Annual Disclosure Document update
If you have not already updated your 2011 Disclosure Document and 
your financial year end was 30 June you are in breach of the Franchising code of Australia.
Under section 6 of the Code, franchisors must update their whole Disclosure Document within 4 months of the end of the financial year, which for most franchise systems is 31 October 2011.
Key points to remember are:
Any franchisee entering into an agreement after 31 October 2011, whether it be as a result of the grant of a new franchise, a resale, a renewal or just as a result of parties entering into an agreement that varies a prior franchise agreement; must have been given the current franchise documentation i.e. updated to at least 1 July 2011, at least 14 days prior to the signing of such documents.
Existing franchisees have the right to request, once every 12 months, that a current Disclosure Document be provided to them. This demand must be met within 14 days of their demand.
The ACCC can as part of their audit powers require a copy of the past and current Disclosure Document and related franchise materials at any time, and franchisors must generally comply within 21 days.
Disclosure Document review
It is recommended that the whole disclosure document should be reviewed with relevant sections updated as required, but pay particular attention to: Continue reading
Franchisor ignorance allowed internet bad press for the franchise
Enlightened companies acknowledge that social media is a powerful medium for conveying a message to a large number of people in a very short space of time.
Social media can be used in a positive manner to convey marketing messages, or it can be used to publicly express dissatisfaction with a company or service.
Recently I had a very unsatisfactory customer service experience with a local franchised business. The manager wasn’t on the premises so I asked the young assistant to ask the manager to call me. He didn’t, so I rang the shop to be told that the manager was too busy to talk to me about their customer service.
I decided to see if The Franchisor was more customer service focused and aware, by posting on both Facebook and Twitter. It went something like this “Had a truly awful experience at ‘company name’s’ local store today, and the manager doesn’t care”. I waited to see whether the company would pick up the comment. They didn’t.
So to give them a second chance – I posted again. I had lots of comments from other people who saw the post but none from the company.
Google alert is a tool that allows businesses or individuals to monitor for free, what is being said about their company in the online world. It is a free service.
You can’t stop people talking about you online, but being aware of what they’re saying allows you the opportunity to respond quickly to diffuse a situation.
You do not have to be engaged in social media to use this tool. Google will send you an email of whatever message they find online. Twitter will also pick up any “mention” of you if you subscribe – again for free.
In my opinion all businesses and Franchisors in particular, need to be informed about what is being said about their businesses online, and Google Alert provides an easy and free method of achieving this.
Go to www.google.com/alerts to set up your alert today. No excuses now!
© franchisingplus
Author ; Carolyn Dufton Dip.Bus(franchising)
Carolyn is the principal of franchisingplus. franchisingplus is a franchising consultancy advising and mentoring on all aspects of franchising on a national and international basis.
The content displayed is franchisingplus copyright and can only be reproduced or re-published with the acknowledgement of the author Carolyn Dufton. www.franchisingplus.com.au/contact/
The F World on ABC radio
Listen in on this ABC radio interview with Scott Levi, on the Day Shift. Scott Levi and Carolyn discuss the ups and downs of franchising in this candid interview. As discussed in the interview, for anyone interested in the world of franchising, The F World is a book that could save you a lot of money and heartache.
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Listen to Carolyn speaking with Scott Levi on 92.5 ABC Central Coast.
Learn more about The F World Book
Franchising – The Best, The Worst and The Scary
Why I wrote The F World book
The book has been “in me” for a long long time. Every client I met and every franchising story I heard provided material for the The F World book.
I had reached a point where I was bursting with stories and information to share, and knew that writing a book was the outlet I needed. I had already completed a 3 part CD series for clients (Discover Your Franchising Potential) considering franchising, and this has been really well received.
This time, I wanted to write a book for everyone.
The F World book is a generic franchising commentary and will appeal to anyone wanting to know more about franchising. The book is not a hard sell for franchising. It is a ‘warts and all’ objective commentary on the franchising world and its common practices. As I say in the book, not everyone is suited to franchising.
As a franchising consultant /coach, I work with Franchisees and Franchisors alike, so I have no bias to any particular sector of the franchising industry. Some of the things I see in franchising I love, whilst other situations I encounter I detest.
