Business >> Franchising

Buying A Business Franchise – The Basics

2009-06-19T09:37:00.000-07:00

Before you buy a business franchise, you should make sure you’re ready. From choosing the franchise that’s right for you, to making sure you’re right for the franchise, this article takes you through the steps you’ll need to cover in order to get your franchising dreams off the ground.

Finding the Right Business Franchise for You

There’s literally hundreds of sectors and thousands of franchises to choose between. That’s why you have to find franchising opportunities that suit your lifestyle, skill-set and aspirations. The internet is a great place to start. There’s online franchise directories that’ll guide you through the different franchise opportunities that are out there, and they’ll even put you in touch with relevant department within the company. However, if you don’t like getting sales calls, you shouldn’t contact the company to get information from them until you’ve done some level of research.

Understanding the Legal Stuff

In franchising, it’s all comes down to your relationship with the franchisor. Which is why, you have to understand the relationship that they are proposing. Read through their legal documentation in detail, and make sure your lawyer does as well. When selecting a lawyer, consider working with one that has experience in dealing with franchise agreements. A lawyer with franchising experience will understand the business to a greater degree, and the kind of standard terms you can expect.

As is naturally the case, many of your conversations will be over the phone and in person. This is great for really getting to know the company, but can cause some problems later on if some of the representations that the franchisor has made to you turn out to be false.

That’s why you should make notes of any points that have been made orally and discuss with your lawyer whether or not these form part of your contract with the franchisor. You should tidy up your notes, and send them to the franchising sales person and ask them to clarify everything you believe is accurate – you should ask them to respond in writing. For telephone conversations, you could consider asking the franchisor if it is okay to record the conversation. However, this could also damage your relationship with the company. They are unlikely to say no, but they are also unlikely to think of you highly when you show signs you don’t trust them. The letter can work just as well, if you cover all important points, and will make you appear professional too.

Speaking To Other Franchise Owners

Speak to franchise owners and find out what they think about the business. It’s easy for the business to cherry pick the franchisees that’ll offer the best recommendations, but you could consider contacting owners yourself. That way you will get a random sample. Find out what the company is like to deal with after you have entered into a franchising agreement.

You should ask the franchisor if the percentage of franchising arrangements that fail, and the reason why they fail. Or else, how do you know what mistakes to avoid in your business?

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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7 Characteristics Of Business Models Perfect For Franchising

2009-06-19T09:27:00.000-07:00

When rapid business growth is on the menu, you might be considering franchising as a way to sky-rocket infrastructural development and revenue acceleration. For many this is a good choice, however for others it just isn’t going to work. In this article we explore traits that make your business model suitable for franchising, and therefore allow you to put more thought into whether it’s right for your business.

Local Presence

One of the most popular reasons that businesses franchise off their assets is to grow a presence in other markets. Fast food chains are among the most popular franchise-dependant businesses as they require a local presence throughout the country.

You might wish to consider franchising if you need a sales team at a local level, a store-front at a local level, or even if you need the provision of services to happen at a local level.

Strong Brand

One of the strongest reasons why people opt to buy a franchise is the brand. When you buy a franchise from a popular brand, you can set up shop and expect people to know what you stand for right away. This is a privilege that most businesses would die for.

Brand Dependency

It’s never usually a good idea to start franchising a commodity business. Although it’s possible that the business operates on low margins, it’s important that it has a means of differentiating itself. If it does not, then you have to step back and consider what value you are offering to the franchisee.

Scalable

Some business models scale better than others. For example, some people are extremely creative, and they will often use their creative talents to start a business. However, unless they can find lots of other creative people, just like them, they find that it is hard to allow their business to grow beyond a few staff.

That’s why you have to ensure your business is built in a way that means it scales well. This will often mean that systems and processes are in place that automates processes, and that a system is in place that allows for anyone to be replaced without it being detrimental to the success of the business.

Low Margins

Often franchise businesses will be low margin, high volume businesses. Franchising is a perfect fit for this model because the franchise owner only needs to earn themselves a good wage, and service their capital investment. The business is then able to grow in an, almost, risk-free way.

