What It’s Taught Me About Franchisees/Franchisors
By John R. Wilson, Sr.
The story of my introduction to franchising is pretty standard American fare. One of my first jobs was with Jack-in-the-Box while a young teenager (14 actually) in the south Chicago suburbs.
I progressed rapidly through the ranks for no better reason than it seemed that nobody could stick in the organization. I moved from flipping burgers to the front counter and on to shift manager to similar work when I moved to Arizona as an older teen.
I then moved on to McDonald’s, what I assumed was the premiere franchise fast food restaurant in the world! They were more disciplined and focused, and did provide better grounding in the tools to be a good operations manager.
This served me well. I always had work through college because of my extensive operational background in fast food. I could always work and even had some measure of control over my hours since I brought a lot of management, efficiency, systems and discipline to the work I did.
Having graduated college, I pursued a career in professional ministry. After all, that seemed reasonable since it was what I felt called to do and it followed my studies.
Five years later, however, I was buying my first franchise. Two years after that I opened up my second and third units and had already been doing work with the franchise company as a franchise sales person.
It wasn’t but two short years after that and I was the President of their largest DMA owners group and being asked to take a role as the Director of Franchise Relations and later V. P. of Operations.
I would be a franchisee for nearly fifteen years, and since those days I have held roles as an executive in sales, operations and even President of a franchise division of a multi-national company. Later, I would become a consultant to franchise companies and later still consumers that were considering their own careers in franchising.
This leads us to today, which accounts for nearly 35 years of franchising. So, when I tell you that I have “been there” and “done that,” I hope you understand the high level of confidence from which I speak.
I have been involved in a number of vertical markets (B2B, B2C, QSR, retail, and more…). And, having a unique background as a professional trainer, teacher, counselor and life coach I carry a certain perspective about most all subject matter related to franchising.
I’m asked often if I have a critical belief about failure and success in franchising.
I do.
A franchise company will develop a franchise sales program either out of fear, historical sales models and ignorance or out of a long-term vision for business development that is true to the brand must be unique to that franchise companies culture.
Sadly, a franchise brand will use tools that are hardly relevant or capable of predicting future franchisee success simply because, in truth, the tools they use do provide them with a somewhat effective method of creating a basis of communication with prospect. Their assessment helps convince them that from that they can determine the success of a potential franchisee.
All evidence is to the contrary.
In my experience this is why you find such a disconnect in many franchise organization’s between the sales messages franchise companies portray in their marketing materials and the discussions you have with their franchisees; the two never became one because they do not share what they need to share in order to create a common foundation.