Selecting a Franchise: Get To Know the Franchisor

Have a discussion with the franchisor.  Begin to get a sense of who they are, and what they do.  Be very careful to see if the franchisor is trying to see who you are too.  If they are not interested in you, and whether you fit their opportunity, they are not the kind of franchisor that I would recommend to you.  During your discussion with the franchisor, assuming you are still interested in learning more, make commitments as to what the next steps will be.  Make sure you honor any commitment you make, and make sure the franchisor does the same.

Then fill out the questionnaire that you will find in the sales literature.  If you work with franchise consultants, they may already have given you a questionnaire to fill out too.  Do fill them out.  The franchisor will want to see who you are and what your background is.  If you are working with franchise consultants, they will need to know the same things.  An additional bonus with a consultant is that their questionnaire may be acceptable to the franchisors so you may not have to fill out more than one!

The franchisors will not take you seriously if you do not fill out their questionnaires, since they will see that as lack of commitment on your part.  If you want them to invest time and effort in you, you must do the same in return.