Much coverage of franchising is biased. The media can sensationalise a “hard done franchisee story’ and a franchisor can spend a large sum of money to obtain great editorial about the wonders of his franchise.
I wanted to write a book that told the truth about franchising.
The F World book has been written in plain everyday language for those looking to learn more about the reality of small business franchising. In particular it will provide insight for potential and existing Franchisees or Franchisors in small to medium franchise networks.
Franchisees and franchisors are asked to review their franchising performance and the book then gives examples of how to be ‘the best’.
I sincerely hope that readers will learn from the experiences and mistakes of others as described in this book, particularly in the ‘scary’ chapter.
You can buy a copy of The F World book here: http://franchisingplus.com.au/fworld/
Or for US and UK residents visit: www.amazon.com
© franchisingplus
Author ; Carolyn Dufton Dip.Bus(franchising)
Carolyn is the principal of franchisingplus. franchisingplus is a franchising consultancy advising and mentoring on all aspects of franchising on a national and international basis.
The content displayed is franchisingplus copyright and can only be reproduced or re-published with the acknowledgement of the author Carolyn Dufton. www.franchisingplus.com.au/contact/
Franchising news:The good, the bad and the awful
The good news
- Franchising profits are up according to the latest survey from PricewaterhouseCoopers.
- Franchisor profits rose an exceptional 19 percent, while franchisees showed growth about twice the rate of the Consumer Price Index.
- The current franchise profit levels of about six percent are set for a huge jump to just under 46 percent over the next three years, the report indicates.
The bad news
- The sector does face challenges, not least the funding of franchisees who are unable to get the appropriate finance from banks, an issue 73 percent of franchisors cite as a major hurdle.
The really awful news!
Have you been reading about the chaos surrounding the demise of Allied Brands? Franchisingplus believes that this debacle is a blight on the franchising sector.
The company’s shares remain suspended from trade on the Australian Securities Exchange, its Cookie Man chain is in the hands of liquidators and reports from disgruntled creditors are growing.
The company is also locked in a dispute with the global owner of the Baskin Robbins brand, US company Dunkin Brands.
To add to the chaos The Department of Immigration & Citizenship has accused Allied Brands of breaching immigration laws by running an elaborate immigration rort where it sponsored a group of Korean nationals to work in administrative roles under 457 visas, put them to work in Baskin Robbins stores and in some cases sold Baskin Robbins stores and in some cases sold Baskin Robbins franchises to their family members.
To add to the bad press, the CEO admitted last week that the company has fallen behind on some employee’s superannuation payments with employees acknowledging they have little hope of being recouped for their losses.
Any prominent negative media story like this affects all franchising personnel:
Franchisors selling franchises
Franchisees trying to onsell a franchise
Franchise advisers who establish new systems
Any franchise professional who does not want the
reputation of franchising to be further tarnished.
Financiers who are nervous about putting all their
financial eggs in one basket. If a Franchisor goes down and
they have funded many of the Franchisees in that system, the
impact for a lender can be severe.
These bad news stories only reinforce why creating and then maintaining responsible, sustainable franchise systems is so vital for the benefit of the reputation of franchising and all involved in the franchising sector.
© franchisingplus
Author ; Carolyn Dufton Dip.Bus(franchising)
Carolyn is the principal of franchisingplus. franchisingplus is a franchising consultancy advising and mentoring on all aspects of franchising on a national and international basis.
The content displayed is franchisingplus copyright and can only be reproduced or re-published with the acknowledgement of the author Carolyn Dufton. www.franchisingplus.com.au/contact/
Franchising Internationally
Expanding a franchised business overseas is a natural progression for many entrepreneurial franchisors. For others, it is a concept that is considered too high risk to consider.
So let’s explore the concept of expanding overseas.
Firstly, before even considering overseas, a Franchisor needs to be confident that the franchise business model is working efficiently, effectively and profitably. A business that is not performing well in its own country is highly unlikely to perform any better internationally!
Why would you consider expanding internationally?
It’s essential to have identified and thoroughly examined the objective and anticipated outcome for expanding the business overseas.
Some reasons for expanding overseas may include;
- Demonstrated interest from a party overseas
- International distribution of an existing product under a franchised system.
- The desire to do business in a specific country due to family/friend ties.
