Joel Libava
Here’s why:
Because they are local. I know that the next couple of paragraphs may anger some folks in the franchise industry. But this is about you. Not them…..
The last 5 years have been growth years for the entire franchise industry. Hundreds of new franchise concepts have been started. Thousands of people have invested in franchise businesses of their own. A lot of the people I have been able to help have been part of the huge corporate downsizings, and desired more control, and with that control, a way to build some equity for their future.
Another area of growth, which I have discussed here before, is the massive growth in the brokerage/consulting part of the franchise industry. {4 Part Series, Here} I won’t rehash my concerns, again, but suffice to say, there may soon be more franchise brokers than people interested in starting a franchise of their own!
In 1991, when my late father, Jerry Libava, started in this business, there were maybe fifty {50} people in the entire country who were working with future prospective franchise owners, who wanted some help choosing suitable opportunities. Today, there are thousands.
Most of the brokers nowadays work from home, and are "dialing for dollars" all day. They receive "leads" from a variety of internet franchise directories {Like This One}.
If you have been scouring around the internet for that perfect franchise opportunity, you have received these phone calls. Virtually none of them are from brokers in your market area. That is where the problem starts. I am sure that there are some good brokers who work long-distance. But do they know about your market area? Do they care about economic development in your area? Or…do they care more about personal economic development? {Their wallets} What do think the chances are that they know anything about the types of franchise concepts that are needed in your market? Do they know your market’s history? Do they know what there is too much of, and not enough of? That is for you to decide. Another concern worth talking about is privacy. How willing are you to divulge your personal and financial information to someone who may be 1500 miles away? There are a lot of other concerns that I have.
If you were looking for a home in your market area, would you take a phone call from a real estate specialist who offered to help you find that perfect home, who lived out of town?
I am guessing that you would want to work with someone who lives in your local market, who knows the area well, and who actually has an office. { I have an office!}
In your franchise search, what if there was someone local, with a deep knowledge of the franchise industry, who you could meet face to face with, and decide if you were comfortable working with? Someone who has a huge local network of professionals, that could assist you from everything to securing a business loan for your franchise, to getting proper legal advice, to sitting down with an area CPA. Investing in a business of your own can cost you anywhere from $60,000 to $350,000 of more! Isn’t that reason enough to stick with local resources in franchising? I would hope so…
During the past 7 years I have helped only one person get into a franchise, who was from out of town. Everyone else that I have been able to help has lived in Northeast Ohio. I intend to keep it that way. But, if you are not in Northeast Ohio, and would like some help, I have a great and growing network of franchise professionals all over the country who will talk with you. In person. Just go to my website… And keep things local. OK?
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