How can you launch a franchised business without quickly realizing that a brand is not just an abstract concept?
A franchise only takes shape, and therefore success for the entrepreneur, through its human capital.
That’s why it’s so important to meet the men and women in the network as soon as possible (the easiest way to do this is at a recruitment fair), to visit the company’s head office to feel the heartbeat of the brand, and to try out a job, in both the front and back office, that will take up 90% of your time in the first few years.
Relevant knowledge + Permanent human support = Success
The Internet: assessing the know-how, rather than the savoir-faire, of retailers
Discovering concepts and making contact with franchise networks is now made easier by recruitment websites like L’Express Franchise.
These tools, which have become increasingly relevant over the last fifteen years, give you a better understanding – albeit in a space where the franchisor is in control of what he says – of the development strategy of the targeted brands, their franchising practices and the way they operate through their teams.
This information on the world of franchising and franchisors, shared in writing or on video, is absolutely essential.
Growing through encounters
It remains partial, however, and must be enriched by the element that is specific to the company, at the moment of its creation as much as its development: the human encounter.
Whatever the relevance of a business idea, let alone a concept, it can only become a success for a would-be entrepreneur if..:
- If the male (or female) franchisor is (consistently) visionary and innovative,
- If its human support, which forms the basis of the brand’s tools and services (and their follow-up with franchisees), is really present at every stage: recruitment, launch, cruising speed, insufficiently anticipated difficulties…,
- If the spirit of the network allows you to count on the solidarity of franchisees, in terms of logistical support, practical application of the franchisor’s know-how, or even direct assistance in your sales outlet or on your missions.
The power of the concept must be at least as strong at the end of a franchise contract (5 to 7 years) as it was on day one.
And it’s only people who are ready to mature their ideas that can stand the test of time, adapting to consumer demands.
Recruitment fairs: a duel in the sun
Info +++, not divulged in the press
Franchise recruitment fairs give you the opportunity to talk to the exhibitor of your choice… at specific times of the year: Franchise Expo Paris (400 to 500 networks present in March, over four days… but only at the end of March!), regional Go Entrepreneurs fairs (with a very limited selection of networks).
However, with or without prior appointment, they offer a direct relationship with the franchisor and his team to obtain even more in-depth information than that divulged in the press or on the company’s dedicated website, and more personalized to your situation, such as :
- Franchisor support. For example, help in finding premises, the main difficulty in setting up a sales outlet.
- Precise training content. Duration, diversity of modules taught, practical application of knowledge, methodology, cost, ongoing training… What does the brand offer?
- The qualities required to be a franchisor. How will my sales or management skills be offset by the company’s contributions?
- The company’s development plans. For example: what new tools (IT, communications, etc.) or services (for franchisees or customers) will improve productivity, and in what timeframe?
- Location opportunities. Are there any sales outlet takeover opportunities in my area? Multi-franchise development?
As with buying an apartment, you have the choice between going into a real estate agency because you know its reputation… or, at any time of the year, selecting the advertisements on the Internet that correspond to your project, and making direct contact with the sellers of the properties concerned.
Hence the importance of the What The Franchise website, which gives you independence in the timing of your business start-up.
Preparing the next stage of the reciprocal selection process
The more vague the answers, the more the prospective entrepreneur must question the strength of the brand.
Coming to a stand with prepared questions gives a positive image of the candidate, helping him or her to stand out by demonstrating seriousness and interest. This face-to-face meeting, which sometimes takes place in a private room, can last from fifteen minutes to an hour, depending on the progress of your project and the relationship you have with your contact.
A longer explanation is usually provided in a group briefing with other aspiring entrepreneurs, or in a subsequent individual meeting.
You will then begin a reciprocal selection process, the aim of which is to remove any doubts and, better still, to build mutual trust and esteem between the franchisor and the future – hopefully!
– franchisee.
When it comes to buying an apartment, the contact you have with the salesperson, and in particular the confidence you have in what he or she has to say, will play a key role in your decision to buy.
Two other human dimensions to feel for yourself: at headquarters and in the field
An open-minded visit to the company’s headquarters
If the process of mutual selection within a company takes you as far as a visit to the company’s head office, you’ll see that this one-on-one meeting enables :
- Better position your business project in relation to the network’s aspirations,
- Discuss with members of the operational structure, and usually the company president (sometimes the founder),
- And to get a feel for the franchisor’s values and management style.
This meeting is a sign of transparency on the part of the franchisor and his teams… So it’s a good time to ask questions such as..:
- “What differentiates your brand from your main competitors in terms of the originality of the concept, its future in the market, or the support provided to franchisees when they start up?
“, - Or, at the end of the exchange, “How many of the network’s outlets have closed in the last three years, and for what reasons?
“.
The franchisor will also be observing you, and asking his staff for their opinion (sometimes in writing).
Try the job… for real
Whether it’s a “discovery” course (observation of how a sales outlet works) or an immersion course (practical experience of the business by the candidate), adapted in duration to the complexity of the business, the future franchisee must be able to estimate :
- If he has the skills required to operate the concept, partly in the less visible areas dealt with in the backroom.
For example, in a flower store, this means selling pleasure products… while keeping your nose cold and your hands in water! - Whether he’ll thrive in his new activity. For example, by knowing how to manage the high and low points of a week in a vehicle maintenance and repair unit.
During these internships, the franchisor assesses the aspiring entrepreneur’s attitude rather than aptitude.
For an apartment purchase, these two phases simply correspond to the preliminary visits carried out: the first to discover the place from the inside (home) and the second, to project oneself into the housing environment (shops, schools, etc.) and imagine concretely the work to be carried out (so as to be able to estimate their cost).
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