AAFD Franchise Tip #1: Find a Consumer-focused Company
The American Association of Franchisees & Dealers (AAFD) is a non-profit organization that acts to educate the public regarding fair franchise practices, quality franchise opportunities, and to expose the unethical practices. The AAFD recommends that individuals considering franchise opportunities should look for 8 elements to consider in a franchise. They believe all 8 are critical in selecting a good franchise opportunity.
TIP #1: Find a consumer-focused company.
According to the AAFD:
Select a franchising company that is primarily interested in distributing quality products and services to ultimate consumers. Although this rule may seem obvious, many (if not most) franchising companies are primarily interested in selling franchises and are less concerned with the quality of the products and services they are theoretically in business to sell.
* From “8 Things to Look for in a Franchise” by the American Association of Franchisees and Dealers.
There is nothing wrong with a franchise company with an aggressive franchise sales program. In fact, you will benefit more if your franchisor is dedicated to growing the system. More franchisees means greater name recognition, greater buying power, and stronger advertising and promotional exposure. However, the AAFD’s warning is a good one: be wary of companies who seem solely focused on selling franchises, and who appear to be doing little to improve the system or to support the franchisees. Here are a couple of warning signs: Are the franchise marketing materials beautifully produced, but the consumer marketing materials dated or nonexistent? Is the franchisor’s website dominated by the franchise sales message, not the consumer marketing message?
Your success is dependent on your ability to attract & delight customers and to give them many reasons to come back. Look for the franchise company that has ready answers when you ask how they’ll help you attract and keep customers on an ongoing basis.
Dedication and focus on customer satisfaction is often one of the advantages of choosing a smaller or regional chain. Learn more about these relatively “undiscovered” opportunities in IdeaFarm’s free franchise guide:
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POSTED IN: x Franchise 101, x Insider Tips
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