People often think that buying a franchise is the best way to start their own business. In return for an often excessive franchise fee they will get a ‘turnkey’ business in a box with a brand name and all standard documentation from the word go. This may be the case but before looking at a mobile phone Franchise you must also think about the all the implications of agreeing to follow someone else’s business model. Some pointers to consider are:

1. Franchise Fee – you will have to pay an upfront Franchise Fee. The Franchise Fee will be anything from tens to hundreds of thousands and non-refundable (usually around 140,000 for a mobile phone network franchise such as an Orange Franchise or O2 Franchise). Even if you later realize that the business is not for you the Franchiser is very unlikely to refund your fee, or even release you from the agreement.

2. Franchise Agreement – When purchasing a Franchise you, the Franchisee, will be obliged to sign a Franchise Agreement with the Franchiser. Notoriously these are weighed in favor of the Franchiser, who created the Franchise Agreement, or paid their solicitors to produce it on their behalf.

3. Legal Minefield – Franchise Agreements are governed by Franchise Law, which is different to most other forms of law! A legal minefield.

4. Legal Advice Required – I am no legal expert but I would recommend that you have a legal adviser consider any Franchise Agreement that you consider entering into before you sign it. Or you could be signing away any potential future earnings without even realizing it. So build in the cost of asking a legal adviser to review it and explain what you will be bound to, this can cost anything from 500.

5. Ongoing Payments to Franchiser – In return for using the Franchisers brand name you will be obliged to pay them a percentage of your earnings! They will profit from your labor.

6. Strict and Costly Operating Guidelines – To continue to operate your Franchise you will be obliged to meet the Franchisers, often strict, operating protocols. This can include having to purchase specific items of marketing material at a cost determined by the Franchiser.

7. No Independence – You will have to show the Franchiser complete brand loyalty. Signing up to the Franchise with one mobile phone network will prohibit you from dealing with any of the other mobile phone networks. This will limit both your earning potential and your offer to your customer. Also you will not be able to market yourself as independent!

8. Limits to Stock Procurement and Sales Offer – You will be limited to their choice of accessories and applications, again limiting your earning potential.

9. Requirement to Hold Stock – For a retail mobile phone franchise you will be obliged to hold in a lot of stock at an investment of thousands of pounds. This will include spending money on stock which, in this market place, quickly becomes obsolete and worthless. You could end up watching your investment go down the drain.

10. Strict Premises Acquisition Requirements – If your chosen Franchise requires you to operate from premises then you will have to adhere to the Franchisers location requirements. This could involve you having to sign up to an expensive high street retail premises lease.

In my opinion if you are considering starting a mobile phone francise, such as an Orange Franchise or O2 Franchise, you would be better off starting your own mobile phone dealership as I did. Start your own home based mobile phone business offering all main 4 network solutions to your business customers. This is a far more lucrative business opportunity. The advantages? If you buy my guide and follow my systems:-

you will be able to manage your own finances;
you will be able to keep the profit that you make;
you will be able to run your own business;
you will be able to manage your own destiny;
you will be able to offer all mobile networks;
you will be able to offer your customers completely independent advice;
you will be able to avoid having to purchase and hold any stock;
you will be able to buy stock only when the customer has agreed to buy it from you;
you will be able to choose where to run your business from, even your own home;
you will be able to choose the hours you work;
you will be able to choose when or if you employ staff;
you will be able to avoid making costly mistakes.

Author: Stuart John
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: WordPress plugin Guest Blogger

For a organisation to go down the track of franchising itself there has been a lot of due consideration as in essence the owners of the business have to let go of some of the day to day management if they opt for this way of development. It is in the owners best interests that the finest candidates are chosen to be franchisees as this will make the most of their decision to Franchise.

owners of a company elect to adopt the services of a franchise organisation to recruit and select franchisees but in the main they cope with it within the business. If this is the case it is important that they realise that they are not trying to find a carbon copy of themselves. They are presumably confident business people who have had the capability to go it alone. What they need to identify for their Franchise Opportunity is a considerably toned down version. Someone with their skills and drive would most certainly find it difficult to stay within the limits of the rules and would need a lot of maintenance in order to curtail him or her.

So the main criteria for the organisation to look for when selecting someone to take up their Franchise For Sale are as follows:

First and foremost establish if they have the investment capabilities in line with your requirements. No matter how good the individual may seem if he hasn’t got the money there is no point wasting time on him by getting into further conversation. This should be a qualifying question for your marketing plan. Whether you’re advertising on line, at a franchise exhibition or in the press do stress that there will be an investment required otherwise you can waste a lot of time simply getting rid of the enquirers who were unaware of the money involved.

Make sure that they have some related experience but ideally not in the exact sector that you operate in. If an individual has already been involved in a similar industry it can be very difficult to get them on board doing things your way. A lot of time can be taken up dealing with plans that you have already thought about and dismissed or that just will not work for your franchise opportunity. The types of experiences that are likely to be helpful to you will change depending on your franchise sector but usually skills such as people management, sales skills and problem solving will fit in well with most franchise opportunities.

Finally make sure that you feel that you could work with the individual on a relatively close basis. There is generally a lot of interaction with the franchisee, in particulat at the start of new territory and it may even be that you will be the person in charge of their training.

Even after going through this process it is highly unlikely that you will make the right decision for every franchisee that you take on. It is therefore best before you begin the process therefore that you have a robust mechanism for performance assessment and termination of contract so that you are not stuck with someone who clearly not right for your organisation.

First of all it is sensible to be clear about just what a Franchise Opportunity gives you at it’s best. It enables you to run your own firm in a specific sector to a tried and tested business model provided to you by the Franchisor. It should allow a decent profit to be made and give you flexibility in your working life. So if you can spot the right franchise for you the rewards are without doubt worthwhile. Going through the following procedure should help to make the choice about which franchise suits you a lot easier.

Firstly it is vital to work out how much money you are able to invest. The cost of a franchise can range from a few thousand pounds to a hundreds of thousands of pounds and no matter how good the offer looks there is no point wasting time even looking at those that you cannot find the money for. So rather like buying a new home, identify your budget and stick to it.

The second most vial issue is to consider what you would like to do. What sectors appeal to you? Have you always loved working with the public? If so then a franchise in a customer facing industry may be perfect for you. Remember, initially you will be spending a large percentage of your time working on your new business in order to give it the best possible start. It is therefore vital that you select a sector that you will be happy to work in and that will continue to excite you in subsequent years.

Now is the time to have a look at which Franchise For Sale actually meets your criteria so far. There may be one or many to look at. Try to talk to existing franchisees in other areas and also work out ascertain where your nearest colleague will be. The Franchise business may not always offer this information up but with use of the internet and local listing sites you should be able to get a accurate idea of the network as it stands at the moment. If all still looks well at this point the next stage is to explore the market that you have selected.

Find out if there are any other Franchise organisations running in your area with similar products or services, also establish how many independents offer the same. If possible try out these services or get hold of the products to give yourself a good idea what the competition is and if there is room to increase into.

With all these checks it is possible to find some niggles and worries. Don’t be too alarmed if this does happen, especially in the number of businesses that appear to be in direct competition with the franchise that you are considering buying. Remember one of the main reasons for selecting a franchise in the first place is that the market, customers and sales strategy will have been tried, tested and proved. Marketing is generally strong and a recognised brand can frequently make your business first choice when up against a mass of independent companies.