situation where you are present but not always available to them and that they understand when “Mummy or Daddy is working” and cannot be disturbed … unless absolutely necessary.  It can be a huge mistake to think that you can mind your children and run a business both full time, therefore you should be prepared to have your children attend a crèche or playschool for a few hours a week to give you the chance to run some work errands and attend meetings with local clients if necessary.

Internet connection and PC

For most businesses operated from home, you will need your own PC or laptop. Some franchises include this in the franchise fee and the machine will come with all the necessary programs and applications installed. However, some franchises don’t, so you will need to work out what kind of PC you will need, if any at all, as well as what programs and applications you will need for the operation of your business, for example, for the administration of the business you might need an accounts package such as Sage or Big Red Book. In addition to this, if you are thinking of starting your own web design business, some designers won’t use any computer other than a Mac.

Hardware and software aside, you will also need to think about your internet connection. Running your own business from home while living in the countryside can be idyllic however; this dream can be smashed easily if you can’t secure a quality broadband connection. Working from home, a lot of your communication with clients will most likely be through email and phone calls, so a good broadband connection and a good telephone line. You should ensure that you will be able to secure and support both of these if you want to be able to run your own business efficiently from home.

Dedicated area in your house

You will need to be able to find a dedicated area within your own home that is your dedicated workspace. Preferably this would be another room where you can have your own office; however it can also be a work desk in a quieter area of your home. Most people find that having all their work materials organised in the same way can maximise their work performance as they can easily access everything they need and also, the same surrounding every day is less likely to distract you than if your workspace is in a different location every day. It can also help you achieve a proper work life balance, as you can literally shut the door of your office in the evening and spend some quality time with family or friends.

The ability to work on your own, and set your own deadlines

When you are in an office or workplace situation, your fellow work colleagues as well as your boss will always secure your dedication to the job – if you’re not doing your job properly they’re going to notice and question your lack of motivation. Therefore if you have any doubts about your self-motivation, you really should think twice before starting your own business – especially from home. Those working from home battle daily with the temptations to sleep late, watch day time TV, take sunny days off, give too much attention to children or housemates and shock horror – work in their PJs! Before taking the plunge, you really should make sure that you will be able to motivate yourself and set your own deadlines and restrictions in place. Just like any other business person, you should be getting up early every morning, setting certain times for breaks and lunchtimes and also be able to block out whoever else is in your home.

Industries particularly suited to home based business models

Internet Franchises – including web design, web services and online business franchises
Marketing Franchises – including online marketing and telesales
Vending Machine Franchises – administrating your business from home, while spending a significant amount of time “on the road” stocking and servicing your machines
Education Franchises – offering home tutoring either in your home or in your customers’ homes.
Cleaning Franchises– administrating your business from home, with a team of cleaning staff to carry out the work in your customers’ homes

As long as you make the right decisions and choices, the operation of your own business from home; can help you transcend the problems of ridiculous house prices in the urban areas, along with the exhausting commute, kids in tow to and from work every morning, as you can still achieve success running your own online business from your own home in the middle of the countryside. Click on the following link to find out more about opportunities to work from home.

Franchise Bio: Joel Libava

It turns out that the King did not die, but is very much alive and well in the form of Joel Libava – the Franchise King.

Joel keeps a regular blog on the franchise world, as well as helping franchise companies grow by finding potential franchisees with innovative online and social media marketing techniques, and through direct consultations with prospective franchise owners. Based in the US, Joel helps people all over the US find fantastic franchise opportunities with his superior personal franchise matchmaking methods.

Joel describes himself as “a brutally honest, but not always politically correct, entrepreneur-who’s hyper-focused on the world of franchising.”

With a diverse background as a radio and TV announcer, Las Vegas Maitre’D, food and beverage manager, Joel has also worked in automobile franchising in a management capacity, and a sales trainer.

You will frequently find Joel giving presentations on the topic of franchising, and he is the “Franchise Expert in Residence,” and columnist for the award winning Small Business Trends website. Joel is also The Community Promotions Director for Small Business Trends. Joel also writes over at the OPEN FORUM by American Express blog, joining other small business experts like Guy Kawasaki, Chris Brogan, and Anita Campbell.

In addition to all of this, Joel also regularly contributes as an expert source to The Wall Street Journal, Fox Business News.com, Entrepreneur Magazine, MSNBC.com, Bottom Line Personal, Crain’s, The Plain Dealer, and numerous other US national and local publications and websites. He is also interviewed regularly on Jim Blasingame’s Small Business Advocate radio program, as well as on Barbara Weltman’s Build Your Business radio show.

Pheuw! And if that wasn’t enough, Joel was recently approached by Business.Gov to contribute articles about the business model of franchising. This website is the official business link to the US Government, and Joel says he is very excited to be a part of it!

Check out Joel’s Franchise King blog (http://www.thefranchisekingblog.com/) to read about all the goings on in the franchise industry, as well as some insightful observations on the nature of franchising and the environment in which franchisees operate their businesses.

Here is our US blogger - Donald Cranford’s second part in his franchising in India observations.

