Many entrepreneurs believe that franchising provides them with the best option to own a business of their own. Of course, there are many reasons, not the least of which is the advantage of following a proven business model designed to provide the best chance of success and sustainability. Once they’ve been convinced, a second question arises—what type of franchise is right for me? In today’s blog edition, we’re going to discuss who is a good fit for service-based franchise ownership.
There are hundreds of service-based franchise offerings, but the core group of them involve residential and commercial services such as home improvement, cleaning, décor upgrades, painting and even pest control concepts. The common thread for service-based franchises is improvement.
Here are some commonalities that might make you a good fit for a service-based franchise:
A More Conservative Entry
Most—but not all—service-based franchises tend to skew to a lower buy-in amount and can be much faster to get up and operational compared to brick and mortar or facility-based franchises. In many cases, you may be able to begin your business working from home until you gradually find the need to expand. This leads us to our next point…
Scalability
Again, not every service-based franchise is scalable, but a majority of them are. This means you can conceivably begin your business with a minimum of equipment, overhead and personnel requirements. As your franchise develops through your territory, you have the option to add trucks or additional staff as needed, which is an efficient way to keep spending in check.
Flexibility
Many service-based franchises offer a degree of flexibility in operating hours than more traditional brick and mortar store operations. The open and close operating hours are typically set by the franchisor and must be followed according to your operations manual, but service-based franchises are almost always done via appointment setting. This allows you to manage and set appointments that can potentially provide you with the flexibility you might need for personal business.
Semi-Absentee
Many service-based franchises can be owned and operated via the semi-absentee model, meaning that once your operation is up and running, with a full appointment calendar, you have the option to scale back your day-to-day oversight of the business. However, any semi-absentee business model must be investigated with due diligence. Not every operation, nor franchisee candidate, is cut out for this method of operation and it’s highly recommended you discover if this is the right choice for you.
It’s no secret that several service-based franchises were thriving last year, despite the restrictions and limitations of operating a business amidst the pandemic. In fact, the pandemic was likely responsible for the uptick in home remodels, painting and handyman services. You can credit the personal intrusion of Zoom calls that revealed a peek into our colleagues’ homes as part of the reason!
Lastly, to be a good fit for a service-based franchise, and a lot of other concepts, it’s a plus if you have good interpersonal skills and appreciate the art of networking. It takes an outgoing personality and the gift of gab to build that customer base.
A new year is a perfect time to embark on a personal journey of empowerment and improvement. But you have to be willing to take action. This year can be what you make of it. The power to change is an admirable thing. We see it in all of the budding entrepreneurs who have made the decision to use franchising as a vehicle to business ownership. And what they can do, you can do.
If you think you’d be a good fit for a service-based franchise, let’s start a conversation. Drop us a line or give us a call and FranNet can get you started…