June 2014 Archives

International Franchise Expo - IFE 2014 just finished up. 

What a great franchising event in New York with over 400 hundred franchisors looking to recruit new franchisees domestically and internationally.

This year's expo had something extra and worthwhile. 

Tom Portesy, MFV Expositions, Kevin Pietsch, Franchise Times, Roy Oteo, Wall Street Journal, Todd Evans, Aaron's Inc., & Greg Delks, Firehouse Subs decided to honor Greg Tanner a giant and legend in franchising.

Greg has been a franchising force for about 40 years and for my whole 25 years in the business. 

You see in May this year I read Greg Tanner's article - "My Wife Doesn't Want Me Around The House" where I learned he was retiring from franchising's Aaron's Inc. North America's leader in the sales and lease ownership of name-brand furniture, appliances and electronics. However Greg is far from done with franchising and franchising is not done with him.

Tom, Kevin, Roy, Todd & Greg arranged a party within a party at the IFE exhibitor event at New York's legendary Copacabana. The perfect cover and pretext to assemble a group of franchising veterans to numerous to name in order to surprise and honor Greg Tanner for his franchising success and years of franchise sales dedication.

The party was a huge surprise to Greg. He just didn't see it coming. Greg was roasted, toasted, and honored with terrific franchising mementos of his career and contributions.  

Now I'll tell you my Tanner story and why I was so happy Kevin Pietsch invited me to join in celebrating Greg's achievements. Kevin thank you.

In 2006 I was with an established child care franchisor where I was running a 39 week franchise display ad schedule in the Wall Street Journal. We wanted our messaging to break-through in the franchise opportunities section of the Journal.  And I thought since we had a great Item 19 Financial Performance Representation - FPR we should use it in our advertising. 

Now we all know that when you make an earnings claim with a franchise for sale offering you need to have the required disclaimer language. So in our marketing compliance process I had our general counsel ensure that our ad was compliant with the FTC rule.

We were running the ad in the Journal and it was a great success in generating qualified franchise inquiries and ultimately franchise sales increased.

We were pretty proud of ourselves and our franchise recruitment success.

And then comes a call from Tanner where he says "I see you're running some pretty exciting and aggressive display ads in the the Wall Street Journal". He went on to say "you know Joe I'm thinking that your ad might need a bit of tweaking. You see you got the disclaimer language wrong and let me tell you how I know this. A similar thing happened to me and the FTC thought it would be fun to fine our company $11,000 dollars for each time our ad had run."

My ad had run at least 20 times.

Well Greg was right, our general counsel was wrong, our president was not pleased and we fixed the ad.

Greg didn't have to help us out. It didn't benefit him one iota. But that's the way Greg is and why people who know franchising respect him so much.

Here's to Greg Tanner's continued franchising success!

Headed to the International Franchise Expo at the Javits Center in New York City June 19-21?If so, here are some unusual ways to spend your visit:

• Find out what it's like to be part of an Apex Fun Run with tents, flags and cones, along with video streaming (Booth 1014). 

• Get in on free brain training demonstrations every 30 minutes at Learning Rx. See how long it takes you to break a mental sweat (Booth 1036).

• Ever thought of eating pizza in a cone? Probably not, but now you can. Check out Kono Pizza's full kitchen setup with menu boards, counter/prep area, and proprietary oven (Booth 922).

• Got a spot on your carpet at home and you just can't get rid of it? Chem-Dry wants you to test their World Famous Professional Spot Remover. It's a natural cleaning product designed to destroy the bond between stains and carpet fibers. Better yet, here's an example of how franchisees use a product to generate added income! (Booth 704).

• Maui Wowi's Ka'anapali Cart will introduce you to fresh Hawaiian coffee, as well as fresh, gluten-free, all-natural smoothies.

• Young Engineers will host mini challenges at their booth so that you can get hands on with the various "edutainment" offered by franchisees. Can you win a prize?

• Snap your selfie with a tricked-out Camaro as Line-X Protective Coatings.

12 Amazing Franchise Opportunities, Lease Guarantees (again), and Pre-Qualify Yourself as a Franchise Owner/Operator

     1.  Get 1,500 words to tell your amazing franchise story, be a best seller.

     2. The standard personal guaranty requires a franchisee to put his personal assets behind the lease commitment.  How do you avoid this?

     3. How do you know whether you are franchise owner material or not?

1st Story -158 Clicks = PR Value of $993.82*

12 Amazing Franchise Opportunities for 2015

Dr. John P. Hayes is one of the world's most published authors and speakers on the topic of franchising.