Economies of Scale

If your business is likely to have increased margin with scale, then this can often mean your business model is perfectly suited for franchising. Some industries, like business services, for example, often report decreased margins during certain phases in their growth cycle. Consider what your margins will look like as you grow.

Vested Management

Each of your franchise owners will have skin in the game. For some businesses this will be more important than for others. If it is important for your business, then maybe that’s a sign that franchising is right for you.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Franchising: Questions You Should Ask A Franchisor

2009-06-19T09:22:00.000-07:00

If you’re starting a business, you may have considered purchasing a franchise rather than starting a company from scratch. This is particularly common in certain sectors, and has many solid advantages over starting a business on your own. However, before you commit anything, it’s important that you ask the franchisor the right questions to get to grips with exactly what you’re going to be buying.

Which services are covered by the management fee, and which services aren’t?

Some franchises will involve the central business doing all of your marketing for you, and for others it won’t. Some businesses will handle all of your customer service, and some won’t. That is why it’s important to find out exactly what you’re buying, and what expenses you will have to account for on your own.

Can I sell the franchise, and will your business help me sell it?

When you buy a franchise, you are buying a business asset. And, usually when you buy an asset, you should be able to sell it. However, most companies will have rules about exactly what you can and can’t do. Be sure to clarify this with the franchisor before you commit.

You should also try to find out exactly how hard it is likely to be to sell a franchise. With larger companies they’ll be a more liquid franchise market than with others. However, the success of your business will also have a material impact on how easy it will be to sell and how much it will sell for.

What earnings are other franchisors making with your company?

Although it’s true that other franchisees success and failure doesn’t necessarily reflect how well you will do, it can act as a yardstick. With franchising, you have to look at how well the business model has worked in the past. After all, that is what you’re paying for.

Also, you should contact every franchise that is referenced as an example of the company’s franchising model working well. It’s always best to double check if the information they provide is valid, and also if the franchisee interprets everything the same way as the sales literature suggests.

Can you provide examples of franchisees that have failed, and tell me why?

It’s to be expected that some franchisees will fail. Franchisees shouldn’t expect the franchising opportunity to be perfect, or for every franchisee to be immune from problems. However, as a franchisee, it can be in your best interest to find out the reasons why the franchising opportunity hasn’t worked out for some. You could even consider speaking with the failed franchisee and finding out the reason why they think they failed.

When doing this you should be looking out for ways that you can avoid their mistakes. You should also be vigilant in identifying whether the reason for failure appears to be the fault of the franchising company or the franchisee.

It’s also definitely worth finding out what percentage of franchisees fail. If the number is higher than other franchising opportunities in the same sector, then you should try to think of reasons why this may be.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Six Reasons Why Business Franchising Works

2009-06-19T09:18:00.000-07:00

Franchising can allow your business to grow at rapid pace, and gain a presence in new markets. Although there are disadvantages to franchising your business, and although it will not suit all business models, franchising is often an under-used tool among business owners that are looking to scale their operation. Following are six reasons why you should consider franchising your business.

Turbo Charge Your Business Growth

One of the greatest benefits to franchising is getting things done fast, and with less labour costs. You’ll be able to focus on recruiting franchisees, and then they will focus on growing your business in their region. You can even sell franchisees for an entire country or continent, and allow the franchisee to take your business to the next level.

Reduce Gearing As You Grow

You will increase your capital base from franchising fees as your business grows. A business will traditionally borrow money, and increase their gearing as they grow into new markets. With a franchising model, you’ll be able to see your sales grow, your market reach grow, and you’ll also be able to see your balance sheet strengthening at the same time.

Prevent Equity Dilution

When you grow your business it can be tempting to give away equity to fuel growth. Although in many ways this can work out well, it does mean that in the end you’re left with a smaller share of the pie. When you grow your business through franchising, you’ll be able to grow with low levels of debt and without diluting your equity position either.

Galvanize Your Business Against Cannibalisation

When you make money from each franchise that is sold, and you also make money in management fees (usually calculated as a percentage of revenue) cannibalisation ceases to be a problem for the franchiser – unless this is something that worries franchisees. The reason: as you take on more franchisees, you make more money from licensing; and although more franchisees may damage a franchisee’s profitability, it will not damage total revenue, and therefore you will continue to prosper even if your franchisees struggle.

