Franchise Focus Business News…

Choosing to invest in a franchise business is one of the biggest steps you will take in your lifetime. Just as you know what you like when looking for a romantic partner, or what facilities you want when buying a new home it’s vital to know what ingredients to look for in the right franchise for you.

Mamma Mia!

The brand: It is more reassuring to commit to a brand that is widely known and which reputation is not in the process of being built. It is a bit like when you order a Margherita. When your plate comes, no surprises, you know what to expect on your pizza. But this does not mean that the least famous pizzas on the menu are not appetizing. The same goes for lesser-known franchises: they might be full of potential. For the latter, what matters is that the brand and the logo have to be catching and attractive and have to reflect the product or service of a franchise.

The concept: A concept which has proved itself may be less risky – when you invest money in it – than a new concept. However, some new concepts are worth franchising and selling worldwide. Let’s take the example of the Hawaiian pizza. According to the Pizza Marketing Quaterly, it’s the favourite pizza of the Australian. Pineapples on a pizza! This is something that would have shocked the most famous Italian pizza chefs of the beginning of the 20^th century. The concept has to be of good quality and has to be adapted to the needs of the market. You cannot put ham on pizzas sold in Muslim countries and you should always have a vegetarian pizza on your menu.

The type of industry: It is hard to choose a particular industry. Catering is an industry that has always worked well as far as franchising is concerned, but this doesn’t mean that all the franchised restaurants are successful. Most importantly, you have to choose an industry that you are interested in. You wouldn’t put anchovies on your pizza if you don’t like them!

The know-how: Generally passed on to the franchisee through training and the franchise manual. The know-how can make a difference between two franchises of the same industry. A pizzeria with a wooden oven will have a better reputation than a pizzeria with a regular oven. It is therefore essential this expert knowledge is passed down to the franchisee.

Experience: All of us can’t make good pizza dough, especially not without practice and experience. This is however not a handicap for a franchise to be new on the market. In this case, the experience of the franchisor in his field matters.

The size: Pizzas aren’t judged by their size, but by their taste. Little pizza does not mean bad pizza. The same goes for franchises: a small franchise does not necessarily mean it is a bad franchise.  It’s more important to focus on the development plans of a franchisor. It is better to invest in a small franchise with a big growth potential rather than in a non-viable big franchise.

The geographical location: A pizzeria will not be very profitable if it is surrounded by pizzerias that have been there longer and sell better pizza. The same goes for your franchise unit: you will not be able to develop it if you have too many competitors in your area. Make sure that the location of your franchise unit is adapted to the product or the service that you sell. Try to sell pizzas to a Massai tribe, and you might not be very successful.

Communication and transparency: Before buying a pizza, you want to know what its ingredients are. The same goes for franchises: you should want to know a maximum about the franchise you are interested in before buying a unit. It should not be a problem to get information from a good franchise.

Franchisees: The cheese on the pizza: committed franchisees! The biggest franchises would not be as famous without the hard work of its franchisees. All good franchises should have in their team hard-working committed franchisees ready to get their hands dirty.

Ingredients of the Franchise Direct special: tomato sauce, cheese, mushrooms, olives, artichokes, chorizo, ham, corn and seasoning oil.

Successfully marketing your franchise is at the heart of developing it as a profitable long-term business.

Awareness: creating attention and initial interest

Acquisition: converting the enquiries into franchisees

Retention: supporting franchisees so they become lifelong, loyal business partners

What you say, how and where you say it, and when you say it, is key to ensuring that you attract the right kind of franchisees in a steady stream of enquiries to whom you can provide the highest quality response. To receive 1,000 enquiries a day to whom you have to send a generic email reply is unlikely to reap the rewards you are hoping for as a franchisor. Far better to be highly targeted and seen by potential franchisees who are both very interested in your business and be talking on a one to one basis with those of interest to you.

