You have been thinking about wanting to franchise your business. Besides the glory and the money you make, have you thought about what your job will be as a franchisor? One of your jobs as a franchisor is to keep your franchisees satisfied and engaged. So you might ask… when franchising, what are some of the ways you can keep your franchisees satisfied and engaged? Let’s explore a few of them now.
Demonstrate Leadership
As a franchisor you are the leader of your system. Our President Dave’s (more about Dave and the birth of The Franchise Maker) quick and dirty definition of leadership when it comes to franchising is, “the ability to help and guide franchisees to do the right thing, create an inspiring vision and then motivate and inspire them to reach that vision and perform at their best”. Leaders are visionaries, leaders are inspirational and leaders listen (read our article “Leaders Make the Best Franchisors“). Franchisees who join your system bring to the table their own set of talents and skills. You will be successful as a franchisor if you are able to tap into their talents to further motivate them towards the achievement of a common goal (such as: brand awareness, growth, consistent level of service, etc.).
Make it Easy for Them
Imagine if when you started your business not only were you taught everything but were also constantly fed different pieces and given strategies that improved your business and increased sales. As a franchisor what you are expected to provide franchisees is the “nuts and bolts” of how to operate your business plus real-world experience that could prevent them from making rookie mistakes. Going beyond the upfront training, think about what else you can continually provide to franchisees to keep them engaged (see our article “When Franchising Providing Ongoing Value to Franchisees“).
No doubt that as a franchise system you will have more resources and talent at your disposal. You can devote more time to further develop and refine your business. This could include things such as: refining your processes, implementing a new service, developing a customer engagement tool, etc. The more you can continue to provide to franchisees, the more likely they will be satisfied and engaged.
Set Expectations
Expectations correlate with productivity. It has been shown that if franchisees know what you expect of them, traditionally their performance will increase (which is really no different than anyone you are trying to motivate). If each franchisee understands what is expected of them and how what they do complements the system (in other words they realize that their actions could impact other franchisees) then this understanding almost always challenges them to want to do better or “be the best”. This all amounts to a higher level of engagement and satisfaction. Your role as a franchisor will be to set expectations and clearly communicate them to your franchisees (for more on this topic read “What is My Role as a Franchisor?”).
Show Genuine Care
As Dave (our President) says, “Franchising is a people business. It is the business of helping others be successful”. In order to keep your franchisees satisfied and engaged it is encouraged you show genuine care for them on a professional and personal level One of the best predictors of a franchisee’s trustworthiness is their perception of whether you care about their personal well-being. This is the personal element of franchising. Our clients who embrace this philosophy and treat franchising as a people business tend to have happier franchisees (see a list of businesses we turned into franchises). While you are not going to be drinking buddies with your franchisees, just showing you care, believe it or not, goes a very long way.
Franchising your business means you are committed to constantly creating and developing ways to keep your franchisees satisfied and engaged. Demonstrating leadership, identifying ways to make things easier for them, setting expectations and showing you genuinely care are just a few examples. The Franchise Maker will not only create a custom-tailored franchise program for you but also train you how to be a franchisor (find out more about our proprietary step-by-step franchise development program). If you want to explore your role as a franchisor further to determine if franchising makes sense then call us directly at 1-877-615-5177.
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- Key Points to Building a Successful Franchise
- Steps on How to Franchise
- Your Role as a Franchisor
- How Franchising Will Affect Your Future
- Franchise A Restaurant