Limit Losses

During a bad year, it’s possible to make less money, but it’s not possible to lose money through franchisees losing money. That risk is assumed by them. You will charge management fees as a percentage of revenue, and as revenue cannot be a negative number, you will always earn an amount in management fees from this. In the long term the profitability of franchisees is of paramount importance, but it’s good to know that you will be stronger than your competitors during more difficult trading periods.

Work With A Network Of Entrepreneurs

Entrepreneurs are naturally more motivated than employees; they have a profit incentive. You will be able to benefit from this through having each and every franchise managed by a business person with a strong incentive for their franchise to do well.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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online stock market trading for beginners-learn the stock market tips.

2009-06-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

Stock market trading is something that can be very exciting as well as nerve racking and stressful. The reason that online stock market trading is so appealing to beginners is because of the possibility of making hundreds or even thousands of dollars in a matter of hours. Though these greatly successful trades do come, they do not happen as often as many people wish. Knowledge is the key to being successful on online stock trading.

The knowledge that needs to be understood by stock market trading stock market beginners is the ability to know when to pull the trigger on a stock trading and when to sell it. This is the key to making any money at all and staying in the game. When someone can find out a strategy and some market signals that work well for them, they can be enormously successful.

I also recommend that you sign up with some sort of signals service, especially if you are looking to get into online stock trading. There are many of these but I believe that the best one is a product called Doubling Stocks. This product has been shown to pick the right stocks trading and when to buy and sell them a very good percentage of the time. Obviously, sometimes these stock pickers are wrong. However, when you find one that is reliable, the potential earnings could really surprise you.

These are just a couple of things to think about when looking for information about online stock market trading for beginners. The stock market is very complex but with the right tools you could make some serious cash even as a beginner.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Business investments through franchise business opportunities

2009-06-19T09:03:00.000-07:00

The overwhelming success of a famous local bakery store in Singapore that has expanded in 9 other countries resulted from a single branch that only started 8 years ago. You can find 7-11 stores in almost every corner of the streets locally and internationally, deriving from the fact that it started from a store selling ice blocks. Giant brands did not always start big in their industry. They all started with a good idea through an outlet with business investments through franchise opportunities.
Franchise It is organised by the business consulting firm, Astreem Corporation and it was held at National Library Board on 24th October 2008. This half-day seminar covers the fundamentals of franchising for business owners. “Franchise It aims to provide business owners an overview of business investments through business franchise opportunities and the processes involved in the development of a good franchise structure and program,” says Hsien Naidu who is the founder and director of Astreem.

Topics covered during the seminar were:
- The business franchise concept
- Advantages of franchising your business investments
- Basic steps in developing your business franchise program
- Test of your business’ “Franchisability”
- Important features of the Franchise Operations Manual
- The Franchise Agreement
- Protecting your Intellectual properties
- Marketing your business franchise

The speakers that are involved with this seminar were the business consulting firm’s consultants. Attendees of this event are business owners who want to grow their operations via franchise business opportunities, entrepreneurs who want to expand their businesses and business investments using other people’s resources and franchisors encountering problems with their current franchise program. Astreem constantly seeks for Singapore franchise opportunities for the local as well as overseas market and represents clients who are looking for Malaysia franchise opportunities, Indonesia franchise opportunities, Philippine franchise opportunities and Vietnam franchise opportunities. The business consulting and management consulting firm also consists of franchise consultants, branding consultants, marketing consultants, business consultants.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Closing the Sale With Ease

2009-06-19T08:37:00.000-07:00

How confident are you when the time comes to close the sale? One of the most consequential factors at play that can contribute to a successful closing (and possibly understanding when you should move on) has to be the leverage and confidence you posses when going into a sale. Apply the following information effectively and you will be able to build both your confidence and leverage.

Stop emotional attachments when they are clouding your vision.
Emotional attachments can reek of desperation whether focused on the ego, the money or the time invested into your sales process. And anyway, many prospects see right through the desperation or need for a quick sale and can even sense that your pitch is now more focused on getting a deal done than it is about the solutions and value you can offer. You need to be able to close the sale with a greater sense of confidence. This, in turn, should eliminate bad deals altogether.