Within days of publication, his franchise eBooks climb to #1 best sellers in their categories on Amazon.com.

2nd Story (Second Week) -131 Clicks = PR Value of $823.99*

Did You Make this Mistake When Signing Your Commercial Lease?

"We have a problem," Harvey announced flatly. "The buyer of your P for P store has gone out of business, and now the landlord is demanding that you pay the back rent and damages. Some $353,000, or thereabouts."

The slight breeze suddenly felt very cold as Kevin tried to process this unexpected disaster. "Why is the landlord coming after me," he asked weakly, "I haven't been involved with the business for over six years now. How could this be happening!?"

3rd Story -114 Clicks = PR Value of $717.06*

Pre-Qualify Yourself as a Franchise Owner/Operator

So, you want to be a franchisee? Owner of a franchise? Good for you!

In over 25 years I've spent working with franchisors, I've always been impressed with how generous and genuinely nice people in franchising are.

It's no wonder, since franchising is all about helping people achieve their dreams.

* Value based on current LinkedIn's advertising rates this month,  target audience and Google Analytics.

Get Started on LinkedIn - Reach People Who You Could Do Business With

Before This Monday - Price Increase!

If you communicate with Melanie Bergeron, Chair of Two Men and a Truck, you immediately realize that caring about people is in the very core of her being. After that first encounter, you will never wonder how her company can achieve 97% customer service satisfaction year after year.

When you truly care about the people you serve-your customers, your franchisees, and your community-it's going to show. "It is all about taking stress out of people's lives; and we know how to do that," Melanie shares. "Our franchisees take pride in our customer satisfaction rating just as much as we do, and that makes all the difference," she adds.

Melanie Bergeron, Mary Ellen Sheets (her mother), and her two brothers, Brig and Jon Sorber, share a remarkable story that speaks loudly about the connection of hard work, caring, a positive mindset, strength of values, family, and great success. Melanie says: "For me, nothing has come really easy. I've had to work hard for everything that I've achieved in my life. My main motivation has always been pleasing people. If I can make someone's life better, that's worth all the hard work I can muster." Melanie is one of those special people you are lucky enough to meet from time to time who leaves you feeling better about yourself and about the world, someone whose enthusiasm for life is contagious.

It is not surprising that people support and help Melanie whenever possible. She gives full credit to everyone who has worked with her; and of course, to each member of her family. "It has never been about me. As hard as I 've worked and as difficult as things have been for me at times, there was always at least one person helping me along the way; and then, more and more! It has never been just me; it has always been us (meaning her family, employees, franchisees, vendors and colleagues); Melanie shares.

Melanie entered the world of franchising as one of the first franchisees of Two Men and a Truck, which provided her with a unique sensitivity to help steer the organization in the right direction from the beginning.

Franchisee satisfaction has always been taken seriously by this very successful company. "For the last 8 years we have used Franchise Business Review to gather and report feedback from our franchisees.

Our franchisees are happy; we have an average rating of 4.2 out of 5. And, if there are ever any areas where we don't get the highest marks, we take immediate action to address them. Open communication and transparency are very important to us. And, when we say: 'Movers who care' we mean that at all levels," Melanie shares.

After a few years operating her franchise in Atlanta, Melanie was recruited by her mother, Mary Ellen, to run the franchising company. Melanie packed up her bags and headed back home to Michigan. "It was really hard. As a franchisor we were not making any money; our franchisees were, but we weren't charging them enough so we were barely making it. I had no knowledge of franchising, no money coming in, and no paycheck. It was tough! I had to wear many hats and the people I could afford to hire didn't have the expertise we needed," Melanie shares. "But, the silver lining was that out of every mistake I made -and I made them all-I learned valuable lessons that helped us propel the company to greater success," she adds.

Perhaps one of the ultimate challenges a franchisor has to face is raising royalties. And, Melanie accomplished that beautifully. She personally went to visit each one of her franchisees to explain the reason for the change and get a buy-in from all of them. When facing issues that are as sensitive to franchisees as royalty fees are, there is no other way to handle them than clear and open communications.

Today this company's philosophy continues to make the difference. "At every annual conference, before the event commences, we hold what we call 'Directors' Chats.' Basically any franchisee can make an appointment to discuss anything they want with any of the company's directors. The opportunity to talk with us face to face and to share what concerns them helps our franchisees feel that any grievances they may have are being heard, allowing them to be in the proper frame of mind to get as much as possible from the conference. As the leaders of this company, the Directors' Chats keep us humble -and that is a good thing," Melanie explains.

