The process of developing and implementing a franchise system requires specialized attention and focus from people who have been in the business of franchising and licensing and worked with businesses making the transition from a company owned chain into that of a independent distribution model.
When evaluating franchise consultants to work with a business making the transition into the independent distribution model, it is important to work with consultants who have real experience in the field of franchise development. This is a critical element of evaluating a franchise consultant in that they should have experience working with new organizations in this field from the ground up. It is an extremely different sphere of responsibilities and experience when someone has worked with a mature and stable franchise system that has been in the business for years as opposed to someone who works with companies making the first step into the world of independent distribution models.
Franchise Consultants come in all shapes and sizes. There are large firms that have been in business for years working with many of the industries most successful organizations. These organizations, while experienced and well-decorated tend to be less attentive to smaller companies and will not provide specific, focused attention on smaller groups entering the franchise field.
There are also franchise consultants who have worked in the field and have held positions with large, established companies. They take their experience to the field of franchising and offer consulting services to new or existing franchisors. These consultants are a good fit for existing franchise organizations that need support or guidance in specific aspects of their system’s management.
There are also document development consultants that put together documentation to be used for starting a franchise organization. These organizations provide documentation needed to offer a franchise in a template format that can be altered to fit any new model. These organizations typically provide very little support and consultative guidance for a new developing organization, but do provide the documentation at a cut rate price.
There are also franchise consultants in the field who have smaller outfits that specialize in the development process with a small team of focused consultants who work in tandem with a new franchise organization. The benefit to these groups is typically that the investment is more in line with what a growing company could afford and typically these organizations will also assist in sales and new business development for finding and closing sales. For a small organization entering the field of franchising, these typically provide the most compelling opportunities being that they will be available and more closely tied to the success of the new expansion program.
There are many options and opportunities for different sorts of consultants. The important part is to have in depth discussions and research on each so that you make the decision based on your needs and preferences. Franchise Consultants have a wide range of services they can provide and should provide to a new company, personalities, styles and preferences should be considered prior to making the transition into the industry.