Franchising Checklist

1. Assess the feasibility of Franchising
   • Gather information
     1. Attend a Franchise Seminar
     2. Read books on franchising
     3. Talk with a Franchise Analyst
     4. Take a Franchisability Quiz
     5. Looking at all of your growth options
        1. Grow internally
        2. Find investors
        3. Franchise
           1. Franchise
           2. Business opportunity
           3. Licensing
2. Meet with a Franchise Consultant
   1. Tour the Headquarters
   2. Are the systems in which the consulting firm follows in developing your franchise program proven
      1. In-House vs.
      2. Outsourced
   3. How many years has the firm been in business
   4. Review their client list
   5. Call references
      1. What work did the consulting company do for referral
      2. Why did they choose to work with consulting company
   6. Is the work done in house by fulltime employees
   7. Is it clear that the communication between the employees working on your program is free from barriers like:
      1. Not working together
      2. Having to work communicate via phone, instead of face to face
      3. How many times a week do the employees see each other
      4. Working at different locations
   8. Is there a project manager to head up your project
3. Do you really want to franchise
   • Meet face to face with consultants at their place of business for advice
   • Talk with business advisors, close friends, and family
   • Evaluate your current resources for moving forward with franchising
     1. Financial
     2. People
     3. "The heart" or Drive
4. Moving forward with franchising
   • Hiring a consultant and finding the right company
     1. Do they have a proven business system
     2. Go to place of business
   • Hiring a lawyer
5. Mistakes to avoid while looking at franchising
   • Do not make assumptions
   • Do not meet with a lawyer only
     1. Legal documents do not drive the business
     2. All lawyers claim to be franchise specialists
   • This is not easy to do if you have never franchised a business before
   • Developing a franchise company is much different than being a franchisee