Franchising Provides an Instant Support Community for New Franchisees

When most people start their own business, they may have a mentor or business consultant, but they often don’t have a whole community of other business owners who are in the same boat.

That’s not true for franchise owners. If you opt to join a franchise instead of starting out on your own, you become one of several franchise owners who have likely gone through the same journey. These franchisees can offer advice and support as you open your own location.

Seeking guidance from other franchise owners is one of the advantages of joining a franchise network. While these franchisees may be in other parts of the country, they can still provide first-hand insights into the realities of running your own franchise location. You’ll find that being a part of a newfound family of fellow franchisees offers you a variety of benefits.

Answers to challenging topics

Being part of a group of franchise owners provides you with a unique relationship you won’t find as an independent business owner. From the time you first begin your journey with your chosen franchisor, you should start a dialogue with the other franchisees in your network.

Ask your franchisor to provide you with some information about the company’s most and least successful franchise locations. Start calling on these owners to find out what challenges they faced in their first year in business and beyond. Ask them how they overcame entrepreneurial challenges.

Other questions can include:

1. What is the quality of the franchisor’s training and support?
2. How soon did you show a profit?
3. Were there any unexpected costs in starting your franchise location?
4. How well-known is the franchise brand with potential customers?
5. Would you invest in the brand again knowing what you know now?

Ready to learn from successful franchisees

When you set up shop for yourself, you may be able to gain some perspective about running a successful business from other thriving owners, but the advice will be theoretical.

When you talk with fellow franchisees about their challenges and their accomplishments, you’ll gain valuable real-world information. In addition, you can also talk to other franchise owners about:

• Potential problems. By discussing the challenges they faced when starting their locations, you can anticipate obstacles you might encounter as you get started.
• Successful strategies. Successful franchisees can share with you the proven customer service, marketing, and operational techniques they used to build their businesses.
• Building a solid relationship. The feedback you receive will not only help you power through your first days as a franchise owner, but also prepare you for the days when you may become another new franchise owner’s mentor. This ongoing mentorship continues the relationship-building process for the entire franchisee network.

Before you approach other franchisees, make sure you have a clear understanding of what you are seeking. Remember that these franchise owners are also busy with their own businesses, so you should set up a mutually agreed-upon meeting where you both have time to explore the questions you have.

Ready to mentor other new owners

As you are mentored by other franchise owners during your time as a new owner, be sure to take notes because you may be on the other side of the mentor-mentee relationship soon enough.

As you formulate business plans each coming year, make sure you also take notes on how to share your best practices with other new owners, which marketing campaigns were the most successful, and the best ways to troubleshoot the problems you encountered along the way.

Facilitating franchisee mentorship programs is a great way for the franchisor to show that its network is filled with camaraderie and non-competitive support between franchise owners. 

There are several advantages to being your own boss, but a franchise network is one of the best ways to be your own boss without feeling isolated.

Be sure to take advantage of any mentorship programs your franchisor can provide to master the franchise system and achieve consistent success. You should also stay up to date on industry trends so you can become the next generation’s go-to mentor and carry on the tradition of mentorship that makes new owners successful.

Bill McPherson is regional vice president of retail network development for AlphaGraphics, a leading franchisor of printing and marketing solutions, PostNet, a global leader in high-quality printing and shipping solutions, and World Options, a global leader of freight and logistics solutions.