Another franchise buying tip for the non business person.

You are excited about the business you are looking at and in most cases you have gone out on a limb  and “emotionally bought in” to the business and no matter what someone tells you, you are going to buy it. BUT to be sure you have made sure and made an appointment with the franchise groups marketing and sales dept and want to find out more.

In essence  you have already bought and the more details you seek from the company (who’s main interest is to sell you a franchise) the more they know you are interested. However the smart person will take this step and make it just another part of their research… but watch out for the things that some people would say are sneaky habits the sales crew might use.

- There are limited opportunities - We are selling x No of territories per week, so don’t miss out. This is often true but how long has the territory you are after been on the market? is it a resale and if so why? Get in touch with the previous owner and hammer them for info, the real info not the trumped up “Oh I have a back injury and can’t continue…” ask about the turnover, the profits, and the customers perhaps even the staff they had or still have etc.

- A good operator can make a real go of this franchise - Then ask them to define a good operator, if its a person that works 16 hours per day, 7 days a week then you might need to rethink things. Call up existing franchisees and see what sort of commitment they are putting in and the payola for that.

- Your time is your own - Sure you might have time flexibility but at what cost? If you take a day off to go to kids functions, performances etc will the income drop for the time you are not there (especially if you are a one person franchise).

- We support and train you - Okay what sort of support do they really give, ask the other franchisees when you do your research… find out how they practically put in to make your business be all it can be. Do they hep your with business plans, do they review business plans? and the list goes on.

- It’s a great lifestyle choice, you can be your own boss! - So what’s the advantage in that? Often it means more headaches than just working for someone else. Start asking people in business about being a boss and what that might really mean to you.

These are just a few, but I  hope it helps  you to “see through” the surface information to find the real  meat in the sandwich, not just the fillers.

Stumble it!