Greg Nathan's Franchise Relations Tip #7

The Most Important Word In Franchising

A woman posed a simple question to her husband. “Do you love me?”
“Yes I love you” he said.
She wasn't convinced. “But do you really love me?”
“Yes of course I really love you”.
“Would you die for me?”
He thought for a moment. “Mine is an undying love!”

How to get them to sit up and listen

While franchisees may not want you to say you love them, they do want to hear that you care about their profitability. For a franchisee, “profitability” is a magic word that will get them to sit up and listen every time.

I always make a point of watching the faces of franchisees in large meetings while their franchisor executives talk about policies, plans and strategies. Glazed, downcast eyes always come to life when the following words are uttered:

“And what this means for your profitability is…..”

Franchisees need to know that you have their profitability in mind when you talk about your new strategies or when you ask them to invest in new equipment or a refurbishment program. And when you ask them to improve their operating standards, they need to be reminded how this will boost customer confidence and sales, and thus protect their longer term profitability.

He unwittingly communicated that he did not care

Once a CEO delivered a 60 minute lecture to his franchisees on how his company had invested in a cutting edge strategy that was going to deliver

record profits to the franchisor.  Not once did he refer to how this was going to benefit them, the franchisees. Not once did he thank them for their commitment and loyalty to the company and the brand. In fact, he was so absorbed in his self-serving monologue that he was oblivious to the rising anger in the room.

At the end of the session, there was almost a mass walk out. It wasn't that the franchisees were against his strategies. It was just that by failing to recognize their contribution and needs, he had unwittingly communicated that he did not care about their profitability.

Never assume franchisees know you care about their profitability. Just like the woman in our opening story you must tell them, again and again. This is just one of the simple truths that all franchisors need reminding about.

These simple truths are critical to the prosperity and success of your franchise network and I'll be reminding you about them in our Profitable Partnerships Boot Camp.

Register for Profitable Partnerships Boot Camp! May 25 & 26 in Denver. Hope you can join us!

Greg Nathan
Managing Director
Franchise Relationships Institute
www.FranchiseRelationships.com

Attendees will earn 300 Education Credits towards completion of the
Certified Franchise Executive (CFE) accreditation or CFE re-certification
by attending this program.

Greg Nathan, Managing Director of Franchise Relationships Institute

 

Often described as the international thought-leader and expert on franchise relationships, no one understands the unique challenges and rewards inherent in the franchisee-franchisor relationship like Greg and his team of psychologists at Franchise Relationships Institute. They have spent the past 20 years researching the science of successful franchise relations.