Here are our top ten tips for creating the right level of awareness and attention to stimulate initial interest in your franchise offer:

1. Define Your Franchisee

Build a clear mental picture of your ideal franchisee. Write down their age, where they live, what car they drive, what leisure pursuits they enjoy, what career have they had before, where they go on holiday. At the end of the task give them a real name. This name will make it easier to think of them in the future and bring them to life. You would likely market differently to a ‘Derek’ than you would to a ‘Tulisa’. This may sound like a sweeping generalisation but ‘customer segmentation’ to give it the formal title, works powerfully as a filter through which everything you say and do needs to pass. If your marketing isn’t talking to your ideal franchisee then it’s time to tune it or try something different.

2. Plot The Franchisee Journey

Draw out the step-by-step journey you are planning on taking your franchise enquirer through from where they might first see you, perhaps through an advertisement on the Franchise Direct website all the way through to your first face to face meeting. Each step of the process which might include emailing, telephone meeting, sending information, is an opportunity to market to them. Your franchisee journey will ensure you are consistent in everything you do with each enquirer and if you find that your enquirers lose interest at a certain point then you can quickly identify that point and improve upon it.

3. Duplicate the Message

Consistency in what you say helps you to save time in that you don’t have to keep coming up with new information but importantly helps the enquirer because they will see the same information a number of times and this helps them along your franchisee journey. Don’t worry that people might have heard it before. It’s well known for example that television advertising is normally seen 5-7 times by an individual before they are likely to respond. If you have a good story, make sure you include it in your advertising, social media, emails to enquirers and everywhere else you are using for your marketing.

4. Advertise Online

The simplest and arguably most effective method of stimulating a regular stream of enquiries. A good advertisement will not create thousands of enquiries. The best advertisement will create a good number of relevant enquiries, filtering out those who aren’t particularly interested and are ‘just asking’. Be clear in your message, consistent with what you as a franchisor are looking for and crucially when you write, always have the mental picture of your ideal franchisee in mind. Write directly for them.

5. Search Engine Optimisation

Using what we call ‘long tail search phrases’ is key to being found on the internet by your target franchisees. In the old days we could just write words like ‘marketing franchise’ to promote a marketing franchise but now web-savvy individuals search by long term phrases to ensure they return better quality search results. Today as a franchisee we are more likely to find relevant enquirers if we use a longer phrase such as ‘marketing consultancy franchise bristol’.

6. Power of Social Media

Everyone’s at it. Social media takes up more leisure time than any other activity and this applies to teenagers as much as it does retired people. The key is finding where your target franchisees are socially networking. Linkedin is a good starting point if you have a business-to-business franchise. Ensure your personal profile (remember that people buy from people not companies so they need to get to know the real you) is up to date and relevant to your ideal franchisee. Make sure you have a strong company page that links out to your own website. Importantly you need to keep your personal status up to date. Remember to use information and marketing you are publishing elsewhere to save you time (see tip 3). And don’t write off Facebook and Twitter, even if you have a ’serious’ franchise. These networks are significantly larger than Linkedin and Facebook offers some of the most targeted advertising available as well as another great means of letting the franchisee get to know the real you.

7. Franchise Fact Sheet

A step by step introduction to your franchise and importantly for your marketing, ‘what’s in it for them’. Always write from the perspective of the potential franchisee and not about ‘me, me, me’. Think about what we call the ‘rule of thirds’. One third is about your vision, strategy and big dream. One third is about you. This might be you personally or ‘you’ as a business. The franchisee needs to get to know the essence and style so they can decide if there’s a personal fit with themselves. The final third is the sell. Remember to include numbers because franchisees need to see when they can expect to see a financial return from their new business. Continually update your fact sheet as enquirers help you to add the most prevalent ‘frequently asked questions’.

8. Traditional Telephone Follow-Up

Many franchisors forget that the traditional telephone conversation is part of the marketing mix and a key step on the franchisee journey. Set a loose agenda for each conversation and importantly a target outcome at the end of the conversation. This might be to send them some information to read, to arrange a follow up conversation when they have had a few days to think things through or perhaps agreeing the first face to face meeting. The telephone follow-up needs to be factored into your franchisee journey (see tip 2) so that it happens at the right time in the process, for the right reasons.

