As a former VP of Franchise Development for an international franchise, I talked to literally hundreds of prospective franchise owners from all walks of life.  By the time I talked with them, they had usually made the decision to try and find some sort of franchise to start.  I invariably got asked the same questions over and over.

• Why should I buy become a franchisee with YOUR brand?
• What sets you apart?
• How much money can I make?

All great questions, and important questions of course.  Every franchisor has their pat answers, and so did I.  We were an international franchise, but new to the US, so rightfully so, we were subjected to perhaps more scrutiny than a more established franchise. 

Oddly, I didn’t often get asked what I considered to be one of the most important questions:

Should I contact existing franchisees?

The answer of course is always yes, you should! A reputable franchisor should not only support a candidate’s right to contact existing franchisees, they should require it!

Having said that, it’s important to remember that this is a process that should take place AFTER you’ve had substantial conversations with your advisors, Franchisor, and reviewed the FDD.  Jump starting this process is not good for a variety of reasons. 

Talking with an existing franchisee is probably the single most important thing you can do.  If you can develop a rapport with one or two existing franchisees, you will often get the answers to key questions that will help you decide if this franchise is for you!

Likely the franchisor is going to put you with someone who matches the following criteria:

• They are a successful franchisee.
• They came from a similar place as you. (i.e. retired executive, expanding an existing franchise portfolio, mom and pop entrepreneur, whatever your situation is).
• Their ownership approach is similar to your planned approach. (ie. Single-territory vs. multiple-territories, semi-absentee involvement of the owner vs. full-time involvement of the owner.)

That was my approach anyway.  I had a list of “go to” franchisees I used.  We were lucky in that even though we were relatively new, (less that 25 franchisees at the time), we had a diverse group from which to choose.

It’s also important to maximize your time, and not intrude too much on the time of your gracious host, (remember, there generally isn’t too much motivation for them to talk to you in the first place).  Have a list of questions ready to discuss on your call:

• How is the training?
  • What is the structure of the training?
  • Do you feel you got enough training to prepare yourself?
  • Do they have ongoing training?
  • Is there an infrastructure for self-training?

• What is the support like?
  • Do you get extra support when opening?
  • What is the support structure?

• How is the marketing?
  • Do you feel like your marketing dollars are being used properly?
  • What are the real expectations if the marketing responsibilities?
  • How much of the marketing is conducted by the Franchisor vs. the responsibility of the franchisee?

• How is the culture?
  • Do you feel like part of a group?
  • Does the Franchisor encourage discussion amongst the group?
  • After speaking some successful franchisees, do you relate to them? Do you share similar traits and skill sets? If not, this should be a red flag?

• Investment
  • Was the amount of the investment consistent with what you expected?
  • Any surprises in terms of capital needs?

• Earnings?
  • As advertised?
  • If not, why not?
  • When did you become cash-flow positive?
  • I usually suggest waiting until near the end of the conversation. People love to talk about their businesses and lives but are reluctant to discuss how much money they make. Having some rapport will help.

Lastly, consider looking through the FDD for Franchisees that have shut down or were terminated. The franchisor is required to list them.  Keep in mind that not every business is successful in spite of the franchisor’s best efforts, so glean what information you can without getting scared off.  It’s more important to understand who and why mistakes were made and learn from them, not necessarily turn walk away because of one or two potentially disgruntles franchisees.

These are just a few of the questions you may ask.  You’ll certainly have your own set of questions as well.   As you go through the process as we outline in our Ebook, (discovery day, FDD etc.), remember to jot things down in an organized manner so  you can use this to formulate questions for existing franchisees.