Manage your pipeline.
You need to manage all of your accounts over the entire sales process using an account profile management system-a corkboard will suffice-to post prospect information on as they progress through sales cycle stages. This is a great way to visually follow your sales activity. There are software programs that do the same thing, however, seeing your writing and notations up on your wall is a constant reminder to work harder. Engaging yourself in activity's which move you through your sales cycle will give you the power to either close a sale or walk away confidently.

Formulate your value statement.
You need to believe in your mission, the products you market and understand what benefits are your customers receiving. And the term, "Value statement" denotes the fact that you need to have a very enthusiastic and confident belief in whatever you are selling. A lot of it can come from the positive results experienced by your clients.

Possess a very stout history and track record.
Amassing an impressive track record full of positive testimonials and results is priceless. For your closing ratios to increase, you should be focused on all of the great results you can provide your customers with. Ask your prospects what they want to do with your services or products once they are in possession of them. Understand what their specified objectives are and then over deliver those objectives. Because in the future when you need help closing a deal, you can contact these satisfied customers who will gladly help you out.

As so many of us are already keenly aware of, loosing a deal that you have put your heart and soul into can be quite demoralizing. Maybe your business activity was lacking or the qualifying questions were lacking something, etc. Whatever your situation is, effectively utilizing the tips in this article will allow you to close more deals with ease and waste a lot less of your precious time. And we all know that time is money!

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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How to Begin your Child’s Bilingual Development

2009-06-19T08:35:00.000-07:00

While everyone understands the importance of becoming bilingual and knowing English, not everyone starts their children learning a second language at an early age, nor does everyone know how to begin. Starting at an early age is important for many good reasons, but one of the most important reasons is that young children learn the fastest. They can absorb the most and have the highest rate of becoming successfully bilingual, even to the point where they can speak two languages as well as a native speaker.

So how do you achieve this success? There are a variety of different methods to teach your child English while teaching them another language at the same time. English itself may be your native language, while you also speak another language as well. The first and foremost method for a child to learn two languages at the same time is simple. Speak to them in both languages! Even before children begin to speak, they are learning and absorbing, so one thing you can do to ensure your child is absorbing both is to plan your day. Decide for yourself what times of the day you’ll speak which language. Listening to both languages is the first step to learning them.

Even if you’re fluent in two languages, one language probably dominates over the other at home. This is why setting times to speak different languages is important. It is also the less dominant language (especially if it’s not the language spoken in your community) that you must begin to nurture. This can be done in several ways. The first thing to remember is to make learning the second language a positive experience for the child. Teaching them in fun ways is very important, but also using rewards can be beneficial.

Some fun ways children can begin to learn languages at home can be through different programs for sale online that make learning more of a game than a task. These can be games played online, but they can also be more interactive games that don’t require a computer. They are often played with siblings, parents, or even alone. When children do start speaking the second language, use praise to encourage them and they’ll be motivated to learn more!

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Many Franchisors Are Looking At 2009 with More Advertising

2009-06-19T07:37:00.000-07:00

Let’s face the reality of the times. The US government has officially admitted to over 2 million jobs lost in our current economy. If this is true, what does it mean besides the obvious for the potential of buying a new business or franchise opportunity?

The fact is that times like this never last forever and right now may just be a perfect time to take the initiative to investigate the potential of owning your own business whether you are affected by the downsizings or not.
Interest rates are lower than usual and with a new Presidency and administration right around the corner, the time might be better than believed to start a new business.

As the year unfolds, we are going to be keeping a close eye on the franchise scenario and doing our best to keep you informed about franchise opportunities that may be worth learning more about.

While the economic downturn ripples through the US economy, numerous Franchisors are looking at the challenging business landscape and ramping up ad buys.

Take Dunkin’ Donuts for example. They are launching a $100M ad campaign that represents an increase of more than 5% over 2008. I believe that what they are saying is that we are going to fight even harder to maintain and even increase market share.

In so called “normal times” a 5% increase would also be considered normal. In these times of relative uncertainty, 5% sends a definite message. It speaks to a bullish position on the market and is exciting to see taking place. Remember that even though Dunkin’ Donuts has 5,769 U.S. stores that are relatively well positioned, they are right up there on the front line doing what they do best bringing in consumers for coffee and donuts.

