After what many franchise professionals claim was a tough couple of years, franchising seems to be gaining momentum once again. This is very encouraging news! But, franchisors must be prepared, not only to handle the increase in inquiries, but in working effectively with today’s franchise candidates who many have indicated are more diligent and cautious than ever before. Many of today’s candidates are voluntarily or involuntarily unemployed, soon to be unemployed, or, may just want to control their own destiny, and are approaching business ownership with the attitude that failure is not an option. In dealing with these candidates, it is essential to exercise extreme diligence in presenting the franchise opportunity all the way through to executing the franchise agreement, and beyond.

I know, many franchise professionals are probably thinking they already do that. Besides, it’s the law to fully disclose the opportunity, right? They’ll go on to state they’ve always done things by the book, at all times. Blah, blah, blah! It really doesn’t matter what was done in the past, how it was done, or why it was done. What matters is that the opportunities that present themselves today and in the future receive timely, diligent attention, at a high level of professionalism, in order for a transitioning corporate executive / business professional to even consider a company’s franchise opportunity. And, if they ultimately do sign the franchise agreement, remit the franchise fee, and commit to investing a substantial sum of money, rest assured these new franchisees will expect and command a high level of accountability from the franchisor, and from the system itself. From themselves? Not likely as they will rarely blame themselves for any part of failure. But they will hold others accountable.

Well, my fellow franchise professionals, it’s time to press those conservative suits, study your franchise documents, fine-tune your operations, and examine and perfect your franchise sales process as any shortcomings will surely raise their ugly heads in the future if today’s new franchisees become dismayed, discontented, and or fail in their businesses. They will not hold themselves accountable. Instead, they will blame the person who “sold” them their franchise, or the operations department that they perceive to have provided little or no support, or the franchise executive that they feel showed no compassion in “forcing” them into paying royalties and advertising fees.

So, why did I turn what started out to be a positive of increased franchise interest after a year of disappointing results, and turn it into a picture of potential problems complete with gloom and doom? To encourage and motivate every franchise professional to be on his or her A-game and to put their house in order. Not only to bring new franchisees and revenue into the system, but to continue to grow their system with franchisees that, when attaining a relative level of success, will refer new franchise candidates, validate the franchise system, and possibly look to purchase additional locations in the future. The alternative of course, is dedication of resources to dispute resolution, and possible litigation. Remember the old Fram oil filter commercial? You can pay now, or pay later!