When people think of franchising, the first thing they think of, almost anywhere in the world, is McDonald’s. So I was pretty keen to have a look at how McDonald’s operates in India, given the exploding market there, as well as the country’s varied ethnic identities.

McDonald’s opened their first store in India in 1996. India, while a huge market, posed many cultural challenges for McDonald’s. Hindus, by far the largest religious group in India, are traditionally vegetarian. On top of that, they treat the cow as sacred (for instance, there were four cows tied to tree outside my hotel in Mumbai and they would sleep every night on the street). At the same time, there are also 133 million Muslims in India, who do not eat pork. So McDonald’s, before they even opened their doors, were at a quandary. Is a McDonald’s without a Big Mac or a Quarter Pounder really a McDonald’s? Bravely, they removed all beef and pork products from their Indian menu and created a number of meals to satisfy the Indian palette.

But problems have occasionally flared up. When McDonald’s revealed in 2001 that they cooked their french fries in beef fat, there were riots outside Indian restaurants. They seem to have gotten their cultural sensitivities in line though, and based on my own eyewitness evidence, their urban restaurants are thriving.

The McDonald’s I have documented below is in The Fort area of Mumbai. It’s the traditional business area of the city and throughout the whole day, it is a hive of activity. There are many beautiful Victorian buildings in this area. McDonald’s is in one of them actually, with a nicely-designed interior with outdoor picnic-style seating along the street. The menu might be the most diverse of any McDonald’s in the world. You can get veggie burgers, hot cheese (paneer) wraps, and even something called a McPizza Puff.

The McDonald’s in The Fort was packed the evening I visited, as was the one I passed by in New Delhi a few days later. For the generation of wealthy young Indians, McDonald’s, remarkably, has a reputation as a healthy, vegetarian-friendly restaurant. Also, they offer delivery, which is an exciting frontier for McDonald’s. It seems as if the Golden Arches have a great future in India.

This is a photo of an advertisement outside of the McDonald’s at The Fort. There are some menu items to the right and in the background you can see the umbrellas for outdoor eating. The warm climate in Mumbai makes India perfect for outdoor eating.

This is outside the door of McDonald’s. The most interesting thing here is that they are advertising their delivery service. This is pretty unique for McDonald’s. Obviously, they feel they need a delivery option to compete with Mumbai’s many other food services.

Here we have a closer look at some of McDonald’s food options. Notice the Veg Pizza McPuff and the ice cream at the bottom.

Here’s an interior shot of the restaurant. You can get a sense of how the distribution works. All of the eating takes place outside, as far as I can remember. The store was strongly air-conditioned, as well.

You can read our earlier post here on franchising in India. Keep an eye on the blog over the coming days for further insight on Indian franchising.

This week, we have a guest blog post from our US blogger - Donald Cranford, who is bringing us some observations on the franchise industry in India, following his recent trip.

For years now, we have been hearing that the 21st century will be the Asian Century, lead by China and India. You read this claim so often in the business pages of the international newspapers, you sometimes begin to wonder if it is merely hype. I was fortunate enough to visit Mumbai and New Delhi recently and can say with some confidence that the future of business lies in India, especially where franchising is concerned.

Before I discuss my own experiences, let’s just state some of the reasons why franchising is working in India and certain to grow in the coming years. This is a country of over 1billion people. There are more than 3 times as many people living in India compared with America. In a few decades, it will be the third largest economy in the world.

Now India may have a huge population, but that’s not the whole reason why it is so ripe for franchising. India’s rise is being driven by a rising middle class who are increasingly looking to the west, and to the US especially, for cultural input. I had the pleasure of sampling New Delhi nightlife and it was remarkable just how similar Indian nightclubs were to American ones. Much of this wealthy young generation of Indians has spent time in the US or the UK and picked up a taste and an interest for Western goods, foods and services. Foreign investors should also note that India is a country with a historical relationship with the English language and a decidedly pro-business, low-tax ethos. I was there on Budget Day and it was remarkable to witness the hundreds of media outlets debating the various points of the budgets.

On the other hand, it is still a country weighed down by bureaucracy and with corruption issues at grassroots political levesl, but India’s business practices have come on by leaps and bounds in recent decades. There are also some pretty vast cultural divides between India and the West, but perhaps the spread of wealth will shrink this gap. With a vital national entrepreneurial spirit, compared to other developing economies, one thing is sure- India is open for business.

As for the franchising scene, it is growing fast. I traveled around Mumbai and New Delhi, largely on foot. The franchises that I encountered, both Indian and foreign, were mostly food franchises. UPS and a few other shipping franchises are also set up on the ground. Many people still choose to eat from vendors on the side of the road, but more and more people are looking for cheaper, Western food.

I’m proud to say my first meal in India was from a franchise operation: Felafal’s Veg Hummous House, a very clean and air-conditioned restaurant at the Colaba Causeway, one of main arteries around Mumbai’s big tourist area. The food was cooked quickly and with a coke, the meal only cost about 90 rupees, which is less that two dollars. I was fully satisfied and I was thanked by management on my way out the door. It couldn’t have been a better experience.

In the coming days, visit the blog as we’ll be providing more insight on our travels through Indian franchising. Our next post will be about the experience of McDonald’s in India.