franchise - Senior Home Care Franchise

Four Franchising Mistakes to Avoid

Franchising in senior care is one of the best ways to build and own your business. Doing so is a great way to avoid the pitfalls that owners of startups and other traditional businesses struggle with so much. And buying a franchise allows you to completely avoid much of the difficult work that must be done when starting most types of businesses. However, even though franchising is one of the smartest — and safest — options available for owning your own business, there are a number of common mistakes that you might not be aware of.

If you’re interested in owning your own successful senior-care franchise, you’ll want to become very familiar with the following four mistakes! Avoiding them might mean the ultimate difference between wild success and utter failure.

Underestimating Franchise Costs

Franchising requires a significant initial investment. But it also requires having a sufficient amount of capital on hand to cover expenses that you might not be aware of. One of the biggest mistakes new franchisees make is failing to build capital beyond the initial costs of franchising.

Overestimating Freedom

You want to be your own boss and control your own destiny, which is great — franchising requires people who are willing to work hard to be successful. What’s more important, though, is your ability to defer to your franchisor who is able to provide you with a proven system for success. Sure, you’ll have to give up some of the freedoms enjoyed by people who run more traditional types of businesses, but you’ll also give up most of the headaches they experience!

Failure to Perform Research

Too many new franchisees are enchanted by the idea of getting in on the ground floor with a franchise opportunity that may be full of promises, but that offers little actual reward. The best thing you can do for yourself before you sign with a franchise is perform diligent research. How long has the company been around? How happy are its franchisees? Is there a future for its business model?

Underestimating the Competition

Your research will lead you to believe certain things about the competition, but you have to be willing to adjust your view over time. Your competitors may not be doing well today, but they are just as hungry for success as you are, so you’ve got to do what you can to stay on top of your game — even when the competition seems less than fierce.

More Franchising Wisdom and Advice

The senior care franchise world is a rewarding one for those who work hard and follow the guidelines recommended by their franchisors. Always Best Care has been a leader in non medical home care for 20 years, and we know what success looks like. However, if you’re interested in learning more about franchising in our industry, we recommend that you do your due diligence before making any decisions. Start by downloading our FREE senior care franchising ebook today, which is loaded with information you simply can’t find anywhere else!

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Four Franchise FAQs Answered!

If you’re interested in the possibility of franchising in the rapidly growing in home senior care industry — or if you’re simply curious about franchising — we’ve put together a list of the top-four franchise FAQs.

How Much Does Franchising Cost?

This is probably the most commonly asked question about franchising. Unfortunately, there is no clear, solid answer. Franchise costs are based on a number of different factors that change over time and are different depending on location. Your best bet is to ask questions of people who operate franchises in your area. Then, you can gain a sense of the financial outlay that will be required of you.

One thing you should remember: regardless of the cost of a franchise, it’s important to have extra capital on hand to account for costs that you may not consider at the outset of your franchise operations. Before you make any decisions, make sure you have a comfortable amount of capital on hand. Be sure, also, that you have the ability to borrow the necessary amounts of money, if needed.

How Can I Tell if a Franchise Has a Good Reputation?

This question should be addressed from two different angles:

1. What franchisees have to say (or not say) about the franchise
2. The press and media coverage for the franchise

Plan to talk to people who are current franchisees with the business you’re considering. Ask them lots of questions about the level of support they receive, the time commitments that are expected of them, their income (assuming they will share such information) and whether the experience has met their expectations. This is incredibly valuable information, but you should also pay close attention to what franchisees conspicuously leave out when they discuss their experiences. Take good notes and be proactive in this process for the best results!

In addition to speaking with current franchisees, it’s helpful to augment your explorations with research into the types of press and media coverage the franchise has received. By doing this, you get the perspective of the person on the front lines, as well as those who watch franchising from afar.

What Type of Franchise Is the Best?

This is like asking what kind of food is the best; it really depends upon one’s personal attributes, characteristics, preferences and history.

Obviously, we operate in the senior care industry, so we’re a bit biased, but a quick look at growth in various franchising sectors reveal that in home senior care is an area that will likely expand considerably in the coming years, making it a terrific choice for those who have an interest in the field.

As always, the best advice is to do your homework and trust your instincts.

What Kind of Support/Marketing Assistance Is Available?

The most successful franchise operations tend to be the ones that offer the most sophisticated and comprehensive assistance to franchisees. If an opportunity seems like it would involve too much responsibility on your part, you may want to look elsewhere. Ultimately, a franchise is a partnership in which the right balance needs to be found between the efforts of the franchisee and the work of the franchisor.

Learn More About Senior Care Franchising!

