FranX | The X-Frantor

The Next McDonald's (Big Idea)

Amazon Opens Franchise Marketplace. One-Click Franchise Buying!

OK, they haven’t. But what if they did?

What would the franchise marketplace look like if massive Amazon disruption came along?

Would there be a franchise marketplace? Online franchisee reviews? Special offers for Prime members? Discounted franchise fees? Direct-to-consumer franchise purchases?

Maybe that’s not realistic, but maybe it is. Either way, disruption is happening.

Rather than waiting for Amazon, it's time that we all disrupt our own businesses. Every aspect of your business and brand, from franchise sales to broker relations to digital strategy and customer service. How can you disrupt your business?

Amazon Prime has over 126 million members and contributes the vast majority of Amazon’s $19.21+ Billion in annual service revenues.

Where did the idea for Prime come from? It came from an idea pitched by an Amazon employee in a digital employee-suggestion box. The original suggestion was to offer paid members free shipping on orders over $25 if they waited a few extra days for shipping. Today, Prime is a multi-billion dollar business.

What’s in your digital suggestion box? What does disruption look like for your business?

News You Can (Actually) Use

Oooh Lala Olo — This restaurant tech beast raises $450m

Viral Franchise Tweets? Hell yes.

Alien Microbes Found on International Space Station — In the low-gravity environment of the International Space Station, scientists have found new microbes — good microbes. Are they aliens?

Killer Brands

The Brothers That Just Do Gutters

Their only business is gutters and...that’s a good thing. The Brothers have built an amazing organization focused on franchisee training, support, call centers, and marketing. Validation is great and the numbers are as solid as they come. This may be the best-selling home service brand of 2021.

G-Force Franchise for Vets

Many franchise brands claim to be vet-friendly but this one has been built by a vet for vets. The G-Force team brings order and marketing focus to the parking lot striping business. Low start-up costs, great opportunity in a fragmented industry, and AMAZING franchisee validation.

Franchisees Kicking Ass: The Franchisee Is King

The Great Franchisee: Whitley Cheatham, Dog Training Elite*, San Antonio

The former paramedic left the medical field to start her own business with the fast-growing dog-training franchise.

Whitley Cheatham has always loved animals, but she never expected her career as a paramedic would eventually lead her to working with animals full-time, let alone owning her own petcare business. But that’s exactly what Cheatham is doing now as one of the newest franchisees with Dog Training Elite, the 30-plus-unit dog training franchise that is quickly expanding in markets across the country.

Cheatham’s Dog Training Elite* location in San Antonio helps dog owners better understand and interact with their pets by focusing on positive reinforcement and a personalized, in-home approach that allows owners to be an important part of the training process.

Yo Broker, Sell My Franchise

Ask yourself this: Does the broker have confidence you can get the deal done?

What have you done to build their confidence?

Remember, they don’t know your brand or you like you do (duh). Build content (videos & written) that explains your approach so that when they place their prospect in front of your brand, they are confident you will win.

That very well could be more valuable than that fancy commission you pay.

The Bottom Thoughts

You are a franchise dummy. Does that make you offended or are you excited?

We’re happy to be franchise dummies. The reality is, most of us are (apologies to the large egos getting offended). We go to francocktails asking, “what’s the secret in franchising?”

There isn’t one, dummies.

Again, not a bad thing. Why? What's new is not new, it is fundamental.

Strong unit-level economics supporting a strong product backed by a powerful leadership team — the fundamentals.

So, let’s say you already have the fundamentals locked down. What’s next? How do you get to the starting line of winning (both young and mature brands)?

Focus, leverage and money.

Are you ready to power your growth? Even if the answer is yes, you can still be in the club of dummies. It’s a good thing.