Nick Powills: Everyone is Fishing in the Same Lead Pool

If I was given a dollar every time I was asked what is new and working in franchising, I would have enough money to buy my own franchise. Truth is that while some of the fundamentals of how you fish for prospects have changed, much of the foundation has not.

A great product, great vision, great leadership, great ROI, great validation and market availability drive franchise sales more than anything else – those truths don’t change. There are certainly brands that load up on the lipstick they put on their pigs, but that’s nothing new either.

Another truth is that the second a franchise fisherman finds a pond with fish, all of the other franchise fishermen come fishing. If I had a dollar every time I was told by a franchisor that their target franchisee is a multi-unit franchise owner, I would be able to buy my second unit.

Multi-unit franchisees, rightfully so, became what was “hot” in franchising. They have more money; they think about scaling from the jump; one franchisee is easier to manage than multiple; and their voice is truly desired because of their experience. There is no arguing that the multi-unit franchisee is the ideal target for many franchise brands. But how full is that pond?

When hunting for someone who is financially qualified to buy a multi-unit franchisee, the number of fish in the pond shrinks and the fisherman count climbs.

Does that make franchise sales easier or harder? Trick question. Harder is the answer.

So, if everyone is fishing in that pond, what do you do? Do you fight to catch the few fish, or do you turn on your little motor and boat over to a new part of the pond? I go to a new part of the pond.

What type of fish are over there, you may ask? The future multi-unit franchisee – someone who has operational excellence, enough cash to cover the costs with a little operating capital, and is hungry to learn business and scalability. Those fish often come with grit. They also don’t have as big of egos.

So, when it comes time to fish, which pond will you be fishing in? Hold that answer tight, though, because the second you talk about that new pond, the other franchise fishermen will hurry on over.