As is the case with most businesses today, you probably started out small and, thanks to hard work and smart maneuvering, have a gained a high level of success. As you are watching your business reach its operational capacity, franchising your business may cross your mind as a potential option. First things first: it won’t be easy. Being a franchise owner requires a lot of dedication and commitment to be successful. However, there are plenty of franchise development strategies you can use to give yourself a leg up on the competition.
Are You Ready to Franchise?
Realistically speaking, the primary determining factors you must examine are based on financials, branding, and location. Breaking these down into subcategories will help you to better define the potentials of franchising, presenting you with the clarity needed for this big decision.
- Branding. How current customers identify with the business in question can determine their continued support. Was the business branded as a small, anti-Starbucks coffee house? Then franchising may be problematic. But on the other hand, if the coffee house is geared towards working professionals and is always full, the branding will most likely translate to another area near office spaces.
- Financials. The numbers look great in your existing model, but can the business handle the expanded payroll, renovation, or building costs, as well as a new avenue for product and supply distribution? If you are obtaining a franchise, you will want to see the numbers of other franchises in areas similar to the locations you are scouting before committing and make sure you use an integrated system.
- Location. Foot traffic, vehicular traffic, parking, and overall ease of access are all important to selecting a franchise location. If you are franchising your business, it will be beneficial to replicate the demographics and traffic of your primary location when selecting new locations. Buying an existing franchise warrants more research, as you will need to handle much of the location research on your own.
Having as much information as possible will be the key to making the correct franchising choice. Looking at the books will only go so far, as these only tell part of the story. Instead, you need to incorporate proper strategies and involve some solid tools to ensure success.
Franchise Strategies Keep an Eye on Risk
Some franchisers find themselves asking “why didn’t I do this earlier?” The added income streams definitely don’t hurt. However, franchise success only stems from precise planning. Your strategy must include not just financials, location identification, and marketing, but must also include concise contingency planning for anything that could go wrong in the process.
One of the best ways to plan for a franchise is through the “Three Decision Lens” model. This means that any time you make a decision for your franchise you need to think of the legal, practical, and political consequences. Many franchises have taken a tumble from their customers’ good graces through seemingly small decisions that have had large, negative impacts.
Another of the top franchise development strategies is The Upside Down Pyramid. Typically, franchise brand owners are seen at the top of the pyramid and the success of the company is dependent upon the staff at lower levels. However, if you think of the pyramid as inverted, you’ll quickly realize that the success (or failure) of your franchise rests solely on your shoulders. Since franchising is a unique business model, it forces you to view your business choices more critically.
Uniting Your Locations Through Technology
Part of the decision process around franchising your business, or looking to purchase an existing franchise, is addressing the challenges that come with managing multiple sites. Regardless of if you are acquiring one location of a franchise or are branching out your business, having the technology in place to run things efficiently will be a crucial element for your long-term success.
Today’s next-gen POS systems bring you a range of features that will allow you to automate many of your business management processes. Inventory management, transaction balancing, cash drawer reconciliation, as well as monitoring staff performance and schedules, provides you with real-time insights into what is going on, regardless of physical location. Centralized, cloud-based storage keeps your data secure and accessible for fast reporting.
This high level of responsiveness, when coupled with powerful reporting, gives you an impressive omni-channel toolset upon which you can build, and further expand, your business franchise. De-mystifying the complexities surrounding franchise building requires a wide range of tools, and an all-encompassing POS system is the best option on the menu today.
Franchising Development Strategies Require Concise Expertise
Whether you’re ready to start franchising or are preparing to open up another set of locations, it’s easier with the right partner. The proper POS provider can give you insight into what makes franchises successful. They can also help you integrate the right POS system into your business.
Before launching a franchise or opening new locations, owners must identify any liabilities and risks up front. They need a transparent, all-encompassing solution that integrates high-tech answers into existing business processes across multiple sites. With talech at your side, you gain a valued partner in your quest to franchise that will provide innovative solutions to any obstacles you encounter on your road to success. Reach out to us today to sign up for a demo and to learn more about how talech can be a valued business partner.
