I was shocked recently while attending a workshop covering franchisee recruitment (formerly known as "franchise sales") by the participants' responses to the following situation: Assume that the franchisor says nothing in his Franchise Disclosure Document's Item 19 as to financial performance. Instead, the franchisor suggests that prospective franchisee prepare a business plan that would include a projection of revenues and costs for the proposed franchise.

USA Insulation, based in Eastlake, Ohio, has added four new franchise locations to serve Chicago, Omaha, Central New Jersey, and Portland, Maine. Interest in insulation has grown in recent years as homeowners hit by the economic downturn and rising energy costs seek to reduce their monthly gas and electric bills - good news for this franchisor. "Aside from the typical reasons for insulating a home, many of our new customers have wanted to take advantage of the energy tax credit," says company President Patrick Pitrone. "Adding home insulation now can get you a 30 percent federal energy tax credit of up to $1,500."

I have been a franchise lawyer my entire professional career. I still recall vividly my first project on my first day, September 8, 1987. International Dairy Queen had acquired Orange Julius of America (OJA) earlier that year, and we were updating the Orange Julius UFOC to enable OJA to continue to offer and sell franchises. We then also filed the revised UFOC in the various registration states.

On September 1, the SBA announced revisions in its Standard Operating Procedure for financing of goodwill in resale transactions under its 7(a) program. The changes, which take effect October 1st, supersede revisions made in March that limited the amount of goodwill financing for resales to $250,000 or 50 percent of the loan amount, whichever was lower.

You'll recruit new franchisees much faster if you initially understand, prepare, and learn the best methods for selling franchises. Working smarter shortens the race to the finish line! Here are some triggers that will help accelerate your pace.

The historical consolidation of franchise finance sources (local and regional banks, and other institutions) has led to only a handful of major players financing franchised companies over the last several years. These institutions, all well-known household names, have dramatically decreased leverage multiples while increasing interest rates and, most importantly, are tightly preserving capital until general economic conditions show signs of stability. As these lenders limit the flow of debt capital to franchising (or shut off lending completely), there are some trends all franchise owners should consider to ensure their financing needs are met during this recession.

Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to attend Franchise Update's annual Multi-Unit Franchising Conference in Las Vegas. I sat on a panel of experts in a session titled "Development Strategies: Accelerating Growth Through Area Representation." During this session, the advantages and disadvantages of area representation (AR) were discussed. As the session concluded, there appeared to be a few franchisors converted to the AR concept.

Sam and Louie had been in business for about ten years, operating a chain of retail clothing stores. They were 50/50 owners in the corporation. When Sam approached us he had already been working for about 9 months to try to come up with a proposal which Louie would accept for dividing up their operations.

Gaining access to and securing capital is more important for franchisees today than ever. Every week we talk with multi-unit franchisees about how they are growing and the kind of financing it takes for them to achieve their goals and objectives. It's an important topic and sometimes we get some very candid responses.

2008 was a big year for restaurant franchises to refranchise many of their corporate-owned units, according to a recent report from food service consultants Technomic. Top brands such as Applebee's, Pizza Hut, and KFC converted stores to franchisee operations.

Franchisors seeking to maintain growth in 2009 are offering candidates deals in the form incentives, stimuli, reduced fees, breaks on royalties, and more. FUSR will continue to track this trend to keep you informed on what "the other guys" are doing to attract prospects and turn them into franchisees.

I know few people who had money-making investments in 2008. On the flip side, I know many whose portfolios technically beat their respective benchmarks. In a rising market (like that experienced in 1999), beating the benchmark would have been considered a badge of honor--providing ample bragging rights on the golf course and around the dinner table. However, having relatively "less loss" in a down market isn't exactly considered a wonderful experience for most of today's investors.

Savvy franchise companies continue to flourish in this challenging economy. Each month FUSR will bring you good news, highlighting brands that are bucking the trend by adding units, increasing comp store sales, striking deals with investors, and continuing to grow - despite the economy.

Last year, our third quarter cover story on Item 19 urged franchisors to disclose more financial performance information in their FDD. After all, the FTC's amended Franchise Rule, which became mandatory July 1, 2008, contained language intended to make it easier for franchisors to make financial performance representations (FPRs; formerly known as earnings claims)

Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, today announced that more than 100 brands are currently registered for the 11th Annual Franchise Leadership & Development Conference, Sept. 23-25, 2009 at the Drake Hotel in Chicago, and that once again, 200 brands are anticipated at the conference.

Our objective with this column is to identify issues and best practices that will enable franchisors to more effectively address state registration/disclosure matters in connection with their franchise development efforts. The IFA 2009 Legal Symposium's "Ask the Regulators" session provided insight on a number of those fronts. During this session, state regulators identified several common mistakes franchisors make during the registration process, many related to the Revised FTC Rule. We discuss five of those common mistakes, with another five to be discussed next month.

What if there were a web-based tool that could help you create and organize your restaurants' menu quickly and accurately--while also collecting important data and ensuring consistent brand delivery? There is, and companies including Applebee's, California Pizza Kitchen, O'Charley's, Max & Erma's, and Papa Murphy's are now using the technology to create, design and order printed copies of their menus. The tool, MenuNet, is from Trabon Companies, which provides web-to-print restaurant technology and printing solutions.

