One of the big benefits of owning a franchise is that along with the tools you need to successfully run your own business independently, you gain the support of a bigger established franchise network. At each step of your career journey, from setting up your franchise and beyond, you’ll be able to benefit from the help and advice given by your experienced franchisor and other franchisees who have gone before you. However, building a strong franchise system isn’t just a one-way street. You need to ensure that you have a good platform to communicate with your head office and fellow franchisees in a collaborative environment. In a successful franchise system, it is not only your efforts that will improve your business, but how your franchisor adapts with their franchisees and inspires a collaborative engagement and trust.
What a collaborative franchise relationship can offer
Though you’ll be independently managing your franchise, as a franchisee you’ll be able to grow under a shared brand and take advantage of the opportunities of being part of a larger network of business owners:
? You’ll gain managerial experience and training through an established business model and the knowledge and experience of successful entrepreneurs. The operational support provided by head office will be consistent, continuous and cover all operational areas.
? A franchise offers a more financially secure venture than starting your own business from scratch.
? You’ll share in a uniform product, service and customer brand awareness as other franchisees. You’ll also have access to shared advertising resources, patents and trademarks etc. not so easily attained by small independent businesses.
Equally, the franchisor will be able to benefit from collaborating with its franchisees, in that they will be able to grow more quickly through better brand awareness over a larger network. With growth they will be able to invest in improving goods, services and operational efficiencies, as well as new products. Communicating with their franchisees and accepting feedback will also open up new opportunities to expand or deliver a higher quality service.
How can collaboration enhance your franchise?
Working with your head office and fellow franchisees collaboratively can help your business and the franchise brand evolve in a number of ways:
? Since as the franchisee you are the one carrying out the franchisor’s ideas on a daily basis, you might find ways which streamline operations and improve your service. Making this known to your franchise network will help to drive the whole brand forward for all involved.
? If you don’t agree with your franchisor, you should feel confident in being able to communicate any issues you’re having. Your franchisor should be a collaborative leader who addresses differences in an honest, frictionless way. An open collaborative leadership will ensure that you’re all working towards improvement and not competing against each other. If a franchisee feels as though they’re not being included or there is a breakdown in communication, it could impact on the whole network and the company reputation.
? A collaborative relationship should be able to accept changes to the system, whether it’s the franchisor or franchisee that needs to work with the change. By holding people accountable for their commitments and respecting each other’s positions, change will be enacted in a smoother, more effective way.
Before entering a franchise network, you need to be sure that the collaborative tools are put in place to ensure you can continuously engage with your franchisor and other franchisees. Do they have a collaboration platform where you can quickly and easily get in touch with your head office? Are there messaging systems and events which can connect you with the network and allow you to ask questions and suggest ideas?
At Domestique we’ve been offering successful franchises since 2010, with a proven successful business model for the domestic cleaning industry. When the franchise was launched we made a conscious decision to ensure the support is always readily available and consistently provided. However, we also understand the value of getting feedback from our franchisees and encourage a collaborative support network to help you improve in all areas.
To find out more about how our franchise system works, you can call us on 0121 369 0999 or request a callback.