The same levels of ad expenditures can be seen across the board in some areas and demonstrates that many Franchisors share the same thinking i.e. yes, it is going to be a challenging year but we are going to do our best to maintain and surpass past performance.

I say that is what we need more of. A positive attitude, a smart business plan and perseverance can really reap big rewards even when the environment is less than optimal.

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Catalogs: Business-Advertising, Business-Branding, Business, Business-Coaching, Business-Strategy, Business-Construction, Business-Customer Service, Business-Employment Careers, Business-Entrepreneurship, Business-Ethics, Business-Franchising, Business-Graphology, Business-Home-Office, Business-Human-Resources, Business-Industry, Business-International-Business, Business-Management, Business-Manufacturing, Business-Marketing, Business-Negotiation, Business-Networking, Business-Other-Business, Business-Outsourcing, Business-PR, Business-Presentation, Business-Productivity, Business-Public Speaking, Business-Retail, Business-Retirement, Business-Sales, Business-Sales Training, Business-Small-Business, Business-Telemarketing, Business-Teleselling, Business-Transportation and Logist, Business-Venture-Capital, Business-Work-from-Home, Business-Workplace-Safety

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Tips for Achieving Your Franchise Ownership Goals

2009-06-19T07:34:00.000-07:00

Is potentially owning a franchise in your future? Do you have long-term projects with short-term expectations? If you do, that is a sure path to frustration and failure.

Owning and operating your own franchise is a decision you are making now along with how you envision your future to be, both in the short term and in the long term as well.

Career change also takes time and planning, and it doesn’t happen overnight. The due diligence process cannot be underestimated with regard to its intrinsic value in the equation of your ultimate success.

Your world has shifted. There’s text enabled cell phones, internet enabled cell phones, twitter, voice mail, e-mail, pagers, and faxes that have made a communication “waiting” period unacceptable and almost obsolete. With information immediately available, we expect relationships and goal achievement to be done the same. As you read this you know that it is unreasonable to expect that, don’t you? We’ve been led by advertisers to believe that we deserve immediate gratification, and that it is readily and effortlessly available!

Simple concepts to consider: If you want to train a puppy, you know that it’s going to take time and consistent reinforcement. You’re ready for that, because you want your puppy to behave in an acceptable way. Why then, are you so patient with the puppy and so hard on yourself?

When you plant seeds in the garden, you tend them, water them, hope for sunlight and nurture them. The question is how are you nurturing yourself?

The best way to move gently and effectively towards your goals is to take a reasonable approach. Break your long-term project goal into sub-goals. Break it into doable, short-term chunks. Today prepare the soil; tomorrow plant the seeds.

Each action you take and each step is satisfying because you know that it is contributing to the completion of your goal. You cannot rush Mother Nature with your garden, and the same is true for your goals.

This process is much more than “bloom where you’re planted”, because when you’re the gardener you choose what to plant and how to nurture it. Do the same for yourself, and grow yourself beautifully. I read somewhere as a child something that has stuck with me over the decades. Maybe it will help you in your preparation to ultimately own and operate your own franchise. The sentence is this, “If you change yourself 1% per day, you will be 100% changed in just 100 days.” Think about it. That’s just a little longer than three months total for major changes to occur.

We suggest that you utilize the resources here at Franchise Interactive to learn about as many franchise opportunities as you think might meet your financial requirements and lifestyle expectations. By filling out the forms completely with each franchise showcase, you are making an investment in yourself and your future.

Our member companies will be happy to answer your questions about the franchise opportunity they represent. Remember that a franchisee enjoys a long time relationship with the franchiser. A great relationship will start from the first conversations you have with your potential franchiser.

You will do your due diligence with them and if you are both comfortable then the future will open up for you…you will be awarded a franchise with a business that suits your expectations. Please watch FranchiseInteractive.com for more detailed articles about finding the “right franchise” for your particular situation.

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Women in Business Today

2009-06-19T07:31:00.000-07:00

Women-owned firms are becoming more and more prevalent now and they are even diversifying into all industries. Construction, manufacturing and transportation have seen the largest recent increases in the number of women-owned firms. With that being said, women still manage more of the retail businesses. Seems that is where the niche has been and continues to stay.

