When you first launch a business, it’s a constant flurry of work and the challenges all entrepreneurs face. Maybe you quit a good career, struggle to secure financing, or find the constant decisions overwhelming. Once you get the business up and running though, some of the challenges evaporate.
When you get to that point, you can find yourself looking at ways to expand or reinvent the business. Franchising a business is one way you can reinject challenges into your business life. Franchising is its own animal, so keep reading for some key tips to make the venture a success.
Do Your Research
One of the first things you can explore is the existing resources about franchising. For example, you can read “Franchise Development and How to Grow Your Empire in 2021” as a start.
You must also realistically consider whether you can turn your business into a franchise. A good franchise business depends on reproducible processes and outcomes. If your business depends on a lot of creative solutions from day to day, it’s probably not a good candidate.
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Can You Afford It?
The question of whether or not you can afford franchising an existing business is both financial and personal. On the financial side, you must create a lot of materials, such as:
- Training manuals
- Procedure manuals
- Marketing and advertising collateral
- Supply buying resources
While you might imagine you can develop all of this in-house, you’ll soon discover you need outside help if you want to finish in a reasonable amount of time. All of that help and material development will cost a lot before even talk with your first potential franchisee.
On the personal side, the question boils down to time. Can your existing business function without you there on a full-time basis? If not, creating a business franchise isn’t in the cards for you right now.
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Get Outside Help
As tips for franchising a business go, get outside help is right near the top. You’ll need a lawyer for all the essential legal documents, as well as filing any necessary documents with the state. You’ll likely want a marketing firm for helping you create the advertising and marketing collateral.
You can also look into hiring a franchise consultant to help shepherd you through the process of business franching. These consultants can help you avoid some of the common mistakes and direct you toward important resources.
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Franchising a Business and You
Franchising a business isn’t a hobby you take on. It is, for all intents and purposes, the same as starting an entirely new business. That means you must accept that the process will soak up most of your time and a fair amount of money.
Making a successful go of it means some self-education about franchising so you’ll understand the broad strokes. It also means bringing in professionals who can handle issues like creating legal documents and constructing the necessary manuals.
Looking for additional insights into running or opening a business. Check out the articles in our Business section.
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