People buy from people
The idea of “people buy from people” is a well-known, popular sentiment and one of the most important aspects when it comes to negotiating with franchisees.
You are the face of your business
In your early days, with no representatives acting on your behalf, the perception of your business rests on your shoulders. In order to get franchisees interested in your business model, you’ll need to appear confident and charismatic.
The concept itself is, of course, important, but when it comes to business models there are plenty of fish in the sea. You need to make you and your business model stand out from the crowd, and one of the most efficient ways to do that is by becoming the kind of person that people want to work with. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll achieve just by being someone that franchisees look forward to doing business with.
Tell your story on social media
As you may have guessed already, your social media is absolutely critical when it comes to making a good first impression with franchisees. These days, people do their homework on people before doing business with them, so you need to ensure you appear just as confident and charismatic on social media as you appear in person. Allow your franchisees to get to know you through social media. This will make the face to face meeting run much more smoothly.
Make sure you share your career and business history on your website or social media. Treat it like you would a job application. When you apply for a job, you’re trying to confidently demonstrate your skills and make a good impression (or at least if you’re doing it right you are!). It’s no different with franchisees. Franchisees will feel more comfortable meeting and doing business with you if they’ve been able to put a face to the name beforehand.
Do your homework too
Of course, this is a two-way street. You should be doing the same with potential franchisees. Check their social media, find out what makes them tick, have a look at their career history and assess whether they’re the right people for the job.
The fact that “people buy from people” is one of the biggest advantages smaller businesses have other larger ones. The executives of larger companies run the show but they’re unlikely to be there for the face to face meetings with their franchisees. This detracts from the vital human element of your business and could make it harder for your franchisees to feel comfortable working with your brand.
So make sure you let your personality and story grab the attention of potential franchisees online.
You can listen to more on what I have to say about this topic on my podcast "The Franchise Entrepreneur", available now on iTunes and Spotify.