So if you’re a woman and looking to start a business, how do you know what type of business is best for you? Many of the women entrepreneurs say they use the same products and services at home that they do in their business, for familiarity and convenience.
Sometimes it seems like a good idea to start a business with a hobby that you love. Crafts, candles, baskets, baking and sewing often fall into this category. If you decide to go that route, consider the profit margins. Add up the cost of raw materials, your time, storage costs, advertising costs, shipping costs and business expenses. Determine if you can charge enough to have a good profit margin - which should be at least 50%.

In this case, you need to also take a look at the market saturation with similar products. How many stores carry a product like yours? What will make people buy from you and not from the stores they already frequent? People seem to migrate to business that are familiar to them and where they’ve had good experiences. It can be difficult to pull those people away from what they know and over to you and your new business. Also, remember that you want your business to be long term. If you turn a hobby or craft into your business, will you be able to stay interested and focused on that hobby or craft in 5 or even 10 years from now?

What about a franchise? A franchise is an excellent option if you have a good amount of capital going in but not a lot of experience in business or in the industry you are considering. Here’s the great thing about franchises; they provide the product, marketing, and structure for success. They have done it in other locations and have perfected the process. It’s up to you to manage it.
If a franchise is the way you feel you would like to go, consider some type of kids franchise – if you’re a mother, this may be easy to find. After all, most moms have excellent ideas regarding kids that no one else could have ever come up with!

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What to Consider Before You Buy a Franchise

2009-06-19T07:29:00.000-07:00

There is always risk involved when you are buying a franchise. It does not mean that if the franchisor is well known, you will also be successful. This is the reason why you have to look into several factors before investing. Think of it as an investment that you can make some profit from if you do the right things.

First of all, you should consider the reputation of the company or the franchisor. This involves the reputation of the franchisor, services, training, support, experience and profit potential. The ultimate reason for franchising a business is its brand and profit potential. You should look at the popularity of the company you are franchising with and find out if it has a registered trademark. This is important because you have to make sure that the business is not just an imitation of another person's ideas.

You should also find out if the services offered by the company meet your target market needs. The experience of the company is important as well. You have to be aware of the length of time it has been operating or working to know how experienced the franchisor is in the business. Sometimes, the franchisor cannot guarantee close handling of the franchisees needs. That is why it is vital to understand the support and assistance that the company gives to its franchisees.

The training offered by the company is very important, since without adequate training you will not only fail to meet the standards of the franchise, but also be inadequately equipped to run your business properly. A failure of a franchisor to properly train you indicates a weakness, and that could be an indicator for you to get out as soon as you can. Your success depends upon the company's success, and if the company is based on a foundation of poorly trained franchisees, then the future is bleak.

The franchising disclosure document is important, and you should be provided with a copy of that before signing up. This document will give you valuable information regarding the company, including the business background, the names of the executives, the business processes, the franchising system, and the experience of the company in franchising. Such a document also contains information about the history of litigation, costs, bankruptcy, terminations, restrictions, advertising, and current lists of franchisees. So make sure that you read and understand all the franchising disclosure information, since it will enable you to ask the right questions regarding the disclosure, so that you can get proper clarifications before franchising.

After gathering the information regarding the franchisor, you need to look at other important factors such as the location, market, demand, and competition. The location where you plan to establish the business can greatly affect your venture. Your franchising success will depend a lot on this because these other factors are affected by the geographical location of of the business. A sandwich bar might do reasonable lunchtime business in an industrial estate, but very little at other times.

Selection of the location should be strategic and well planned. Visual inspection is needed to find out if there are competitors in the area that offer the same services. Visit the area you have in mind and have walk around. Knowing the nearest franchisees of the same company is also essential because they can also be competitors. The location of your business should be accessible to your target market. Your market research should tell you which types of location are best for your kind of business; you will want somewhere that provides good exposure and best visibility for your business.

With regard to finance, the cost of the franchise should be well analyzed. Is franchising the ideal route to entry? Can you earn back your investment in a shorter span of time? You need to know how long the return of your investment is. You should also expect additional overhead costs when franchising because earning back your investment usually takes more than a year. This means that you will be spending more before you actually start making profit. There are also other expenses to consider such as the rent, supplies, utilities, and the payroll. Therefore, make sure that you have the necessary funds to sustain the business, so that you will not have to face the risk of bankruptcy.

