Owning your own business is the epitome of the American dream. While this is an aspiration for many, it can prove to be difficult to get your company up and running and ultimately become profitable. If you find that you’re struggling to get operations moving or just have hit a plateau in your independent entrepreneurial aspirations, you may want to consider joining something that will give you the support you need to succeed.
Franchising provides opportunities to expand your existing business. What many small business owners don’t realize is that converting an existing business into a franchise poised for growth is not only possible but is quite easy. At BELFOR Franchise Group, we consider each conversion a true partnership and take the time to help potential franchisees make decisions that will truly benefit their life. Here are a few steps to help you through the discovery process:
Start with the foundation. When considering whether you want to become a franchisee or not, consider why you began your business in the first place. Going back to the foundation that drove you to venture out on your own will help you evaluate your long-term goals. Did you open your business because you wanted to operate autonomously? Was it for max profit? Or was it just a lifelong dream of yours? All these questions will help you realize if converting to a franchise is the right opportunity for you.
Assess your strengths and weaknesses. Take a deep dive into what makes your independent business thrive and what you need improvement on. When researching potential franchise companies, having a strong understanding of your strengths and weaknesses can help you focus on which franchising packages would make the strongest impact. This will also help you have a better understanding of what you are looking for in a potential partnership. . Companies transitioning under the BELFOR Franchise Group umbrella are offered benefits to custom fit their needs. While each franchisee can receive the maximum amount of support that we offer, BELFOR Franchise Group tailors the package to the comfort of the business owner. For example, if a company has a strong lead generation strategy in place, they may continue implementing what has helped them succeed thus far. Every franchisee has access to our experts so they can get the support they need at any time if they wish to use it. BELFOR Franchise Group’s home office staff offers recommendations and assistance but gives each location the independence to handle these operations as they wish as long as they follow our branding guidelines.
Develop relationships and be patient. Take your time to put in the effort to truly get to know the franchising company you are considering converting to. Spend ample time with the staff and understand their culture. Ask yourself: Do I share the same values as this company? Will this company support my long-term goals? Is this a company I really want to belong to? This is vital to succeeding if you do decide you’d like to transition.
Justin Johnson, oOwner of 1-800 WATER DAMAGE of South Metro Milwaukee, a water damage restoration company and BELFOR Franchise Group franchise, says this following these steps werestep was vitalkey to his overall success. While operating his own restoration business, Johnson realized he was lacking the support he needed to succeed. Cynical by nature, he had a hard time trusting potential franchisors. He was patient and developed a strong rapport with the team at BELFOR Franchise Group before ultimately making his decision to convert. After deciding we had the type of culture he was looking to be a part of, he quickly became a BELFOR Franchise Group family member and has seen his bottom-line increase ever since.deciding our culture fit in line with his long term goals, his business began to expand he saw his overall bottom-line increase.
If you have taken the time to evaluate your foundation, assess your strengths and weakness, and get to know the potential franchisor and decide converting is the right decision for you – Congratulations! The hardest step of converting is in the decision-making process, so now comes the easy part. Once you agree to your new partnership, you can begin transitioning, rebranding and seeing an increase in your net profit, all while knowing that you have the backing of an established brand to support you.
Letting the experts work for you while still operating independently – seems like a new American dream we can all get behind.
To learn more about franchisees that have put these tips to use, please check out: https://www.belforfranchisegroup.com/
Ryan McLaughlin grew up working at his family’s property restoration company. Over the years, he has developed his expertise in the field working as a restoration technician, project manager, safety coordinator, estimator, project auditor, and coach. Ryan has been a BELFOR family member since 2003. In 2014, Ryan joined BELFOR’s nationwide training team working towards company standardization and implementation of best practices. Currently, Ryan is a senior franchise consultant, developing BELFOR Franchise Group brand, 1-800 WATER DAMAGE.