franchisees

As 2023 comes to a close, I've taken some time to reflect on the year, and I have to say it was a great year overall. The year included many conferences, several speaking engagements, and plenty of board meetings. It was a very successful year for myself and those I work with. As a franchise expert, advisor and speaker, I really enjoy the work that I do and the people I get to collaborate with. My business travel adventures started with a fun time at the IFA Convention in Las Vegas, where my wife and two daughters joined me. That was a lot of fun and the first time we've ever done that.

In early November, I had a great time participating at this year's IFA's Emerging Franchisor Conference in New Orleans. I have been to this event several times before and was fortunate enough to be invited back again as a speaker and roundtable facilitator.

Being a franchisee in a successful brand is a significant achievement that typically takes lots of time, money, hard work and excellent execution by the franchisee at the local level. If you developed yourself to this level of success, congratulations! It is no accident, and you deserve to be proud and excited about achieving this success.

I am just back from the Franchise Business Review Franchise Summit event in Austin, Texas, and it was a great time! This was my second time participating in this event. There was great energy in the room, many people providing perspective insights and solid advice, and several great speakers too - tons of value and learning. There were plenty of inspiring moments and connections, a fun “Texas Tailgate” reception, as well as fundraising for the local animal shelter.

To have a successful franchise brand, you will need successful franchisees. It may sound easy to recruit and retain these high performers, but it's often not as simple as you may think.

As I've mentioned before, franchising is not easy, and it has its own set of skills, experiences and talent required to be successful. Operating the business is different from franchising that business. Fortunately, in today's modern age, there is an abundance of places where franchisors and franchisees can get support and learn more to improve their business and everything related to it.

Starting a franchise business as a franchisee within a franchise brand and system is an exciting opportunity! A successful franchisee is, in some ways, an entrepreneur. They're not truly creating a new brand or business. Instead, they are implementing and executing that brand and model in their local market. It is clearly an entrepreneurial enterprise to begin any new business, but using the strength and benefits of a franchise is not as entrepreneurial as a true startup of an entirely new brand and new business unique to the world; therefore, these actions are not the same.

Becoming a franchisee is a serious commitment. It's the most significant commitment most people ever make beyond buying a house and getting married. Most individuals are not fortunate enough to own a business or a franchise or pursue anything beyond general employment. It is important to understand the risks and expectations of starting a franchise business and identify that this endeavor is not for everyone.

A franchise coach can significantly impact your mindset, business, and more. There are a range of coaches available out there for business owners. Here we will explore having a coach with specific franchise experience who can work with both the franchisor and the franchisee.

Franchising is currently experiencing a significant increase in interest, growth and profitability. Many of my franchisor clients have shared their positive trends, increased sales, and strong performance at the unit level. Generally, if your businesses survived the Covid factor and you are still operating, almost everyone I'm working with is seeing favorable outcomes.

With these positive trends and franchise forecasting in mind, I thought sharing three new tips for growing your franchise business would be helpful.

The universe of franchise opportunities is never-ending; continuous growth has been the trend in the past and foreseeable future. More new brands are always coming online every month, every quarter, every year. It’s fabulous! And can be overwhelming!

Along with this continued growth in franchising, many entrepreneurial individuals are investigating those opportunities and looking to expand their ownership opportunities with new franchises. There is a growing segment of professionals in the industry helping people find the right match; they are typically called franchise consultants or brokers - I call them matchmakers.