Small Business Articles
What Sets a Small Business Franchise Apart
November 02, 2008
In the United States today, small businesses are responsible for much of the nation’s economic and employment successes. 99% of US businesses have 500 employees or less, which constitutes as a small business, and these businesses employ just over half of all working US citizens. For these and many other reasons, going into small business for yourself is becoming an increasingly popular business move. But deciding how to best go about doing that can be a difficult task. Do you come up with a brand new idea and start a business around it? Do you find an existing market that you’re interested in and join the competition for clients? Or do you find a franchise whose business you like and join their ranks?
Obviously, there are going to be benefits and setbacks inherent to each, but that final option, the franchise business, provides some of the best business advantages available. If you’ve been curious about the possibility of initiating a small business franchise, here are some of the advantages that drive many businessmen into the franchising end of small business.
Established Business Plan
The greatest benefit of starting any kind of franchise is that you receive a business plan that has already been tested and proven successful in a number of different geographic and economic environments. Not only is the essential idea behind the business a proven plan, but the day-to-day practices have been refined to meet changing demands and overcome various obstacles that other franchisees have faced over the years that the business has been in operation. By the time you get it, the business itself is hardwired for challenges that you may not even see on the horizon. Any franchise opportunity is a good example of this, but for the sake of simplicity, just look at Real Property Management. Even the franchisee who has never worked in the lucrative property management industry can start up this business with confidence because the whole system, from advertising to property maintenance, is laid out from the beginning, and all the franchisee must do is apply it to his situation.
Low Purchase Price and Low Overhead
The premade business plan is an innate part of any franchise, but a low cost isn’t. Many franchises, like restaurants and hotels are very expensive to purchase and operate, but a small business franchise is a different animal entirely, and one of its greatest attributes is that the purchase price and overhead costs are profoundly low. MonitorClosely.com is one such home based business that, at the outset, only costs up to $29,000. And because of the way this seller of surveillance equipment operates, placing customer orders online as they come in, there is no need to keep stock on-hand, lease office space, or hire any employees. Overhead is little more than business taxes, advertising costs, and office equipment maintenance. And this kind of business structure is not at all uncommon.
Initial Training and Ongoing Support
Those who go into business for themselves have the full responsibility of learning what they need to make their business work; if they succeed or fail, it all rides on them. With a franchise, however, that is not the case, because there is always a franchisor and central staff available, to first teach you how to operate a business you may not know anything about, and then to stand by your side and help you see it through to its fullest potential. For example, CareMinders Home Care franchisees are thrust into the world of in-home care of the sick and elderly, but are never left to fumble around and figure it out. Instead, they are constantly provided updated training and business support as the industry of home care continues to expand and learn better ways of operation. Their catchy motto is that franchisees are "in business for themselves, not by themselves."
Being Your Own Boss
This is one of the primary reasons that the average businessman pursues a career in any corner of small business, it applies to franchises as much as it does any other small operation. It may seem that there is a great deal of franchisor involvement in a franchise business, and in fact there is, but their goal in helping is to make a strong franchisee and a profitable business that fares well under his leadership. And as that happens, the franchisee is more ready to make independent decisions that will benefit both his specific franchise and the greater business as a whole. For example, particularly on the day-to-day level, work from home franchisees with the The Glove Lady, have absolute freedom to attend to any part of the business of selling gloves and safety equipment as time and circumstances permit.
Financial Independence
Unlike continuing to work for someone else, purchasing and operating a small business franchise allows an entrepreneur the opportunity to take his financial status upon his own shoulders and move out from under a boss who profits from his services. Some franchises come with royalty fees, but beyond that, all profit made in the business belongs to the owner. Aside from uncontrollable economic factors, the franchisee is the only one who determines how far his business and his bank account will go. Like a ServiceMaster Clean franchisee taking the helm of one of the most successful cleaning franchises available, every franchisee has sole decision of where the business will go.
Business opportunities abound for any entrepreneur, but none are quite like the small business franchise. And the best part about this kind of business is that there are opportunities in a number of different fields, so whatever you care about or are interested in, there is a small business to match that. Find your business and reap all the benefits of small business franchises in the way that works best for you.