If you’d like to know more about what it’s like to own and operate a franchise, we invite you to download a copy of our FREE franchising ebook. Get your copy today and learn whether franchising is the right business opportunity for you!

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Building Your Email Database – Five Can’t-Miss Tips

Marketing your franchise on the Internet is essential for success, and one of the best ways to reach people is through email. Unfortunately, not many franchisees and business owners understand how to build and maintain an email database. And those who do still see their lists degrade by more than 20% each year, according to research.

If you want to grow your business, you’re going to have to integrate email into your marketing efforts, but you have to do it effectively. Thankfully, if you follow these five email database tips, you’ll be able to rely on email as a cornerstone of your overall campaign.

#1 – Create Great Content

If you want to make sure that you retain people in your database, you need to provide consistent, high quality content. Find a way to provide value without giving everything away, and remember the 80/20 rule: 80% of your content should provide value and engagement; only 20% should be promotional. This is the email-marketing sweet spot!

#2 – Take Advantage of Social Media

If you’re using Facebook, Twitter or any other social media platform, you can build your list quickly by creating campaigns that offer enticement for people to sign up. And if your posts are clever and creative, they’ll be shared by your fans! Additionally, if you’re not using some of the more popular platforms, you’re losing out; take a few moments to sign up for sites like Pinterest and YouTube, which offer access to segments of the population you might miss otherwise.

#3 – Calls to Action Everywhere

If you have a website or blog that promotes your franchise, don’t be shy about using it to grow your email database! You should place a clear, concise call to action at the end of every blog post and article. There are people out there who want to sign up and learn more about you – make it as easy as possible for them to do so.

#4 – Partnerships

Are there businesses or organizations that you partner with frequently? Combine your marketing powers by hosting events like webinars or chats through which you can gain access to their followers and fans. Make it mutually beneficial and you’ll both reach audiences that you wouldn’t have connected with through other means.

#5 – Grab Names and Email Addresses Everywhere!

To ensure that your database grows and grows (and contains a roster of real, potential customers), it’s necessary to use multiple methods. In addition to enticing people through your website and social media, don’t forget to ask people to sign up in the “real world” at events like trade shows, conferences meetups and more.

Always Best Care’s Marketing Muscle

When you franchise with Always Best Care, you join a company that takes modern marketing seriously. Email marketing is essential when it comes to growing your business, and with Always Best Care, you can take advantage of the latest tools to help you build and reach your list effectively. Interested in learning more? Download our FREE franchising ebook today!

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Find a Franchise – Tips to Help You Locate the Best Opportunity

Have you determined that buying a franchise is the best way for you to put your business skills and talents to work? If so, you know that franchising offers the best way for you to enjoy the experience of running your own business without the potential pitfalls that can get in the way of shepherding an original idea from its conception through its realization (and beyond). The real challenge for you now is determining what type of franchise to buy.

Are you stuck trying to determine which franchise will give you the best chance for success? Here’s how you can pinpoint the perfect opportunity!

Big Questions

It’s important to ask yourself some important questions to determine what you truly value in life and in business. Doing this will help you eliminate franchise opportunities that simply will not work for your life and your specific situation.

What are your goals?
What is your budget?
How do you see your role within the business?
What level of risk are you comfortable with?
What do you actually envision yourself doing?

Asking these questions will reveal a lot about who you are and what type of franchise will be the best fit, and it should help you focus on a specific industry or sector.

Franchise Attributes

Once you’ve determined the franchise sector that fits you best, it’s time to separate the players from the pretenders, which means asking even more questions:

Is the franchise dedicated to staying on the cutting edge of their industry?

What kind of support is offered to franchisees?
What is the corporate staff like – can you work with them?
Does the company care about your potential for success?
How selective is the franchise when choosing owners?

If a particular franchise fails to provide positive responses to these questions, you should look elsewhere!

Due Diligence and the FDD

Before you commit to a specific franchise, it’s critical that you review the Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD) thoroughly. This document will tell you everything you need to know about the company and your potential role within it, so if it doesn’t resonate with you and your values, you should take it as a sign that you ought to look elsewhere for opportunities! Remember – buying a franchise is one of the biggest investments you will ever make, so make sure you’re comfortable and confident before you make any commitments.

Learn More About Senior Care Franchising

The senior care industry is growing at an astronomical rate, and opportunities abound for enthusiastic business owners like you who want to grow successful businesses. If you’ve determined that this sector is a good fit, or if you’d just like to learn more about the industry, we invite you to download our FREE franchising ebook, which is loaded with even more insights that can help you make an informed decision about your future.

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.