Melanie shared with me that she is a 'rule follower' by nature-something else with which I can identify. Perhaps that is one compelling reason behind our love for franchising. "Franchise success is based on consistency and that only comes when all franchisees follow the system.

Compliance by all franchisees protects our name. And, from time to time, it also leads to some tough decisions such as non-renewals and, when necessary, even terminations. As you know, what one franchisee does or doesn't do affects the entire network. So, when we make these hard decisions, the rest of our franchisees support us. We may be kind, but we are also strict when we have to protect everyone's investment," Melanie explains.

And I couldn't agree more.

Melanie has been asked many times what she would do differently if she had the opportunity to do it all over again.

And, she hesitates because the answer is not clear-cut. "I guess what comes to mind is to have more capital. The thought is that if we had more money when we started we would have avoided much suffering.

But along with all that pain came much learning that I wouldn't want to give up. I feel a lot of joy and pride when I look back at all that we went through-all the challenges we had to conquer made me, and the company, stronger," Melanie clarifies.

Melanie has some critical suggestions for business owners considering franchising:

• "Make sure your business is profitable -this is rule number 1."

• "Trademark the name of your business as soon as you think you may franchise it in the future."

• "Be honest with yourself when you evaluate the sustainability of your concept. If it is a fad, franchising is not for you."

• "Is your concept affordable? Is it trainable? Is it easy to learn? If you answer 'no' to any of these questions stay away from franchising."

• "Learn everything you can about franchising. Research, research, research."

• "Get involved with the International Franchise Association (IFA) as soon as you can."

• "Differentiate yourself from the competition-this is critical."

If you want to have the franchise success that Melanie and her family have been able to achieve with Two Men and a Truck, you may want to emulate some of Melanie's traits such as her hard work principles, her kindness, her energy and enthusiasm for life and franchising, and her total commitment to learning and giving.

Melanie Bergeron is a living example of when you treat people right, you will be rewarded.

For the 5 Most Fascinating Stories in Franchising, a weekly report, click here & sign up.

The post Franchise Success: It's All About What You Do for People appeared first on InFraSu.

Selecting Franchise Buyers based on Performance, Lease Guarantees, and New Risk Factors in Franchising

     1.  Many terrific franchisors use our FranchiZe Profile because it predicts how a franchise candidate will perform.

     2.  The standard personal guaranty requires a franchisee to put his personal assets behind the lease commitment.  How do you avoid this?

     3.  Investing in a franchise is a huge deal.  Learn these new risk factors.

1st Story -109Clicks = PR Value of $685.61*

You Need to Spend More Money to Recruit Franchisees

In a recent LinkedIn discussion, one of the participants mentioned the fear that many franchisors have when using a selection tool like a personality profile.

The reason for that concern was the general lack of independent data that demonstrates the effectiveness of the profile in predicting performance of franchisees.

2nd Story -108 Clicks = PR Value of $679.32*

Did You Make this Mistake When Signing Your Commercial Lease?

"We have a problem," Harvey announced flatly. "The buyer of your P for P store has gone out of business, and now the landlord is demanding that you pay the back rent and damages. Some $353,000, or thereabouts."

The slight breeze suddenly felt very cold as Kevin tried to process this unexpected disaster. "Why is the landlord coming after me," he asked weakly, "I haven't been involved with the business for over six years now. How could this be happening!?"

3rd Story -65 Clicks = PR Value of $402.56*

5 Risk Factors for Investing in a Franchise

Investing in a franchise is a huge deal.

Before you take the plunge, you want to know exactly what you are getting yourself into.

After all, you don't want to make a risky investment; if a franchise has financial problems or appears to be struggling to create and retain business, it is probably best to look elsewhere.

* Value based on current LinkedIn's advertising rates this month,  target audience and Google Analytics.

Get Started on LinkedIn - Reach People Who You Could Do Business With.

Shelly Sun, CEO and Co-Founder of BrightStar Care, takes success seriously. From the very beginning she has dedicated herself to making BrightStar Care the brightest star, first in the home care industry and then in the franchising world.  Shelly thrives in the face of change and challenge. Her leadership skills as well as her financial and operational prowess have produced a fast-growing yet robust franchise system-a model to emulate by those aspiring to franchise their businesses as well as by emerging franchisors.

