I have worked with a lot of people who operates a franchise business and have seen my fair share of successes and failures over the years. Being a franchisee of 7 years myself, here are my Top 7 habits that good franchisees possess:
1. Positive Attitude – Starting a franchise is no different to starting any business. You must have a positive, “can do”, attitude. You will no doubt be faced with many challenges along the way and you must believe that you will be successful and that your business will thrive. Surround yourself with positive and supportive people and believe that your Franchisor is there to help you, not to take advantage of you.
2. Understand and Follow the System - Suppress you desire to “innovate” and to do it “my way”. A good franchisee must be willing to follow the system that the franchisor has set. Franchises are successful for a reason - they have a proven system and franchisees follow it. That doesn’t mean that you have to be a robot, you still need that independent spirit and creativity, but you need to understand that the system is successful and you should follow it. Most good franchisors are willing to listen to new ideas, so if you have a good one, then discuss it with them before you change anything.
3. Not saying ‘I Know!’- Be in business for yourself, but not by yourself. This is exactly what a franchise system provides. You have your own business but there are people willing to help you. Saying “I Know” means not asking the franchisor or other successful franchisees for help and learn from their mistakes and successes. You must also be willing to seek skills and knowledge, in sales, marketing and finance, to improve yourself and become a better person in the process. Good Franchisor normally organizes on-going training events, so make sure you don’t miss any.
4. Have Passion for the Business- Starting a franchise is a lot of work. You must be willing to devote the time and energy to do what it takes to get your business off the ground. Your franchisor can only guide and coach you, but you have to do all of the work. If you don’t have passion for the business, you can get frustrated when things don’t go your way. Remember, your business is like your baby. You must be willing to do all the dirty work as well as all of the fun work. If you cannot take the responsibility, then don’t have the baby.
5. Good Leadership Skills - Depending on the franchise you purchase, you may have a team of employees. You must possess good leadership skills to hire, train, and manage a good staff. Your business success will depend on them! You need to start leveraging on your team to do the “IN the business” activity, so that you can focus “ON the business” and grow it.
6. Have Fun – Business is just a game. So keep good score to know if you’re winning or just breaking even. Your franchisor would have already given you a set of Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for you to keep score of the most important indices of your business. It’s not just the sales. Make sure you understand the customer satisfaction score, the quality score and numerous others indices that keeps your business in tip-top shape.
7. Focus on the outcome-There’s no substitute for good planning and budgeting. The result of your business depends on excellent execution of a set of plans. Executing the marketing plan, the selling plan, the human resource plan and the financial plan is key to ensuring that you stay on-course and reap the desired results. Remember, business (and life) follows the law of the farm. You will only harvest the fruits when you plant the seeds and water the plant.
So there you have it; The 7 habits of a good Franchisee. You may think that it’s too much to ask of you and you cannot possible fulfill the desired criteria. Fear not. Franchisors are generally looking for people with good life skills and high self-mastery. If you happen to have experience in the particular industry then great, but if not, that is what the Franchisor is there for. They will give you the training you need to be successful in your new venture!
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