Communicate!

Think about how you want to communicate. You’ll be the one setting the standards, and the more open and effective the lines of communication the more successful your franchise system will be. Remember, a lot of people who want to own franchises are frustrated with their current careers and one of the leading causes of their frustration is lack of communication between levels. So you need to carefully plan systems of information sharing, recognition and reporting. There are several methods of communication that can be successfully used.

• Telephone contact is one of the most effective and practical modes of communication. Frequent contact helps to ensure closeness and continuity.
• Mail, electronic communications, CD-ROM and video cassettes are common methods of providing and explaining instructions, supplying advertising and promotional materials, reporting sales figures and changes in personnel and more.
• Newsletters are useful in explaining various activities within the franchising company, recognizing the top sales zone, expressing the opinions of franchisor management, announcing new franchisees and presenting other information of a positive and helpful nature.
• Personal visits are good public relations tool that can be used to encourage and uplift the spirits of franchisees and their employees.
• Franchisee group meetings are one of the most beneficial forms of support for inexperienced franchisees and can encourage the sharing of experiences, techniques and advice by the more successful franchisees in the network.
• Franchisor sponsored meetings, such as regional meetings, semiannual meetings and conventions can be used to bring franchisees together on a regular basis to share information and provide training.
• Other methods include: a franchisee advisory group, remembrance calendar, bulletins, manual changes and memos, letters soliciting advice or input, birthday cards, anniversary cards, holiday cards addressed to franchisee and spouse and retraining programs.