I first heard Shelly speak during a teleconference sponsored by WEBB (Women Empowered by Business) back in 2010; she had only been franchising for a few years then and she already had a wealth of knowledge. Yet, what stayed with me was her genuine desire to share and to help others succeed.  

Along with being the best at whatever she does, sharing and helping others are Shelly's main drivers.  Shelly is an insatiable learner and has built an organization based on continual improvement.  "Our focus on culture, systems, and learning the best practices of franchising have been the biggest contributors to our success, both financially and in the relationships we have built within the franchise industry, with our franchisees, and with our corporate team," Shelly shares.

Shelly Sun takes the success of her franchisees personal. In her book, Grow Smart, Risk Less, she states: "The founder/CEO must have passion and commitment to a relentless pursuit of improving franchisee unit economics. This is not something that can be delegated, because the organization will take its direction from how committed the leader is to enabling franchisees' success, to supporting franchisees, and to finding the win-win in the decisions that are made daily."

For Shelly this is not just rhetoric; she lives her convictions.  She shares: "I get the most satisfaction from seeing and hearing the results of the Strategic Planning Sessions I hold with my franchisees. I spend one day and a half to work with 10 to 15 franchisees at a time on their businesses.

Anyone can come as long as there is space and together we create a roadmap to help them produce the results they desire. I am personally and intimately involved in helping my franchisees grow and succeed," she shares.  Since Shelly started these sessions almost four years ago, there have been already 110 franchisees who have gone through the program and some of them have chosen to attend more than once.

For a high achiever like Shelly, deciding the best use of her time has been her greatest challenge.  "I had to let go of the day-to-day management of the business so I could focus my energies on what really mattered, like the Strategic Planning Sessions I now hold with franchisees, or the regulatory affairs that need my attention. I had to learn to delegate and elevate and that has not been easy; particularly when finding the right people to be part of my corporate team, in some instances, has been trying," Shelly shares.

I was fascinated by BrightStar's franchisee strategic planning sessions and wanted to learn what brought them about. "I have always been close to my franchisees. I asked about their businesses and listened carefully. I realized that there was a gap. They seemed to lack the 360° view that is required for effective strategic planning. I also have a natural gift for using metrics and benchmarking to improve performance. I was already doing it for the company and the next step had to be helping our franchisees do the same for their own businesses," Shelly answers.

Shelly believes that, in order to replicate franchise success, you must start with owning multiple locations. You need to know what works and what doesn't before you ask someone else to invest in your idea. Once you have a tight business model and have proven you can replicate its success, the work has just started. "With each franchisee that joins you, there are new lessons.

As they go through the training sessions and start applying what they've learned, you need to watch out for what they were able to assimilate and what they couldn't and ask yourself, why?" Shelly shares. "You can never stay still. You have to watch for what may not work in a different market and respond accordingly. You have to be constantly alert to maintaining the highest of quality as well as customer and franchisee satisfaction. And finally, you must be vigilant that your brand's standards are enforced and act quickly to protect the brand when it's compromised," she adds.

If Shelly had to do it all over again there is one thing she would change; she would spend more time finding the right people from the start. "I would start thinking about the staff I needed as growth commenced and look further ahead to anticipate my needs. I would get involved with the International Franchise Association (IFA) quicker and use their resources and mentorship to learn and find people who are more aligned with the core values of our company. I need my team to put franchisees first and to be willing to embrace whatever change is required to serve the needs of the franchisees," Shelly shares.  Today Shelly has a strong interview process and human resource team and when they hire, they search and test as carefully for core values as they do for skills.

Shelly advises those who are contemplating franchising their businesses to:

• "Read my book Grow Smart, Risk Less: A Low-Capital Path to Multiplying Your Business Through Franchising. I spent a lot of time, effort and money giving back to the franchising community by writing this book."

• "Make sure your business model is profitable at all levels and that there is a continuous demand for your services. We are in a unique industry with senior home care. Once we get clients, their demand for our services increases as time goes on."

• "Make sure you test your business model before you franchise it. Owning several locations before you franchise will provide the information you need."

• "Create a transparent culture. We have no secrets. Our item 19 in the BrightStar's Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) is 11 pages long. Our franchisees have access to everyone's financial results on a weekly basis."

• "Take the success of your franchisees personally because it is personal. Their success is your success and you need to not just talk about it, but demonstrate it. Get involved, be accessible, and help them. You know your business better than anyone else; take your knowledge and gifts and use them to make your franchisees' businesses stronger."

The post Franchise Success Is Taking Your Franchisees' Success Personal appeared first on InFraSu.