HOUSTON BUSINESS REVIEW

7 Reasons To Use a Qualified Franchise Consultant (aka “Referral Broker”)
By Adrienne Leigh

Adrienne Leigh is the President of FranNet of Houston, a franchise consulting firm that provides coaching to clients who are exploring franchise opportunities. She has over 20 years of experience in franchising and entrepreneurial start-ups. Each week, she will provide comprehensive information on the $1.5 trillion franchise industry.You can reach Addrienne at 713-586-8836 or via email. To learn more about Adrienne Leigh, check out her here

1. Education: There are a lot of myths and misperceptions about franchise ownership, and sorting out the fact from fiction can be confusing. A consultant can provide valuable information that will enable you to make a truly informed choice about what your options really are, what the owner’s role in various businesses really is, and what it takes to succeed as a franchisee. The key is to have all the facts and not to make a decision based on emotion, such as someone who thinks: “I love golf so owning a golf franchise will be perfect for me”, or missing an opportunity that could be perfect because the franchise doesn’t “sound exciting” when in fact – if you really knew what the owner’s role in that business was – it might be a perfect fit.

2. Helping you define for yourself what you’re really looking for: Most people start with the premise that they want something “fun” and something that they’re “passionate about” and, of course, something that “makes lots of money”. But what does “fun” mean for you? Do you want to stay in one location and have customers come to you, or do you want to be out calling on customers? Do you want to manage lots of employees, or a few or none? Do you want a casual environment or professional? Do you want a business that’s only open Monday-Friday or are retail hours ok? It’s important to know your criteria before you get started looking for a business.

3. Saving you time: There are a lot of great franchise opportunities out there. There are also a lot of, well, shall we say, not so great ones. And then there are some that could be great for someone, but maybe not for your particular skills, finances, values or goals. Do you really want to spend your time investigating all of them? A franchise consultant can help you focus your energies on the ones that have good validation by current franchisees, strong reputations within the franchise community and good overall potential…and that are a good fit for you.

4. Expanding Your Choices: Frequently people are concerned that working with a broker will limit their opportunities. There are close to 6000 franchise concepts here in the United States and, after all, brokers don’t work with all of them. But the truth is that many people find that brokers actually expand their opportunities and introduce them to great concepts they would otherwise have missed. In fact, about 80% of all people who do work with brokers will tell you that they never would have found the opportunity they invested in on their own.

5. Helping you with the research and due diligence process: In the same way that franchising works because you have a proven system to follow, there is a proven system to finding a franchise. A franchise consultant can help guide you through the process and make sure that you get all the information you need before you sign on the dotted line.

6. Helping you with referrals: Both before you invest in a franchise and even after you enter into an agreement with a franchisor, you are going to need help in finding good people to work with – a franchise consultant who is local and knows the territory will have good referrals for many of the services you are going to need in starting your business.

7. Last but not least, it doesn’t cost you anything: the services of most franchise consultants are free to you, the potential franchisee. If you invest in a franchise that the consultant has referred you to, the consultant receives a commission from the franchisor – in much the same way that an executive recruiter receives a commission when they place a candidate in a job. Your investment is exactly the same whether you use a consultant’s services or go directly to the franchisor. This is a marketing expense of the franchisor to bring them qualified candidates So what do you look for in a franchise consultant? As with any profession, there are some good ones and some not so good ones. That’s a topic for next week’s issue.