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5 Tips on Finding your First Franchisee

5 Tips on Finding your First Franchisee

By BEN HEINEMANN When it comes to launching your franchise, the first thing you’ll need is that first franchisee who will take your startup brand or concept and run with it. This is an essential step in the franchising process, the one that actually will turn your business into a franchise. As su.....

Nick Powills

By Nick Powills

1851 Franchise Publisher

August 31, 2012

By BEN HEINEMANN When it comes to launching your franchise, the first thing you’ll need is that first franchisee who will take your startup brand or concept and run with it. This is an essential step in the franchising process, the one that actually will turn your business into a franchise. As such, we tapped Steve Beagelman of SMB Franchise Advisors to give us five tips on where and how to start your search.
  1. Stay Local: Starting the search for your first franchisee close to where the brand has started can yield great results. Locals are more likely to be familiar with the brand and therefore also more likely to invest in the concept and take it to the next level.
  2. Talk To your Customers: One of the best places to find your first franchisee is in your customer base. Your customers already love the brand and are familiar with the business. They will also be great advocates for your brand.
  3. I Saw the Sign: Something as simple as putting a sign up in your original location that says you’re now franchising and have opportunities available is surprisingly one of the best, and most cost-effective, ways to find your first franchisee.
  4. Spend Money: You may have to spend some money to get the word out that your brand is now franchising. Public Relations and getting your brand in the news is a quick way to not only validate your business, but makes it visible to the millions of people who read and watch the news every day.
  5. Market the Opportunity: If you’re in the food business, put franchise opportunities available on everything, from the cups to napkins to take-out bags. It’s a very common practice and also an effective one.

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Nick Powills

About the Author

Nick Powills

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Nick Powills, CFE, founded No Limit Agency in 2008 and serves as Chief Brand Strategist for the Chicago-based firm. No Limit is a full-service communications agency that establishes and elevates brands by bridging Public Relations, Social Media, Marketing, Advertising, Digital, and a lot of creativity, to best strategize well-rounded and successful campaigns for 50+ global franchise brands. By presenting visionary ideas and building real relationships, No Limit is able to create effective media branding strategies to help companies grow. Nick currently leads a staff of writers, media strategists, designers, social media experts and digital producers in an office think-tank where brands are humanized for strong, compelling media stories. Prior to starting No Limit at the age of 27, Nick spent four years working at a franchise PR agency where he mastered the art of building rapport with media outlets and creating newsworthy pitches for earned media placements. He holds a Bachelor of Journalism from Drake University in Iowa.

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