Franchisee validation can make or break the sale of your candidate. Pow! Just like that, a once-supercharged prospect can deflate to nothing in 24 hours, bailing out of your process almost instantly. Validation is the most influential stage in the selling process. What franchise owners say means far more than what a corporate sales person tells them. Franchise operators are doing it and living it, and it's their experiences that count foremost with cautious buyers.

On a recent monthly Webinar for the Franchise CEO Network, I was honored to interview Rhoda Olsen, president and COO of Great Clips, Inc. Quickly, the conversation turned to what it is like to lead more than 2,800 Great Clips franchisees, and the challenges that must be overcome to communicate effectively.

There's a saying I've heard in business and the franchise community for years: "Either your system is growing, or you are slowly going out of business and just don't know it yet." These days, everyone's singing the "Bad Economy Blues." Unfortunately, this sentiment can become contagious within franchise systems. So what can franchisors do to help their franchisees sustain and grow, and to maintain happy franchise systems in these difficult times? Or at least, what can franchisors do to circle the wagons and avoid franchisee attrition? Attrition is a franchisor's worst enemy as failed and/or closed units reduce royalty income, render some support staff obsolete, and wreak havoc with franchisee validation.

Tony Lutfi came to California when he was 16, a Palestinian-Jordanian immigrant looking for a better life. He dreamed of growing up, getting an education, and becoming a doctor. To earn some money, he took a job working the graveyard shift at a Jack in the Box. Then fate stepped in. "The manager had a heart attack, and they promoted me. I helped the management team in the summer after I graduated from high school," says Lutfi. "It became my passion. I never went back to school, and I was promoted at Jack in the Box."

To stand out among the 3,000 franchise opportunities in today's uncertain economy, aggressive concepts are courting prospects with special incentive and stimulus packages--such as Papa John's, Cafe2U, Budget Blinds, Kitchen TuneUp, Red Mango, and Discover Rental Purchase.

"Are you using social networking (MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, blogs, etc.) to recruit new franchisees?"

You've done your research, you've assessed your own strengths and weaknesses, you've thoroughly evaluated the franchise companies that were a potential match for you, you've got your financing lined up, you've even jumped through a few hoops along the way, now comes the moment of decision. When it's time to commit and move forward with a franchise, you will be required to officially sign on. It's a big day and is often - but not always - marked by a Discovery Day held by the franchisor. Discovery Days are often meant to serve as final meetings that are typically held at the franchisor's headquarters or other corporate facility. Often, the franchisor will cover some or all of the costs of the incoming franchisee. After all, at this point, you've both been in regular contact and things look pretty serious. These events are usually fun, informal, and characterized by high energy and positive words. It's a final chance to talk one-on-one and, if both sides are in agreement, sign on with the franchise. But keep in mind that you are not obligated to "come aboard" at this time, and the franchisor also reserves the right to not extend an invitation at the end of the day. As a matter of fact, you may even consider attending two or three different Discovery Days to help you make your final determination of a franchise concept. That being said, here are some things you should know and do to prepare for attending a Discovery Day signing.

Craig Horn is such a perfectionist that he'll probably never give himself a grade of "A" for performance as president and CFO of Fresno, Calif.-based JEM Management Corp. After almost a year-and-a-half at the helm of JEM, which owns 22 Wendy's and 15 KFCs, he gives himself a "B."

I made a presentation to a national law firm's franchise practice group a few years ago with the title, "You Won't Believe What You Can Learn From a UFOC." The presentation was made to people who were responsible for putting UFOCs (now FDDs) together. They were surprised to learn all the things that could be analyzed and extracted from the documents they prepared.

Starting up a new company is risky business, even in a healthy economy. Despite the troubles and fears that have plagued the economy and business world in the past year, many new franchise concepts have hung out shingles, and others that were just barely off the ground are thriving today.

Franchise Update Media Group (FUMG), the leading industry resource for franchise development, today announced that the ninth annual Multi-Unit Franchising Conference will be held March 24-26, 2010 at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas. Attendance for 2010 is expected to be even higher than the record-breaking 2009 conference, which hosted 525 attendees, 78 exhibitors and 80 sponsors, a 54% increase over 2008.

Thomas "Tab" Broome got an early start in the franchise business, going to work for a restaurant group in Raleigh, N.C., about 30 years ago. At the time, the company ran a string of Darryl's restaurants (which looked a lot like Applebee's, only with a little more variety and flair), a group of 11 Pizza Inns, and The Angus Barn steakhouses. General Mills swooped in and bought the pizza places and family restaurant business, and Broome got a chance to work for a large restaurant corporation.

Welcome to the ever-changing world of franchising! Just when we all think we have things figured out, a new challenge arises. The economy! As I recall, we were all chugging along running our ad campaigns, generating leads, and (hopefully) converting some to qualified candidates. Guess what? Pipeline paralysis! Not that lead volume has fallen--on the contrary, lead flow is rising, right about in lockstep with the unemployment rate as more people are compelled to explore business and franchise ownership options. Yet as lead volume has increased since the clock struck 1/1/09, we are now faced with a new challenge: how to effectively position our business in a troubled economy and actually get qualified candidates financed and into business.