In the United States today, small businesses are responsible for much of the nation’s economic and employment successes. 99% of US businesses have 500 employees or less, which constitutes as a small business, and these businesses employ just over half of all working US citizens. For these and many other reasons, going into small business for yourself is becoming an increasingly popular business move. But deciding how to best go about doing that can be a difficult task. Do you come up with a brand new idea and start a business around it? Do you find an existing market that you’re interested in and join the competition for clients? Or do you find a franchise whose business you like and join their ranks?
Obviously, there are going to be benefits and setbacks inherent to each, but that final option, the franchise business, provides some of the best business advantages available. If you’ve been curious about the possibility of initiating a small business franchise, here are some of the advantages that drive many businessmen into the franchising end of small business.
Established Business Plan
The greatest benefit of starting any kind of franchise is that you receive a business plan that has already been tested and proven successful in a number of different geographic and economic environments. Not only is the essential idea behind the business a proven plan, but the day-to-day practices have been refined to meet changing demands and overcome various obstacles that other franchisees have faced over the years that the business has been in operation. By the time you get it, the business itself is hardwired for challenges that you may not even see on the horizon. Any franchise opportunity is a good example of this, but for the sake of simplicity, just look at Real Property Management. Even the franchisee who has never worked in the lucrative property management industry can start up this business with confidence because the whole system, from advertising to property maintenance, is laid out from the beginning, and all the franchisee must do is apply it to his situation.
Low Purchase Price and Low Overhead
The premade business plan is an innate part of any franchise, but a low cost isn’t. Many franchises, like restaurants and hotels are very expensive to purchase and operate, but a small business franchise is a different animal entirely, and one of its greatest attributes is that the purchase price and overhead costs are profoundly low. MonitorClosely.com is one such home based business that, at the outset, only costs up to $29,000. And because of the way this seller of surveillance equipment operates, placing customer orders online as they come in, there is no need to keep stock on-hand, lease office space, or hire any employees. Overhead is little more than business taxes, advertising costs, and office equipment maintenance. And this kind of business structure is not at all uncommon.
Initial Training and Ongoing Support
Those who go into business for themselves have the full responsibility of learning what they need to make their business work; if they succeed or fail, it all rides on them. With a franchise, however, that is not the case, because there is always a franchisor and central staff available, to first teach you how to operate a business you may not know anything about, and then to stand by your side and help you see it through to its fullest potential. For example, CareMinders Home Care franchisees are thrust into the world of in-home care of the sick and elderly, but are never left to fumble around and figure it out. Instead, they are constantly provided updated training and business support as the industry of home care continues to expand and learn better ways of operation. Their catchy motto is that franchisees are "in business for themselves, not by themselves."
Being Your Own Boss
This is one of the primary reasons that the average businessman pursues a career in any corner of small business, it applies to franchises as much as it does any other small operation. It may seem that there is a great deal of franchisor involvement in a franchise business, and in fact there is, but their goal in helping is to make a strong franchisee and a profitable business that fares well under his leadership. And as that happens, the franchisee is more ready to make independent decisions that will benefit both his specific franchise and the greater business as a whole. For example, particularly on the day-to-day level, work from home franchisees with the The Glove Lady, have absolute freedom to attend to any part of the business of selling gloves and safety equipment as time and circumstances permit.
Financial Independence
Unlike continuing to work for someone else, purchasing and operating a small business franchise allows an entrepreneur the opportunity to take his financial status upon his own shoulders and move out from under a boss who profits from his services. Some franchises come with royalty fees, but beyond that, all profit made in the business belongs to the owner. Aside from uncontrollable economic factors, the franchisee is the only one who determines how far his business and his bank account will go. Like a ServiceMaster Clean franchisee taking the helm of one of the most successful cleaning franchises available, every franchisee has sole decision of where the business will go.
Business opportunities abound for any entrepreneur, but none are quite like the small business franchise. And the best part about this kind of business is that there are opportunities in a number of different fields, so whatever you care about or are interested in, there is a small business to match that. Find your business and reap all the benefits of small business franchises in the way that works best for you.