9. Monitor Your Dashboard

Keep a log of everything that happens in your franchise marketing. From the amount you spend on advertising, through social media connections to enquiries and outcomes. Monitor the numbers in maybe a spreadsheet but also keep a record of some of the more subjective things that happen. You will learn a great deal from how enquirers respond to certain ways you describe things and maybe different times of the day when you engage with them. The trick with the dashboard of measures is to learn from them. Turn information into intelligence and improve the franchisee journey to ensure your marketing is delivering best value.

10. Preparing for the First Meeting

Re-read through everything that you have sent to the potential franchisee you are about to meet. Remember how they responded to what you said and how you said it. What were their concerns and what questions did they ask? Not only are you using this meeting to put your mind at rest that they are going to be a good franchisee but you are continuing to market to them as you take them to the next point on their franchisee journey.. signing the contract.

Where did you get the inspiration to start your business?

I have always had a great love of dogs and had dogs when I lived with my parents – the first thing I did when I moved out on my own was buy my dog Bella. I became unhappy in my job and watch a film one weekend with Jennifer Lopez walking 6 dogs down a beach and I thought that would be an amazing job! And so Kelly’s Canines was born!

What was the hardest part of setting up your own business?

The hardest part had to be taking a financial risk. I got myself a little part time job in a local estate agents and spent my afternoons pushing Kelly’s Canines. Working long days for little money was hard work but well worth it in the end.

How did you manage with household duties and running your own business?

To begin with I was very lucky and had lots of help for my partner who works from home. It is always important to take time out to do other things so this made cleaning etc my ‘thinking’ period. But now the business is up and running successfully I have a lot of time at home to do household duties.

When did you set up the business?

I set up Kelly’s Canines in May 2009. But I didn’t run it full time until Jan 2010

Why and when did you decide to franchise Kelly’s Canines?

I decided franchising was the way forward in early 2011. I already have one member of staff and so to grow the business any further without still being able to work it would be hard. After a few people came to me and asked if I wanted them to set up a Kelly’s Canines in the surrounding villages it seemed silly not to look into Franchising.

What’s your favourite and least favourite part of your job?

It’s hard to pick out a favourite part of my job as I love so many different aspects of it, obviously working with different dogs each day is great and I love puppy visits, but I also love that I’m my own boss and I choose my working hours and lifestyle! The least favourite part is the amount of poo I have to pick up! Lol

How do you deal with shy or awkward animals?

Working with shy animals is always challenging. It’s so important to build a bond with each dog who comes to us, especially if they are home boarding with us for a few weeks. We spend a lot more one and one time with them and gradually build a trusting relationship.

Have you any pets? What breed are they/ what are their names?

Yes we have three dogs, Roxy is our Boxer. Bella is our Patterdale Terrier Cross and Daisy is our Maltese cross Shi-Tzu. We also have two rats called Carlisle and Kimba.

What’s the best food and music for new puppies?

It’s hard to say which food is best – there are so many and it comes down to breed and personal preference. What I can say is don’t be shy to ask what’s in the food you are giving your dogs. There can be a lot of chemicals in dog food and so it’s important to find a food with a good balance of everything your pup needs. Music wise… Mine are Britney Spears fans.

If  you love dogs, why not consider becoming a Kelly’s Canines franchisee?

Or check our directory for other pet franchise listings.

The main goal of Franchise Direct is to support franchisors in their search for suitable franchisees. Since the company was founded in 1998, our main goal has been to steadily increase the quality of our services for our clients and users. We are proud of the fact that over 1,000 clients are highly satisfied with our services, which proves that we are on the right track!

In order to be able to provide a wider range of information for our readers and customers, we are looking for interested guest-authors for our blog at:

http://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/franchisefocus/

Our readers’ expectations:

-    a high content of accessible information

-    text that is not overly complicated and easy to read

-    substantial information with a high degree of practical relevance

It is for those criteria that our editors read and approve every single article before we publish it on our blog. We only publish articles that provide substantial information on a topic that is of interest to our readers.

Perhaps you have recently read a book that provides interesting information on a relevant topic and would like to write a short review about it? We will be glad to publish your review on the book as one of our blog-posts.

