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Which Kind Of Franchise Company Are You Cultivating: “All For One” Or “Us Vs. Them”?

June 28, 2009
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The ancient saying goes something like this, “Do not deprive the body of its members.”
All for one . . . one for all?
Good advice for franchisors and franchisees, particularly in troubled economic times. Many franchisors and franchisees continue to approach today’s challenges as they did in the good ole’ days (meaning just months ago, and [...]

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Have You Reserved Your Free Pixels At The Department Store Of Franchise Opportunities?

June 24, 2009
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If you haven’t visited The Million Dollar Homepage, take a look. Go now and come back to this article in a moment . . . .
What’d you think?
A million pixels at $1 per pixel . . . and it’s sold out!
What’s that have to do with franchising?
What’s that have to do with franchising — [...]

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Crack The Code To Franchise Development. Here’s How To Develop Your Customer Intelligence. And Why You Must!

June 20, 2009

 
Wouldn’t you like to know when you’re about to sell a franchise to someone who’s going to become one of your Worst Franchisees?
Wouldn’t you like to know when you’re about to sign an agreement with the Customer From Hell?
Do you know enough about your customers?
I’m surprised by how surprised franchisors, franchisees and suppliers are when [...]

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Reducing The Annual Rate By Which You Are Losing Customers. How Low Can You Go?

June 18, 2009
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Our goal is to reduce — by at least half — the annual rate at which we’re losing customers.”
So said the CEO of a Fortune 500 company to the authors of Follow This Path, published in 2002 as a Gallup Organization book.
Where do you rank customer retention?
“Customer retention ranks first among the management concerns of [...]

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More About The Value Of A Don Dwyer And Why You Must Build Best Customer Relationships

June 16, 2009

Dead for 15 years, that Don Dwyer is still getting people excited! Who among us can expect such a legacy?

Thanks for the emails following my blog: Got A Don Dwyer Among Your Customers . . . . That article set the all-time readership record for FranchiseMastermind.com! Within a couple of hours, 60% of my list had already read the blog.

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Got A Don Dwyer Among Your Customers? If Not, Get One . . . Get As Many As You Can!

June 12, 2009

Whether you’re a franchisee, a franchisor, or a supplier to the franchise community, the best strategy you can use to build value and profit for your business is to capture and keep at least one Don Dwyer among your customers. 
Your most valuable business ally
If you do this, I guarantee you will not only create your [...]

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Not All Customers Are Created Equal. So Don’t Give Them Equal Weight In Customer Surveys

June 8, 2009
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My guess is that you survey your customers.
Don’t you?
Your business barometer
Franchisors and franchisees — business owners in general — somewhere along the way someone convinced you that customer surveys are a great barometer of customer satisfaction, and that you need to survey customers periodically, at least once a year, and that you can use the [...]

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Joe Mathews’ Three Step Formula Will Help Keep You In Business For The Next Five Years

June 2, 2009
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Now more than ever, franchisors and franchisees must squeeze every opportunity out of every lead they generate. Truth be told, that always was the case, but in the good ole days — last year! — no one noticed the results nearly as much as they do now.
Selling doesn’t make sense any more
Franchisors looking for franchisees, [...]

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You Keep Your Franchisees Because You Are The Market Leader. You Are, Aren’t You?

May 30, 2009
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Does your franchise, your business, your company, own the hearts and minds of your franchisees and customers?
Differentiation earns hearts, minds, money
If not, you haven’t done your job.
If not, you haven’t differentiated your business. That means you’re not capturing and keeping franchisees and customers.
It also means you’re under-performing financially.
Fear is the wrong approach now
Oddly enough, one [...]

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Franchise Brokers: In It For The Money, Or Do They Really Provide Value In Franchising?

May 28, 2009

 
They want how much money?” I asked Jason Killough, my VP of franchise development at HomeVestors, where I was the CEO.
“Fifteen k,” he said.
“Fifteen k to send us a lead to buy a franchise? Are they out of their minds?”
Look at all they do!
Calmly, Jason continued, “It’s not just to send us a lead, John. [...]

