by Dr Martin Mendelsohn
There is more to making a decision to buy a franchise than to evaluate the proposition.
Many prospective franchisees have never been in business on their own
account so the first on the list for evaluation should be him or her
self.
Self examination must be objective and realistic and
should enable the prospective franchisee to reach a conclusion about
what sort of franchise would be best after taking into account such
factors as, for example:
- What do I do best - manual work, selling, organising, mixing with people?
- Does my family support me?
- Am I capable of putting all my financial eggs in one basket?
- Do I really appreciate the stress levels which go with self employment?
It is important to weigh up the pro's and cons of franchising compared with other ways of going it alone. The pro's include:
- training;
- benefiting from being able to use a tried and tested business system;
- continuous back-up and support;
- being
part of a larger organisation or benefiting from the advantages which
size produces, eg. bulk purchasing and pooled resources.
It
is necessary to investigate the Franchisor and how long it has been in
business; the shorter the period the more searching the enquiries the
longer the period the more likely that there is a track record on which
to check up.
Choices may need to be made between the franchisees on offer to be certain that the right decision is made.
There are danger signals:
- Do
not become involved in Pyramid Selling schemes ie. where selling
participation rights is more profitable than selling the end products
or services if indeed there are any;
- Heavy initial fees and low or non-existent continuing fees;
- a contract which does not match the promises;
- a hard sell;
- get rich quick offers;
- unhappy existing franchisees in the system.
You are strongly recommended to contact the British Franchise
Association and obtain a Franchisee Information Pack which will provide
you with a further explanation. Dr Martin Mendelsohn
Martin
Mendelsohn represents many major national and international franchise
companies. Martin has been active in many parts of the world providing
support and assistance to franchise associations and has advised
governments. He has written, co-authored and edited numerous
publications, many of which have been translated into several
languages. Martin also lectures frequently at conferences and seminars
worldwide. |