Due to legal requirements, we have to inform you that the person who provides us with an article for publication has to be the holder of all copyrights (both texts and images) for all material that is related to the article. If your article complies with these requirements and we have decided to publish it in our blog, we will ask you to confirm the possession of all copyrights by email.

The publication of your article on our website is fully free of charge for you and for our readers.

In order to comply with our standards of quality, your basic layout of your article should follow some basic guidelines, such as:

I)    Your title:

Keep your title short but catchy. The reader should develop an interest in the main article just by reading the title. Please note: The higher the significance of your title, the more readers will be interested in reading your article.

II)    Introduction:

You should begin your article with a short paragraph at the beginning that serves as a short summary for the main content and the most important aspects. Use your introduction to lead your readers to the main content and to make them interested in reading on. The introduction should not be longer than 5-6 lines in total.

III)    Main body paragraph:

This is the core-paragraph of your article. Try and divide the single aspects into individual text-passages. In doing this, you will provide a clear structure that makes it easier for the reader to follow you all the way through. The use of subheadings can also help to structure your article.

IV)    Conclusion

Write a short summary of the most important aspects of your article. Should you plan a series of articles, you can also use this section for cross-references to previous or upcoming articles.

To make the reading of your article as captivating for your readers as possible, the overall-length of your article should not exceed 800 words. Should the topic you are working on require longer articles, you might want to plan it as a series of articles.

Here are two examples of the types of posts that we think are particularly interesting to our readers.

This guest blog post was written by our US Franchise Editor - Donald Cranford on his trip to India and the differences and similarities which he saw in the Indian franchise industry: http://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/franchisefocus/franchising-in-india-part-1-the-context/

This is an article which we recently published on up and coming young entrepreneurs in the UK and the schemes and support services put in place to help the UK’s young entrepreneurs: http://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/franchisefocus/the-young-entrepreneurs-of-the-y-generation/

If you want to, you can add a short paragraph to the end of the article. You can use it to introduce yourself or state some professional facts that our readers might be interested in (your job, your professional background etc.).

If you have an article that you like to publish on http://www.franchisedirect.co.uk/, please email it to me at the following address: kate@franchisedirect.co.uk

We are looking forward to working with you.

Our sister site, Franchise Direct.com has again pooled its extensive knowledge of global franchising to assess the world’s best franchises. We’re delighted to announce the publication of this year’s Top 100 Global Franchises.

According to the second annual list of the Top 100 Global Franchises, international franchising has gotten both more profitable and diverse in the last 12 months.

Here are the Top 10 Global Franchises for this year:

1. McDonalds
2. Subway
3. KFC
4. Burger King
5. 7-Eleven
6. InterContental Hotels
7. Pizza Hut
8. Snap-on Tools
9. Taco Bell
10. Ramada Worldwide

Generally-speaking, food franchises continue to dominate the Franchise Direct top franchise rankings. At a moment of economic difficulty in America, the emergence of new foreign markets, particularly in China and India, has allowed to food franchises to consolidate their business. These franchises are not purely profit-driven and we’ve seen franchises like McDonald’s take great strides in implementing eco-friendly solutions in their stores.

Health franchises are a sector that have enjoyed particularly fast growth, and Snap Fitness, a fitness franchise, and GNC, a franchised health retailer, have cemented their global standing in the past year. It’s also exciting that two franchises owned by women – Merle Norman and Jazzercise – maintain their place in our rankings.

More and more foreign companies are franchising their businesses and two new non-American franchises have joined this year’s Top 100. Canada’s Yogen Früz and Germany’s TeaGschwendner have made the list, bringing the number of non-American franchises in the Top 100 to 15. The UK’s InterContinental Hotels continues to be the top-ranked non-American franchise, coming in sixth place overall.

Economic projections by the likes of the International Franchising Association predict that 2010 will be a more profitable year both domestically and internationally for the world’s top franchise brands. As the so-called ‘global village’ gets smaller and smaller, expect well-known franchises to expand even further into economies all around the world. Franchise Direct will certainly be there monitoring the market to evaluate the best-performing international franchises.