- The sheer challenge of it!
- Limited home market
- Research identifies that your product/service would perform well in specific overseas markets.
What to do next? Continue reading
Spring clean your franchise
Well spring is now upon us and isn’t it just a beautiful time of th
e year?
I don’t know about you, but I find that at this time of the year I get a bit of spring fever!
So I use this extra burst of energy for spring cleaning my business.
Maybe you could do the same? So what could that entail?
- Throwing out those D grade clients – the ones who don’t pay and who don’t appreciate your time and effort.
- Reviewing a strategy for “improving or removing” underperforming and negative franchisees.
- Getting a new business image! Take an objective look at your branding. Is the font tired and outdated? Are the colours uninspiring? Is the brand professional? Would potential franchisees be impressed with your brand?
- Update your recruitment strategy and bring it in line with 2010 technology.
- Declutter the work space. It’s amazing how much junk we all accumulate in our offices. Get rid of it… you’ll feel great.
- Clean and detail working vehicles and environments.
- Rid yourself of staff who are a negative drain on the business but be sure to consult an HR/IR expert before you do.
- Put flowers into the office – it’s incredible how uplifting flowers can be in an environment.
- Have the air-conditioning serviced – it won’t be long before you’re turning that knob from hot air to cool!
- Run a spring themed group meeting with franchisees and share these tips with them. Allow them to rid their winter cobwebs and vent a bit to encourage a new start.
- Many businesses experience a surge in business prior to Christmas, so use this time to prepare for the onslaught. Plan ahead.
- Buy yourself some new summer clothes (well I am a female so of course I think that way) but all you men out there will look fresh and spring like in some new season outfit too!
So then, when you’ve had your spring clean you’ll be ready for a new bout of new business and A grade franchisees and clients.
© franchisingplus
Author ; Carolyn Dufton Dip.Bus(franchising)
Carolyn is the principal of franchisingplus. franchisingplus is a franchising consultancy advising and mentoring on all aspects of franchising on a national and international basis.
The content displayed is franchisingplus copyright and can only be reproduced or re-published with the acknowledgement of the author Carolyn Dufton. www.franchisingplus.com.au/contact/
Does your Recruitment material have “The WOW factor”?
In todays ultra competitive franchise market, it pays to h
ave
The Wow factor in your recruitment material.
I remember speaking to a franchising prospect a few years ago and he told me that he had turned down 3 cleaning franchises purely on the low standard of their information pack.
Gone are the days when you can send out a photocopied, drab information document. This information pack is often the first impression that a franchise prospect has of your company.
This document then travels to the prospect’s franchise adviser, lawyer and accountant, who in turn would probably comment on the low standard of presentation.
A low standard of information material suggests a “can’t be bothered” approach to the franchising process.
So, be honest and take a long hard look at what you’re currently sending out to your potential franchisees. Continue reading
How do you calculate the correct franchise fee?
I spoke to a client recently who contacted me because of having challenges growing his franchise network.
The first question I always ask is, how much is your franchise fee?
A correctly structured franchise fee is paramount to the acquisition of new franchisees and the growth of the network.
Many Franchisors I speak to have literally plucked the franchise fee out of nowhere!
Now this method may or may not have worked for you. If it’s worked so far then that’s great.
Don’t try and fix something if it’s not broken.
If however…you are having troubles selling franchises, and even getting that initial enquiry, then it may be time to reassess. Continue reading
How to have an effective Franchise Advisory Council?
What is a Franchise Advisory Council?
These organisations can operate under many titles and you may choose to call yours a;
- Business development group
- Filter group
- Advisory committee
- Network council
and really anything else that appeals to you! I would suggest that you don’t get too hung up on the name and that you keep it simple.
So the name aside, why and how would you form a franchise council within your franchise network? or if you have already one, how could you improve what you’re doing now?
Some franchise councils are formed specifically to address a particular niche of the business. This could be ;
- Marketing
- Product R and D
- Conflict
- Service
In general terms the group should be formed to aid consultation on matters of deemed priority by The Franchisor and The Franchisees.
Most franchise councils do not cover specific topics and are broad based discussion groups.
Many Franchisors are apprehensive about forming franchise councils as they fear that will become group “whingeing” opportunities. Continue reading