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Creating Loyalty Only Occurs When There’s Value, And Value Is In The Eye Of The Customer

May 25, 2009
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Giving customers what they really want isn’t as simple as selling them the products or services that they’re buying. Because quite often, customers don’t know what they want until it shows up!
The famous haircut story
Readers who have known me for years, and students from my Marketing Mentor program of the late 1990s, will recall my [...]

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The F-Myth: Michael Gerber Explains Why Franchising Doesn’t Work For Entrepreneurs

May 19, 2009
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If you’re a franchisor who has sold a franchise to an entrepreneur, read this! It explains why you’re frustrated. 
If you’re an entrepreneur who bought a franchise, read this! It explains why you’re unhappy. 
Hurry! Because in neither case will things get better. Of that I am certain.
Michael Gerber says so, too!
So is Michael E. Gerber, author [...]

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Franchisors: Franchisees Must Be Treated Equally? Franchisees: Customers Must Be Treated Equally? Someone’s Talking Nonsense!

May 17, 2009
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Who says all franchisees must be treated equally? Or that all customers must be treated equally? Both notions are nonsense! Worse: They’re fiscally irresponsible.
Customer entitlement must be earned
Today I’m at the Las Vegas Hilton, just hours before speaking to a major convention, and there’s no place better than a Vegas hotel casino to emphasize the [...]

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Franchisors & Franchisees: Keeping Customers Should Be Your #1 Priority Now

May 15, 2009
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Who’s going out of their way to keep you as a customer these days?
. . . Can’t think of anyone?
You’re probably right. And isn’t that just wrong?
Especially now.
This is a common business error
Business owners — including franchisors and (especially) franchisees — make this same mistake repeatedly. They even do it in the best of [...]

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Inaccessibility Makes You Feel More Important But Are You Missing Growth Opportunities?

May 14, 2009
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The Wall Street Journal is calling . . . they want a quote from your CEO for an article they’re running about your industry, and it would behoove your company to be represented. Would result in numerous franchise sales leads, as well as other inquiries that could lead to growth opportunities for your business! Something [...]

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What’s It Cost You NOT To Franchise Your Business?

May 7, 2009
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We’ve seen numerous articles through the years about what it costs to franchise your business, but I suggest you think about it another way: What’s it cost you not to franchise your business?
Loss is greater than the cost
The cost to franchise a business varies greatly, from less than $40,000 to more than $150,000, and whether [...]

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34 Action Items That Lead To More Control And Success For Franchisors And Franchisees

May 5, 2009
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It wasn’t bad enough with the depressed economy. Now there’s swine flu. And the kids are home from school! More to complain about, if you’re a complainer. More to be concerned about, if you’re a worrier. More period.
Suddenly you get the idea you’ve lost control and there’s not much you can do about any of [...]

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8 Steps To Calculating Maximized Customer Lifetime Value. Critical Number To Know!

May 3, 2009
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This blog continues my discussion relative to customer value. I urge you to read the previous blogs about this topic — for both franchisors and franchisees. Here’s where you can find them:  
Read these past lessons first

Franchisors: What Business Are You In?
How Much Did That Franchisee Cost You? 
Franchisor: What’s The Value Of Your Franchisee
Franchisors: How [...]

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Franchisees: Get Double-Digit Sales Increase Without Additional Investment

May 1, 2009
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Sometimes a sales increase is as easy as returning to your core business and paying attention to what the customer wants.
Double-digit sales increase
At a recent Franchise Business Network meeting in Dallas, a member of the audience told how he had helped a well-known convenience store franchise gain double-digit sales growth.
“When we cleaned out a store [...]

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An Opportunity For Franchisors To Be Heroes: 8 Steps To Help Franchisees Survive Recession.

April 30, 2009
Thumbnail image for An Opportunity For Franchisors To Be Heroes: 8 Steps To Help Franchisees Survive Recession.

This economic recession is an opportunity for franchisors to become heroes in the eyes of their franchisees!
This is a rare opportunity for franchisors
You have an opportunity to make decisions that will keep your franchisees in business and help them get through this economic downturn. You’ve never had an opportunity quite like this one. Deliver and [...]

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