Is Senior Care Franchising Right for You?

By: Emma Pearson
Published: November 13th, 2017

Senior care franchising is a winning proposition for many entrepreneurs on several fronts. It can enable you to earn a very nice income while simultaneously helping seniors and their families. In addition, the fact that 10,000 seniors are turning 65 each day ensures there will be no shortage of clientele.

Benefits of Investing in a Senior Care Franchise

When you invest in a senior care franchise, you are investing in a proven business model, which provides benefits you would not enjoy if you started a business from scratch such as:

• Quick Start-Up: You can open your senior care business as soon as you have completed your training and have all the necessary certifications.
• Faster Return on Investment: Due to factors including franchisor provided leads, start-up costs being less than franchises that require a brick and mortar location or lots of equipment, and the short time frame to opening day, senior care franchises can start generating revenue faster than many other business models.
• Support: You'll have the support of both your franchisor and fellow franchisees, who want you to be successful. Your franchisor will provide you with training, both initial and ongoing, technology, and marketing. Both your franchisor and fellow franchisees will help you address any challenges you may be facing.

In addition to the benefits above, many senior care franchisees appreciate being able to meaningfully connect with clients and their families. It gives them great pleasure to see firsthand the positive impact their services have on people's lives. 

What You'll Have to Do to Succeed

• Senior care franchisors when considering prospective franchisees look for a variety of traits including being disciplined, financially stable, confident, and a natural leader with a track record of business success. They know franchisees who have these traits will likely be capable of taking the following actions, which are known to contribute to the success of senior care businesses.
• Sell: Although most franchises will help ensure you have a steady flow of business by providing you with leads, you will have to build a referral network by making everyone you know aware of your service offerings as well as hospitals, doctors, nursing homes, insurance agents, senior liaisons at community centers, estate lawyers, and elder care lawyers.
• Hire Quality Staff: It's not easy to find someone with the right skills and a great attitude who can meet the demands of caring for seniors. Most franchise systems will provide you with training regarding how to successfully do so.
• Retain Staff: It is always more economical to retain staff as opposed to hiring and training new employees. Since you may not have a lot of flexibility when it comes to wages, it's important to implement other incentives such as mentoring and further education programs.
• Establish the Mission, Vision, and Values: Outlining a clear mission statement, company vision, and values gets everyone on your team on the same page. It's important to reinforce the company culture as much as possible, through words and the actions, which in turn will help you retain employees and maintain a high quality of customer care.
• Seek Guidance: It's wise to call upon your franchisor and fellow franchisees when it comes to establishing goals, implementing plans, and addressing challenges relating to your business. It's likely they have helpful insight into whatever it is you wish to do, which will help you accomplish it quickly.

How to Find the Best Franchise for You

One of the biggest factors that will impact your success as a senior care franchisee is the brand you ultimately invest in. Evaluating senior care franchise brands in order to identify which one is best for you may seem overwhelming, particularly since there are about 90, according to FRANdata. Taking the following steps will help you narrow your options down to ones that are most likely to meet your investment, financial, and lifestyle goals.

• Return on investment (ROI): Get insight into how much revenue you might make by speaking with franchisees and carefully analyzing item 19 of the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD). You'll need to identify and study all fees and costs including initial fees, continuing fees, post-term fees, advertising fees, and penalty fees,
• Unit Closures: Review item 20 of the FDD to understand how many units have closed and the underlying reasons for failure. Dividing the number of closures by the number open for business will reveal the success rate. You do not want to invest in a franchise with a low success rate.
• Litigation:  All litigation a franchise was engaged in is listed in its FDD. A system with a long history of litigation is to be avoided.
• Support:  Find out what kind of support you will receive including initial and ongoing training, grand opening support, marketing, and technology by speaking with the franchisor and franchisees. The quality of support you will receive will impact your ability to be successful.
• Systems and Procedures: Businesses with a solid and proven successful system and procedures in place, the definition of a franchise, tend to be successful. They ensure that the entire system works smoothly. Be sure to find out what they are at any senior care franchise system you are considering from the franchisor and how effective they are from franchisees.
• Branding: Consumers are comfortable with brands that have a quality reputation. Find out how the senior care franchise you are considering is viewed and what it does to protect and build its reputation.

The Future of Senior Care Franchising

The senior care franchise industry overall has grown by roughly 65% over the past 10 years, according to franchise research firm Franchise Grade. The firm states that just last year alone over $230 million was invested in the sector.

Several factors have led to the senior care franchise industry booming. They include relatively low investment requirements combined with elderly Americans increasingly wishing to remain in the comfort and familiarity of their homes as they age. In order to do so, most require assistance beyond what their families can provide. Thankfully senior care franchises fill this need. The combination of this high demand paired with a relatively low startup investment, makes investing in a senior care franchise an appealing business opportunity.

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