If you’re thinking of joining a franchise network and have started looking for the right opportunity for you, then you’ve probably realised already that your options are almost endless! Investing in your own business is a big commitment so it’s essential to ask the franchisor the right questions to make sure you find the right franchise for you and that the business you choose will give you a return on your investment. At the same time, good franchisors need to make sure that those potential franchisees share their values and will contribute to the network’s success.
The franchisee recruitment process should include discussions about costings, timescales, legal documents and contract terms but it shouldn’t be just that. This is the perfect opportunity to start to build an open and honest relationship which could be the foundation for a long term partnership.
Here are a few things we’ve learnt from our franchisee recruitment experiences:
Define expectations
Before investing into franchising it’s important to know why you’re getting into it. What are your business goals and plans for the future? During the interview process you need to be clear with your potential franchisor about what you want to achieve and the franchisor needs to be clear about their expectations of any franchisees joining their network. This can include anything from the time that needs to be invested into the business to the training and support you can expect to receive. Being clear about expectations during the recruitment process can help avoid any confusion further down the line.
Knowing me, knowing you
As we’ve said in the past, franchisees come from all walks of life and their work history won’t necessarily be relevant to running a franchise. Having said that, different franchises do require certain skills so choose a franchise where your skills will be an asset. There’s no point running a franchise where a lot of selling is involved if that’s not one of your strengths. A robust training programme can teach you key sales skills but if you don’t enjoy sales it will eventually take its toll on you and your business, so during the interview process let the franchisor know what you enjoy and what you’re good at. A good franchisor should be open about the skills and traits required to run the business and will want to make sure that you’ll enjoy running it on a day-to-day basis. If you don’t enjoy it, the business is unlikely to succeed in the long term.
Getting personal
The franchisor and franchisee relationship is a two way street, so it’s essential that you get on and actually like each other in order to forge a relationship. A franchisor should be seen as a franchisee’s business partner and mentor, so ensuring a good working relationship will make life much easier in the long-term.
Buying into a franchise is a long-term commitment which requires careful consideration and building a good franchisee/franchisor is an integral part of any successful franchise network so taking time to get to know one another better in the recruitment process will make it easier for you to work together if you decide to do so.
If you’re interested in joining the Cleanhome domestic cleaning franchise network, contact us today to discuss potential opportunities.
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