10 Signs of a Great Franchise

More than anything else, what most prospective franchisees want to be sure of is that the franchise you are considering is a good all-around opportunity. We can use other words like "great" or "solid" or "reputable" to illustrate what you're looking for in a franchise, but the bottom line is you want to know that everything needed for success exists and that there are no major flaws with the franchise.

The following checklist for determining whether a franchise is solid is subjective, but it's based on many years of experience. If you want to know that you're looking at a solid franchise opportunity, make sure to check the following factors carefully:

1. Responsiveness during the investigation process. It sounds almost trite, but you want to see a professional and responsive reaction to your research into the franchise. This is the "courtship" phase of the relationship, and it doesn't bode well for your future as a franchisee if the phase is marked by frustration and delayed answers to your requests.

2. Direct operational training. You need to make sure that the franchisor's training programs cover all the operational knowledge you'll need to successfully deliver their product or service if you become a franchisee. In addition to reviewing the information the franchisor provides about their training programs, make sure to ask the existing franchisees how well they were actually prepared to conduct the business based on the training they received.

3. Other training. In addition to direct operational training, you'll need to learn many general things about running any business. Employee and payroll issues, theft protection and the form of corporate entity you will use are just a few examples of the types of subjects you also want to make sure are covered in training so you are completely prepared to run your new business.

4. Marketing programs. You need to make sure the marketing programs of the franchise system get the job done in terms of building and maintaining a sufficient customer base to support the business. This is another very important area where you'll want confirmation from existing franchisees in addition to reviewing information from the franchise company.

5. Real estate and construction assistance. Many franchises require that a location be selected and built out according to specifications from the franchisor. Since most franchisees have little or no experience finding good locations, negotiating leases or purchase agreements, designing layouts, supervising general contractors or anything else associated with this process, you need to make sure such assistance is available from the franchise company.