With all these being considered, costs and benefits of franchising a business should be thoroughly analyzed before making a decision. Some of the factors mentioned above are disregarded by people when they go into franchising, but in order to be successful in the franchising business, you have to consider all these factors and make the necessary effort to ensure that they are in line with your business goals.

Given that you have done your homework and market research, there is no reason why you should not join all those others that are successfully operating a franchise business.

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Becoming a Franchise Owner

2009-06-19T06:53:00.000-07:00

So you’re a stay at home mom and you love being home with your children but there are times you long to go back to the days when you worked and brought in extra income to your family. Or, maybe you were the breadwinner of the family and made the ultimate sacrifice, quitting your job to stay home and raise your children.

Many women struggle with this dilemma. Many women feel the need to be successful outside the scope of being a mother and/or a wife. Raising children is a huge responsibility and trying to juggle that and a job can be stressful and tiresome, but it doesn’t have to be.

Instead of working a 9-5 shift or working crazy hours just to find the time to fit you family into your day, think about becoming a business owner. Not just any type of business though, considers a becoming a franchise business owner. If you choose a franchise that is well know and well established, such as a salon franchise, your chance of success is extremely obtainable! You can be your own boss, make your own decisions and best of all, make money!

Lots of women are finding themselves becoming involved in kid oriented type franchises. Most of these women have children of their own and so they have a natural knack for creating a warm and friendly kid centric atmosphere. One booming business is child friendly salons. Many children have a fear of getting their hair cut and styled. Not every cosmetologist can accommodate a child but at a child friendly salon, that is what he or she does!

As a salon franchise owner, you don’t need to have a license in cosmetology or be any sort of retail expert. All you need is the passion for running a business and the willingness and drive to succeed. If you have a desire to work with children, this is something for you. Salon franchises are growing at an exponential rate and that means more business owners are needed.

Remember, if you choose to become a franchise owner, it does require a great deal of hard work, commitment, determination and persistence. This is something that can be managed though, so don’t ever loose sight of the reasons why you chose to be a franchise business owner. Like most business owners today, their goal was to become their own boss and to have a job they love. You can have this too!

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Women Owned Business Opportunities in These Economic Times

2009-06-19T06:43:00.000-07:00

While millions of women check the want ads for a few thousand jobs, chances are most of them aren’t thinking about stopping the madness and putting things back into their own hands by buying a franchising opportunity from an upstart women owned business that understands what it takes to bring women and their families into their stores.

If you are smart about it, spending the money to purchase a franchise can yield a great return on your investment. As you are aware by just skimming the newspaper, these tough economic times are causing established businesses, big and small, to shut down due to a clientele less willing to spend money than they were at this time last year. Because of this, one of the biggest keys to finding a franchising opportunity that is right for you is finding one that is, what business people like to call, “recession proof”. These are businesses that people need to use whether they have a lot of expendable income or not. While people are going to stop buying luxury items such as vacations, new cars and designer clothes, they are always going to need the basics, especially families who have children.

Using this logic, take a close look at businesses that sell discount clothes and shoe such as Apricot Lane or Ross, or fast, healthy food or sandwich shops like Togo’s or Subway ,or a good, inexpensive place that will cut children’s hair that is marketed towards children. One of these children’s haircutting franchises you might want to look into is Snip-Its, a female-owned, Massachusetts- based company that was started in 1993 and now offers 50 salons in 22 states with more to open. Chances are if you are able to give parents a quick, stress free experience that keeps their child happy, you’ll get repeat customers.

It’s also good to keep your eyes out for a business that knows how to market to families. This includes slogans or mascots that are easy to remember for parents and children alike. Think of the “Golden Arches” or “Ronald McDonald”, or even “Chuck-E-Cheeses” cartoon mouse and their slogan “Where a Kid Can Be a Kid”.

These are just a few things to think about if you decide it’s time for you to take the reins and look into buying into a franchising opportunity. You can find lists of franchising opportunities, including female owned businesses, online. Buying a franchised business can be a big risk, but also an exciting and fun opportunity if you’re smart about it.

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