When you first step into the area of a Franchise Opportunity one of the first things to hit you will probably be the bulk of the “rule book”, or the document that sets out the foundation under which you may operate within your contract. There will also be a substancial amount of detail around the penalty of not obeying these rules, some of which will be severe.

It is also disconcerting for a new franchisee to recognise that the good ideas that he comes up with on how to improve the operating of the business are nine times out of ten not taken on the franchisor, and more than that are discounted going forward. This is all very much key to Low Cost Franchise culture. A culture that causes a significant amount of pressure and frustration for individuals having recently purchased a Franchise For Sale and less so for those who are experienced at the franchise model.

Those with more knowledge of the ways in which a franchise model works can understand the need for conformity across the whole organisation. This typically means that the same conditions apply to all franchises across the country but equally it could apply overseas too.

The model must be easy to reproduce all over the territory in which it operates and therefore should be designed to allow regional differences in the process. The model must also take into account that the individuals running each franchise will have different abilities and so it must be clear and useful enough for all to handle. This can sometimes mean that an individual with enhanced skills in a particular field is restricted in his actions as the rest of the franchisees would simply not be able to function at that level.

A lot of the compliance boils down to the ease in which the Franchise operator can review and control the complete team. If every franchisee for example was submitting sales figures in a different format it would be very time consuming to evaluate the overall picture and so all franchisees need to use the same reporting documentation. If one franchisee decided that he was going to put a deal together for a particular bundle of products in a selected month the sales of the franchisee in the bordering patch may be affected. This could escalate to a complaint to the franchisor. A few of these sorts of situations needing attention and the franchisor is using all his time resolving disputes rather than continuing to grow his company.

So the rule book, although huge, is there for a very good reason, the continued growth of the entire organisation. If you are considering a Franchise Opportunity do not necessarily be dissuaded by a large and detailed list of do’s and don’ts. Often it is a signal that the franchisor has great plans for the organisation and has the fortitude and drive to get it there. This of course is just what a potential franchisee wants to hear as the brand and company growth will have a massive affect on the profits for each franchisee.

Filed under: AED Policy Creation

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