Monday, August 24, 2009

The Advantages and Disadvantages of Running a Franchise

When it comes to starting up your own business, the thought of a Denver franchise has a lot of appeal. When starting a franchise you already know that your customers have heard the name of your business and will most likely come to your shop as well. You already have that free advertising going for you. Nothing can spread business faster than word of mouth. But there are pluses and minuses to every type of business you could decide to start up. It would be a good idea to read through some rent-a-center franchise information before jumping in feet first.

One of the major benefits to starting up your own franchise is that the franchisor often provides a significant amount of training. This is highly beneficial since any other business would not have access to this type of assistance. While your franchise might have to pay for the training, this is a better option than having to go out and figure it all out on your own. In addition, the franchisor will usually provide continued support and mentoring throughout the life of your own rent-a-center franchise. This is due to the fact that each franchisor wants to see each branch of their company succeed. They will not want to have one of their own stores ruin the reputation of all the stores.

On the other side of the advantages are also some disadvantages. The biggest disadvantage that you have owning your own Denver franchise is the loss of control in most aspects of your company. If you want to make any changes the change must be approved by the franchisor. Also, if the franchisor is not running the company to the benefit of each franchise, this can cause major problems between you and the franchisor. You should make sure to read through your franchise agreement as most of these have you sign your rights away if any such disagreement should occur. The other main disadvantage is the cost in general. There is an upfront fee that you must pay to the franchisor for using their name and trademark. You will also have to pay royalties to the franchisor which will cut into your pocketbook for the life of your business.

While starting up your own business sounds like a wonderful idea, it is also a good idea to weigh the good and the bad that go along with opening a franchise. After you read some RAC franchise information you might decide that you still want to go ahead or you might change your mind altogether. It just depends on what type of business owner you want to be.

Work at Home Franchise Opportunities

Potential Franchisees seeking a business opportunity that can be run from have never had such a great choice. Franchisors have now realised that the potential for home based franchises is huge. More and more people want to leave the rat race and work for themselves at the same time as keeping their overheads low.

The types of businesses that can be successfully run from home are wide and varied. They include businesses like financial solutions, business advice, computer repair, book keeping, ink cartridges, child minding, car repairs, business coaches and publishing your own magazines.

Most of these Denver franchises provide you with comprehensive training in how to set up your own home office. They will give you advice on basic bookkeeping, making sales calls, setting up broadband, setting up wireless connectivity and much more. There is a lot more to working at home than people realise!

When people first start thinking about working from home they fail to realise that their family will feel threatened. What was once their own private domain has now been turned into business premises! The first action that anybody should take is to set up a dedicated office that does not infringe on other family life.

The best idea, if possible is to convert the garage properly. It might cost a bit of money but it means that business visitors do not have to set a foot inside the house. If the garage is large enough then it is a good idea to add a toilet. This means that for all intents and purposes it is a self contained unit.

It is also important that people are comfortable in their working environment. Taking this into account make sure you have a water cooler, proper lighting, decent carpet and ventilation. After all chances are that you will spend more time in your “office” then in your house!

The basic equipment that is required includes a computer, broadband connection, printer, fax machine, filing cabinet, desk and some chairs. You can now get all in one printers that are also fax machines, copiers and scanners. Investing in a good quality machine that you can buy cheap ink cartridges for is a must.

One of the mistakes that a lot of people make when they work from home is to get up, switch on their computer whilst still in their night dress and start working. Before long it is mid afternoon and they still have not had a shower or brushed their teeth! Get into the habit of getting dressed before you even check your emails!

Make it clear to your family and friends that even though you are at home you are not to be disturbed during normal working hours. Otherwise you will get uninvited friends dropping in unannounced for a cup of coffee and a chat. It is amazing how fast the working day can disappear when you are entertaining!

There are some very good Denver franchise opportunities for people seeking to work from home if you set up your home office correctly and manage to get disciplined. If you miss the banter of the office than there are some really good online networking sites that are business related.

Making Your Business Franchise A Good Investment

Buying a business franchising is not an especially new way of doing business, but it's one that's proven throughout the years to be particularly successful. Whether you're the franchisor or the franchisee, business franchising has a number of plus points, and can be made into a good investment for everyone concerned, provided a few fundamentals are in place to make it a good investment.

The franchisor benefits from the franchise arrangement by being able to expand his business, often at a more rapid rate than would otherwise be possible. He also draws the financial benefits from the goodwill amounts built-in to the initial Denver franchise investments, and potentially even from a share of the franchisees' profits. The franchisees benefit from having a tried and tested business model, with a recognised brand or proprietary technology that will allow them to enter into business in a better position that they would have been had they started alone.

It sounds like a good investment to opt for business franchising, from both sides, but it's important to understand what makes a franchise a good investment. First there must be real brand value, or goodwill, which the franchisee can use to boost his business. There's no point in investing in a franchise that has never been run as a business, or has not been tried and tested to ensure it's a working formula - otherwise, in the absence of any invention or technology, there's no reason to invest in buying a franchise over starting your own business.

As a franchisee, you should also want to look further into the franchise deal to see exactly what you're getting for your money. Could you be in the same market position as your Denver franchise if you invested the start-up capital on your own? If the answer is yes, there's no commercial reason for you to enter a franchise agreement, and you should simply invest the money on your own behalf. If not, you might have found a valuable franchise opportunity.

For the franchisor to realise a return on his investment through the business franchising model, he must make sure that he prices the goodwill of the franchise competitively to give him the best deal while making sure franchisees get true value for money. They should also make sure that the benefits of their business model are spelled out over those of starting a similar, competing business from scratch. That way, they can promote the unique value proposition of their own business opportunity, to ensure the growth you both desire.

Franchising a business can be a great way of achieving growth, or of building your own business with less of the risk involved. Look at some of the major franchise success stories: McDonalds, Starbucks - so we know it works. Provided the groundwork is put in place, franchising can be an excellent choice for parties on both sides of the table, and provided it's worth the money to the franchisee, it should help provide a winning formula for business start-up and financial success.